For many asset owners, shifting market demands or changes in their business landscape sometimes leads to lower production volumes. This naturally creates a push to reduce operational costs by lowering plant availability and optimizing maintenance.
However, as I discussed with our rotating equipment expertBernardo Sequeira, a critical pitfall is emerging. The temptation to simply cut or postpone maintenance tasks to save money quickly. It does paint a nice picture in the books for the short term: This approach is not just ineffective; it's dangerous.
The core challenge is to reduce costs strategically while ensuring the installation remains safe and reliable.
The Fallacy of Simply Cutting or Postponing Maintenance
A lower operational tempo does not automatically equal a lower risk profile. In fact, extended shutdowns or intermittent operations can introduce new and accelerated degradation mechanisms. And with that an even higher risk profile. Bernardo highlighted that rotating equipment, for example, can suffer from issues like brinelling in bearings or rotor sag during prolonged standstill. Simply deferring a scheduled overhaul based on fewer running hours ignores these new, non-operational risks. This creates a hidden risk profile that can lead to unexpected failures upon startup or during operation.
The Solution: A Shift to a Smarter, Risk-Based Strategy
Instead of asking, "What can we cut?", the question should be, “How does our risks change, and how should our strategy adapt?”
- Re-evaluate the Risk Profile: The first step is a thorough analysis of how the new operational mode affects equipment integrity. This means moving beyond a purely production-driven view of risk. Consider factors like corrosion under insulation (CUI) during downtime, the impact of frequent start-stops on thermal and mechanical stress, and the specific preservation needs of idle equipment, to name a few.
- Redefine Criticality: Asset criticality must be reviewed. Components that are essential for safety and integrity ("Safety Critical Elements") must retain their maintenance priority, regardless of production levels. For less critical components where wear is directly tied to usage, maintenance frequency can be safely adjusted. The key is to make this distinction consciously and based on data.
- From Time-Based to Condition-Based Maintenance: Static, time-based maintenance plans are obsolete in a dynamic operational environment. The strategy must shift towards a condition-based and predictive approach. By using data analytics and monitoring, maintenance is performed only when necessary, based on the actual health of the asset, not just based on days passed on the calendar. This ensures resources are focused where they are effectively needed.
Transitioning from lower production volumes to lower maintenance costs is achievable, but it requires a sophisticated, (preferably a) data-driven strategy, not a red pen. It's about implementing smarter, efficient, and effective maintenance, not just less maintenance.
By aligning the maintenance strategy with the new current risk profile, asset owners can effectively reduce costs while upholding their fundamental responsibility: ensuring a safe and reliable installation.
Do you want to explore how your maintenance strategy can evolve with changing production volumes? Get in touch withBram Hes(bram.hes@bilfinger.com) from Bilfinger to discover how a risk-based approach can reduce costs without compromising on safety.
Author: Bram Hes, Asset Management Consultant & Manager AM Transformations
