Page 261 - TPM A Route to World-Class Performance

Casestudies 235

By Danny McGuire, Genua1 Manager, and
Kevin O’Sullivan, TPM Facilitator

1 .O Background issues
RHP Bearings in Blackburn, whch manufadures cast iron bearing housings
for a variety of uses from agricultural machinery to fairground rides, is one
of seven RHP manufacturing sites in Europe owned by Japanese group NSK,
the world’s second largest bearings manufacturer. NSK acquired RHP in
1990, when the Blackburn site was under the imminent threat of closure
because of high costs and the subsequent lack of competitiveness.
Employing 93 staff and producing 220 product types, RHP Bearings
Blackburn has turned its fortunes around through the efforts of its workforce
and the support of NSK. Total Productive Maintenance (TPM) was introduced
to the site in 1993 and has since become the driver of all continuous
improvement activities. As a result, RHP Bearings has reduced unit costs,
increased productivity and attracted capital investment to the site - all under
a no-redundancy agreement.
The site is now so flexible in terms of customer response that it can turn a
product around in less than two days, compared to two weeks in the early
1990s.
The company’s rise from the ashes towards becoming a world-class
organization has been recognized by a series of prestigious awards, including
Investors in People, the Business Environment Association, North West Quality
Award and IS0 14001 environmental status (one of the first iron foundries in
the world to achieve it). The site has also been used as a case study visit for
last year’s TPM5 Conference. All this has been achieved through the rigorous
implementation of the TPM methodology.

2.0 Why TPM?

Although first introduced five years ago, TF’M has only become an integral
part of the company culture since it was reinvigorated eighteen months ago.
Until then, previous efforts to drive TPM had failed because it was largely
theoretical and the workforce faded to see its relevance to the everyday running
of the plant.
Then in early 1996 WCS International was brought in to do a scoping
study of the plant, run a four-day workshop in conjunction with Lynn W~ams
of the AEEU, and to launch and support two pilot TPM projects. This time,
under the leadership of Plant Manager, Danny McGuire, and TPM Facilitator,
Kevin O’Sullivan, TE’M was made hectly relevant to the jobs of the staff.