Autonomous maintenance of equipment in industrial workshops

In today’s industrial context, marked by increasing competition and ever more stringent demands in terms of quality and deadlines, optimizing production processes has become a crucial issue. Autonomous equipment maintenance is a particularly promising approach.

When implemented effectively, step by step, based on the principles of Lean Management, self-maintenance can significantly improve the performance of industrial workshops, by reducing equipment maintenance costs, increasing machine availability and fostering a culture of reliability.

Importance of autonomous maintenance

Autonomous maintenance is one of the eight fundamental pillars of the TPM (Total Productive Maintenance) methodology, which aims to optimize the overall efficiency of equipment.

Born in Japan in the 1970s, TPM aims to eliminate production losses by tackling their sources. It goes beyond traditional maintenance to involve all company players, from production to management.

• Autonomous maintenance: teams of operators take charge of daily machine maintenance.
• Continuous improvement of plant and equipment: Malfunctions and breakdowns are thoroughly inspected and analyzed to identify sustainable solutions.
• Function restoration : The machines are restored to their optimal state by precise team actions.
• Predictive maintenance: Monitoring and inspection techniques are used to anticipate failures.
• Quality control: Operators integrate quality control into their work routines.
• Inventory and spare parts management: Stocks are optimized to guarantee immediate availability of parts.
• Education and training: Staff and team skills are developed in maintenance and problem-solving.
• Safety and environment: The emphasis is on accident prevention and environmental protection.

What is autonomous maintenance of industrial equipment?

Autonomous maintenance involves teams of operators and production technicians in the day-to-day maintenance of equipment. Self-maintenance is therefore contrasted with maintenance carried out by professional maintenance technicians. This involves giving teams the skills and tools they need to carry out regular checks, identify potential anomalies, perform inspections and minor interventions, and participate in the implementation of preventive maintenance plans.

Objectives and benefits of autonomous maintenance

In general, autonomous maintenance means actively involving production operators in the day-to-day maintenance of their machines. Level 1 maintenance actions are carried out by operators as part of autonomous maintenance. Level 1 maintenance covers all simple actions that do not require equipment to be dismantled (simple adjustments, changing consumables, etc.). This approach empowers operators and enables them to develop in-depth knowledge of the equipment in their charge.

The main objectives of autonomous or self-maintenance are :

• Prevent breakdowns by carrying out regular inspections, measurements and checks. of machines and equipment Operators can identify and correct anomalies before they penalize production.
• Reduce downtime and minimize unplanned machine stoppages. This results in higher equipment availability, and therefore production capacity.
• Improve product quality by keeping machines in good working order. This has the effect of reducing the number of rejects while guaranteeing consistent quality.
• Involve teams of operators in the maintenance of the equipment they use. This fosters motivation and a culture of continuous improvement.
• Reduce maintenance costs by minimizing the need for outside teams and optimizing the use of in-house resources. Autonomous maintenance enables significant savings on maintenance costs.
• Improve operator safety in the workplace by identifying and correcting potential hazards, thus contributing to a safer working environment.

In short, implementing a autonomous maintenance strategy has many positive impacts on the workshop and its teams, as well as on productivity and profitability. It’s important to remember that the earlier and more closely the machine is inspected and serviced, the shorter the downtime. Autonomous maintenance therefore improves productivity, and boosts OEE and profitability.

How to implement a 7-step autonomous maintenance strategy?

Implementing a successful self-maintenance strategy requires a structured and consistent step-by-step approach:

step 1 : Operator training

It is essential to provide operators and technicians with the skills needed to identify problems, carry out minor interventions and follow maintenance procedures. Operators must be trained in preventive maintenance techniques and simple troubleshooting tools. This training must be provided by qualified trainers and must be adapted to the needs and skill levels of the operators.

step 2 : Setting standards

It’s important to know the optimum operating standards, and to adapt them to the industrial process of each workshop and each machine. The more refined and precise these standards are, the easier it is to know when to act, and by what means, for effective self-maintenance.

step 3 : Drawing up a maintenance schedule

A maintenance schedule must be drawn up to ensure that preventive tasks are carried out regularly. This schedule must take account of production constraints and operator availability. It defines the frequency of all types of maintenance, whether cleaning, lubrication, measurement, etc.

step 4 : Implementation of tools and checklists

Suitable tools such as checklists, tracking tables and maintenance management systems make it easier for operators to carry out maintenance tasks, and ensure traceability of interventions and inspections.

step 5 : Setting up performance indicators

Performance indicators must be defined to measure the effectiveness of the autonomous maintenance strategy. These may include the number of breakdowns and inspections, machine downtime and maintenance costs.

step 6 : Communication and team involvement

Regular, transparent communication must be established between all those involved in the self-maintenance strategy (operators, managers, etc.). This communication helps to share information, remove obstacles and keep teams motivated.

step 7 : Continuous improvement

The performance of the autonomous maintenance strategy must be regularly assessed, and improvement actions implemented on an ongoing basis. This continuous improvement approach helps maintain maintenance efficiency and respond to new business challenges.

How does Astn’go support the autonomous maintenance plan?

One of the key stages in autonomous maintenance is the knowledge and precise inspection of production equipment by operators and managers. With Astn’go, all production equipment is connected in real time. The data collected is analyzed and processed to define the condition of the equipment. Using real-time data, Astn’go can check whether or not autonomous maintenance needs to be carried out, whether the equipment is operating at a normal rate, whether it is in good working order…

Checklist Extension

Astn’go’s Checklist extension makes it easy to parameterize the performance of self-maintenance tasks and ensure traceability of these interventions. These self-maintenance activities can be parameterized and are listed in a maintenance activity table. These regular equipment inspections help prevent machine malfunctions by detecting signs of potential problems at an early stage. By alerting operators directly at their workstations, checklists ensure that periodic maintenance is carried out autonomously.

The maintenance manager can delegate the autonomous and periodic maintenance of equipment to the workshop. Based on actual machine utilization data, autonomous maintenance complies with manufacturers’ plans without over-maintenance.

The data analysis extension enables data to be used to optimize autonomous equipment maintenance processes. Dashboards can be created and parameterized, using workshop data to understand and refine the causes of breakdowns. In order to gain precise knowledge of the workshop and implement the right self-maintenance action plans, these analyses can be carried out according to equipment, references, OFs, etc.

Astn’go is a powerful tool for supporting and simplifying autonomous maintenance, standardizing the industrial maintenance process, and maintaining continuous improvement actions over time to avoid the “Yo-Yo” effect.

Autonomous maintenance, a modern approach

Autonomous maintenance of industrial equipment appears to be a modern and promising approach to optimizing maintenance operations, reducing costs, improving equipment reliability and enhancing overall workshop performance. By involving operators and technicians in day-to-day maintenance tasks, industrial companies can gain in efficiency, safety and quality.

While CMMS (Computerized Maintenance Management System) requires dedicated knowledge and resources, equipment inspection and self-maintenance management by operators can be carried out using TRS tracking software, or commonly known as TRS software, such as Astn’go.