Page 27 - Machinery Component Maintenance

Chapter 2

Malntenance Organization and
Control for Mutti-Plant

CorporaUons*

There are many approaches to performing maintenance and engineer-
ing activities at an operating facility. The type of process, plant size, lo-
cation, and business conditions at a particular time are all variables that
can affect this approach. The system must fit the basic overall corporate
goals. The final evaluation of success, however, for whichever system
selected, is achieving the lowest possible product cost over extended pe
nods of time at varying business conditions.
This segment of our text will concentrate on plant maintenance and en-
gineering service in a multi-plant corporation operated on a combination
centralized-decentralized basis. Organizational control methods are all
planned for an optimum approach to cost economy. Basically, then, we
are presenting corporate management’s approach to an overall mainte-
nance strategy.

Type of Operation
To understand the organizational approach to maintenance and engi-
neering described here, it is first necessary to understand the size and
type of operations involved. Wk should assume that the facilities would
fall into virtually all size categories. The plants are quite autonomous and
may select maintenance organizations to fit their particular needs.

* Based on articles by W. J. Scharle (“Multi-Plant Maintenance and Engineering Con-
trol,” Chemical Engineering Progress, January 1969) and J. A. Trotter (“Reduce
Maintenance Cost with Computers,” Hydrocarbon Processing, January 1979). By per-
mission of the authors.

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