The Brief:

  • Eaton Havant produce high quality components for the hydraulics Industry
  • Success within the market is based upon quality & tolerance of its components
  • Eaton’s Total Production Maintenance (TPM) regime sought improvements in maximising production time, by operator efficiency & reduction of machine downtime
 

Challenges:

  • Bring machines up to TPM standard, maintaining and measuring at that level
  • Achieving buy-in from machine operators and involving them during the solution phase
  • Challenging condition of the machines at end of each shift
  • Availability of machines for regular maintenance, yet retaining continuity of production
  • Global pressure to reduce costs
 

Solutions:

  • Formed joint working team combining skills and resources of Eaton and Johnson Controls to resolve issues as a partnership
  • Created instructions for machine operators to promote ownership for cleaning and first line fix (repairs)
  • Implemented education programme for operators, including standard work sheets produced for individual machine clean and first line maintenance checks
  • Established online, real-time reporting system of issues and breakdowns
  • Implemented detailed planned maintenance regime to maximise machine time
 

Results:

  • Machine productivity improved from 76 to 78 per cent (81 per cent on some machines)
  • Improved quality, tolerance & accuracy of components
  • Reduced number of reactive maintenance calls received
  • Downtime decreased by 40 per cent on TPM machines
  • Increased operator efficiency and improved morale resulting from working with cleaner machines & environments
  • Greater operator ownership
  • Reduced H&S issues due to cleaner working environments