Communication

By this time, the traditional barriers between maintenance and operations should be disappearing. The real source of this traditional, long-standing problem is the lack of communication. Each side has difficulty justifying to the other its own side of the discussion. In fact, operations managers may still have some difficulty in understanding how much priority should be given to maintenance activities relative to their own goals and objectives. This chapter discusses techniques that can be used to translate all factors into a common language, one that all the company can understand.

The search for language that is understood throughout the company can be reduced to one phrase: Financial Justification. Everyone must understand how maintenance contributes to the financial standing of the company. One statement must be clear to all involved:

Cost-Benefit Decisions

Nearly all maintenance decisions are cost-benefit decisions. They must address the question "What is the company going to get in return for making this investment on maintenance?" The answer may be any of several, including reduced depreciation of assets, increased production, or higher quality. The problem lies in expanding the point of reference in order to see the entire picture.