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A work order authorizes and directs an individual or group to perform a specific task. A well-defined work order system should include all requested and completed maintenance jobs, whether they are repetitive or one-time. This system is helpful for management in controlling costs and evaluating job performance.
Although the type and size of a work order can vary between maintenance organizations, a work order should at least include information such as
To ensure a smooth work order management process, organizations can use CMMS (Computerized Maintenance Management Software) or EAM (Enterprise Asset Management) to automate the process and streamline the work order from start to finish.
The division of work into various work order types is driven by the organizational requirements to measure multiple areas where work is done. Regulatory, as well as corporate reasons, can govern this. A work order type can be defined as an area of work that requires work to be carried out in various modes of execution. The definition of a work order type should be based on the following:
Covers all work (such as regularly scheduled inspections, overhauls, replacements, repairs, and service work) required to keep the plant running to set standards. In addition, it covers emergency work needed when the plant is forced to stop unexpectedly.
Covers labor and materials for the design, planning, and execution of work associated with the following stages of erecting, dismantling, and improving the plant beyond its original or current design specifications.
Covers all work required to comply with regulatory controls or requirements for a specific plant, including electrical systems, pressure vessels, pressure release devices, and lifting equipment.
It covers all work on equipment required to maintain high environmental safety levels that most operations aspire to achieve.
S.A. covers all work required to maintain a high level of safety, including scheduled tasks and routine safety inspections.
This refers to how tasks are executed under the various classifications of work defined in the work order types rather than a class of work itself.
Maintenance types include
Corrective maintenance is a type of maintenance performed in response to a problem or failure. It is typically carried out after a problem has been identified and is aimed at correcting the underlying cause of the problem so that it does not reoccur. Corrective maintenance can be contrasted with preventive maintenance, which is aimed at preventing problems from occurring in the first place.
Any repair work required to return the plant to full operating, safety, or environmental standards. C.A. can include capital work, such as repairs after devastating incidents, catastrophic failures, and acts of God.
Preventive maintenance is a type of maintenance that is performed to prevent potential issues from arising; This can involve scheduled inspections, repairs, replacements, and more. Doing this can help to avoid costly repairs or replacements down the road and can help keep your equipment running smoothly.
Maintenance work done in a planned way with a predetermined schedule is called Time Based Maintenance (TBM). Maintenance work done in a planned way based on the condition of the equipment is called Condition-Based Maintenance (CBM).
Predictive maintenance (P.D.)
Predictive maintenance is a data-driven approach that uses sensors and machine learning to predict when equipment will fail; This helps organizations schedule maintenance before failure occurs, preventing downtime and reducing maintenance costs.
P.D. is used in some cases where modern equipment diagnostics help predict the time frame for undertaking maintenance work by planning based on the condition and scientific predictions.
B.R. covers all breakdowns for all classes of work and is an effective indicator for tracking the plant's overall health. A breakdown is defined as a situation that has stopped a piece of equipment and requires fixing or as a failure that will stop a piece of equipment within a short period, requiring immediate attention.
It refers to a shutdown of equipment, production line, assembly line, or production cell to carry out certain maintenance activities.
This methodology involves operators in daily maintenance activities on their machines. This approach teaches operators to clean, inspect, and lubricate their equipment rather than rely on maintenance staff to fix problems. This approach can lead to significant improvements in the maintenance function and a shift in the "I run it, and you fix it" mentality to "I run it, and I fix it.
CMMS includes a work order template for creating a standard for performing work. The work may be corrective, preventative, predictive, or involve modifications that are likely to be repeated.
A template can be linked to a maintenance routine or used to create a work order. You create a one-to-many relationship by linking it to a maintenance routine, meaning one template work order can be used for many maintenance routines.
In addition to serving as a repository of experience for your maintenance plant, a template can also reduce the amount of planning work required for each task. It should include all relevant information needed to complete a task and align with the corporate definition of a planned work order.
The Work Order Software template can also improve planner-to-craft employee ratios. It is often recommended that a maintenance planner should plan for at most 15-20 craftsmen. However, with the effective use of maintenance work order templates, this ratio can be extended to 35-40 because templates of higher quality can significantly reduce the time spent on work order planning by maintenance planners.
