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Greatness is Raytheon's target
The Facility Services organization at Raytheon Missile Systems' massive site in Tucson, Ariz., excels at the basics and pushes the bar with innovation, creativity, education and solutions-based customer service.


Departments
Lubrication Lessons
How grease kills
• Issue: 1/2006
• Author: Jim Fitch, Noria Corporation
• Departments|Lubrication Lessons
What’s life like inside a rolling element bearing? Let’s say you are a dollop of grease and you’ve just been pushed by a grease gun into the dark recesses of a bearing cavity. You are now in a combat zone. What are your orders? Maybe you are on a suicide mission. Your bearing has been screaming for reinforcements and you are it, the new recruit, all gooey and slimy.
 
Reliability Forum
Drill/driver buying tips
• Issue: 1/2006
• Author: 
• Departments|Reliability Forum
A select number of power tool manufacturers were asked: “In your opinion, what is a factor that consumers frequently overlook (or misinterpret) when shopping for a cordless drill/driver?”
 
Reliability in Action
Don't stop with condition monitoring
• Issue: 1/2006
• Author: Tom Whittemore Jr., P.E., CMRP
• Departments|Reliability in Action
So much of our emphasis in reliability organizations is placed on the application of technologies and the savings associated with finding a problem and preventing an unplanned outage or catastrophic failure. Many times, we repeat this same procedure, over and over throughout the plant, because we stop at identifying the physical problem and our resulting actions do not address the latent cause.
 
Safety Report
How to put out a fire
• Issue: 1/2006
• Author: 
• Departments|Safety Report
Fighting a fire is risky business. Problems can occur if training on the use of fire extinguishers is not provided. Placing a few units in some strategic locations and expecting your employees to know how to use them just won’t do the trick.
 
Editorial
Advisors
The business of maintenance
• Issue: 1/2006
• Author: Dr. Jay Lee
• Editorial|Advisors
The cost of condition-based, predictive maintenance (PdM) can reach a point of negative return. The cost of PdM must always be weighed against the benefits.
 
Editors Column
A reaction to inaction
• Issue: 1/2006
• Author: Paul V. Arnold, Noria Corporation
• Editorial|Editors Column
What do you think of when you hear the term “wrench time”? For most maintenance managers at American manufacturing plants, it’s not pleasant, and for good reason.
 
The Exponent
Expecting reliability but rewarding failure
• Issue: 1/2006
• Author: Drew D. Troyer, Noria Corporation
• Editorial|The Exponent
Drew Troyer dissects what happens when you talk reliability but reward failure.
 
Features
Advisors
Leaders in maintenance, Part 2
• Issue: 1/2006
• Author: Tor Idhammar
• Features|Advisors
To get people to do what you want them to do, you must continuously build business processes that enable them to perform at their best.
 
Planning: What's in it for you?
• Issue: 1/2006
• Author: Doc Palmer
• Features|Advisors
What is the value of planning and scheduling maintenance work? It depends on who is asking the question. Are you a technician, supervisor, plant manager or company?
 
The most important step
• Issue: 1/2006
• Author: John Ha
• Features|Advisors
In recruiting, managers generally do a poor job of developing accurate job descriptions.
 
Lean tools can unlock reliability
• Issue: 1/2006
• Author: John Schultz
• Features|Advisors
How in the heck can you get all of this reliability work done when you are already buried with existing work? That’s a good question. Keep reading for the answer.
 
Lubed, reliable and lean
• Issue: 1/2006
• Author: Mike Johnson, Noria Corporation
• Features|Advisors
There is a big gap between the actual and perceived capabilities of machinery lubrication at most plants. And, as long as managers are satisfied that their programs are within shooting distance of “good enough,” it is unlikely that those programs will contribute much to improved reliability.
 
Applied Reliability
Maximized resources, increased effectiveness
• Issue: 1/2006
• Author: Kevin Ives, Rockwell Automation
• Features|Applied Reliability
Pressure to show a return on capital investments, coupled with the need to do more with less, is forcing companies to look at maintenance as an area of profit-enhancing opportunities.
 
Analyzing thread treatment options
• Issue: 1/2006
• Author: Andy Bardon, Henkel Corporation
• Features|Applied Reliability
Proactively and correctly treating threaded pipes and fasteners with thread treatment products is critical to efficient and cost-effective manufacturing.
 
Web Exclusives
None
Do you listen when your equipment speaks to you?
• Issue: 1/2006
• Author: Torbjorn Idhammar and Michael Lippig
• Web Exclusives|None
Do you listen to your motors complaining about overload? Do you see your pump packings crying a flood? Do you hear your bearings whine about contaminated lubricants? Do you notice your steam system coughing excessive condensate and complaining about strained elbows?
 
All about hazardous materials storage
• Issue: 1/2006
• Author: TrainingOnLine.com
• Web Exclusives|None
We all know how important it is to take precautions when working with hazardous materials. But we may not always recognize that it's equally important to maintain the same high level of safety when these materials are in storage.
 
Lean manufacturing: Is it really worth it?
• Issue: 1/2006
• Author: R. Michael Donovan
• Web Exclusives|None
Long production runs, big backlogs and long lead times are fast becoming operating styles of the past. Flexibility and quick response must become the norm. The driving force behind this need is customers who increasingly expect short lead times for products configured exactly as specified and delivered on time, every time.
 
CMMS usage and implementation survey
• Issue: 1/2006
• Author: Kris Bagadia
• Web Exclusives|None
Kris Bagadia requests you to fill out this CMMS survey. He is writing a book on CMMS to be published by McGraw Hill. The results of this survey will be published in the book and a copy of the results will be sent to you.
 
The importance of Continuous Process Improvement
• Issue: 1/2006
• Author: Fred Fishman, Manager Strategic Procurement Programs, TechSolve, Inc
• Web Exclusives|None
Bookstores are crowded with large print, 90-page bestsellers that tout the next miracle cure for every business ill. Unlike these flavor-of-the-month moneymakers, the idea of Continuous Process Improvement is a relatively simple concept that has a proven track record and is adaptable to nearly every business. Putting it bluntly, Continuous Process Improvement is what it says it is – introducing improvements continually.
 
The impact of language and culture on job safety
• Issue: 1/2006
• Author: TrainingOnLine.com
• Web Exclusives|None
Following safety and health rules is a challenge for any worker. There’s a lot to learn and remember about federal standards, company policies and task-specific protocols. Imagine how much harder all this must be for those who know little or no English in a workplace where almost no one speaks their language. It’s also tough for those who must train and manage these workers, and for those responsible for their safety and health.
 
Ballbar a key tool in Rockwell’s manufacturing philosophy
• Issue: 1/2006
• Author: 
• Web Exclusives|None
The QC10 ballbar gives maintenance technicians at Rockwell Automation an internationally recognized standard for assessing the dynamic motion and positioning precision of machine tools and production machinery.
 
Stop bumping your head
• Issue: 1/2006
• Author: Mike Wroblewski
• Web Exclusives|None
Art imitates life, so I am told. Based on what I see repeatedly at manufacturing facilities in America, it seems that a lot of us keep bumping our heads. It amazes me that, very much like Winnie-the-Pooh, we don't take a moment to think. We are too busy with the chaos of running (surviving) the day-to-day challenges of work that we never stop to find another way (a better way!).
 
Hot-wash: Lessons learned from a kaizen event
• Issue: 1/2006
• Author: Mike Wroblewski
• Web Exclusives|None
Our military has long utilized the process of debriefing, or a “hot-wash,” to examine the lessons learned on the battlefield or training session for improvement and evaluation. Such a look back provides a critical review of one’s actions. Here is what columnist Mike Wroblewski learned from a recent kaizen event.