Measuring maintenance

When physical plant value, maintenance labor, materials, and overhead are considered, maintenance is the largest single variable operating cost in most enterprises. Yet maintenance does not receive a proportionate amount of management attention. It is revealed that the industrial engineer can spearh...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:IIE Solutions 1999-10, Vol.31 (10), p.32
Main Author: Westerkamp, Thomas A
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Customer services
Employment
Maintenance management
Productivity
Work measurement
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Summary:When physical plant value, maintenance labor, materials, and overhead are considered, maintenance is the largest single variable operating cost in most enterprises. Yet maintenance does not receive a proportionate amount of management attention. It is revealed that the industrial engineer can spearhead dramatic productivity improvement by implementing work measurement to manage and control maintenance. An examination of the nature of maintenance work reveals its unique characteristics. It is low-volume work. A maintenance technician often does many different jobs in a single day, unlike production personnel, who do high-volume work. Universal maintenance standards can be used everywhere maintenance work is performed - manufacturing, service, government, utilities, commerce, finance, education, and health care. They can be applied to conventional building and equipment maintenance as well as to the huge and rapidly growing information technology assets of an enterprise.
ISSN:1085-1259
2168-9210