PCA Blog
Obsolete Inventory: Addressing an Enemy of Efficiency
Volumes have been written about how plants and other facilities are impacted by poor inventory management — and in particular, excess inventory of all types. Obsolete inventory is one of the culprits, and tackling it poses two specific challenges.
The SMRP Conference Exposed Some Big Industry Challenges
At the recent SMRP Conference in Louisville, PCA’s booth was approached by attendees looking for inspiration. We engaged in several days of thoughtful discussions about the future of maintenance and reliability and saw a lot of interest in our new Pharmaceutical/Life Sciences Industry Playbook.
Enough is Enough Maintenance and Reliability Hiring Managers!
Enough is Enough Maintenance and Reliability Hiring Managers! We know in the ideal world of finding your next maintenance team hire, you want the candidate to show job stability, and that you will not consider applicants that are “job hoppers”. Let’s jump back into the reality of the current state of the Maintenance and Reliability candidate pool.
Reliability-Centered Leadership in the Age of Industry 4.0
With the advent of Industry 4.0, facility management may be reevaluating or extending the role of the reliability engineer (RE). Given its process-centered, highly technical focus, Industry 4.0 presents a perfect opportunity for REs to shine. Nevertheless, in my opinion, organizations that assume the majority of the RE’s work will be process centered are making a grave miscalculation.
Purchasing in the Pulp and Paper Industry: Creating Predictability Where None Exists
Profit margins for forest products industry firms are volatile, at best, due to raw materials availability and pricing, competitive pressures and market forces. PCA helped one paper mill gain a measure of predictability — and save $1 million per year — by moving to best practices machine parts purchasing.
Storeroom Staff Mismanagement, Pt 2: The Dangers of Indifferent Personnel
Earlier this month, PCA Associate Jim Clifford shared a true story of storeroom staff mismanagement that illustrated how just one bad personnel decision can snowball into a big problem (with corresponding significant financial loss.) Here, the author expands his tale to discuss the damage that non-committal employees, whether in the storeroom or outside of it, can do.
Lessons in Storeroom Staff Mismanagement
For personnel involved in maintenance repair and operations (MRO), how storerooms are staffed may be one of the greatest mysteries of all time. In reality, the answer is often disappointingly simple: whoever is available at that time and will not object too severely to being put in there. Unfortunately, that’s generally the worst possible course of action. In this article, PCA Director of MRO Services Jim Clifford shares a painful, real-life experience and explains why careful selection of MRO storeroom staff (and especially storeroom management) is critical to the efficient storeroom operations that help boost bottom lines.
The True Cost of Spare Parts Inventory: The Calculations May Surprise You
In every industry, spare parts are crucial to equipment reliability. That sometimes leads purchasing managers to overstock items that are frequently used. This approach is OK (if not great) as part of a cohesive inventory management plan to use those parts efficiently, but most of the time, it is not. In a modern, well-run facility, there simply is no room for excess spare parts. This article explains why overstocking is so detrimental.