FEATURE MAINTENANCE MANAGEMENT
OPTIMISING MAINTENANCE using consultancy services
Given the importance of safety and transparency regarding lifting equipment Konecranes has appointed a dedicated UK consultancy service manager to help implement its offering
ll businesses seek to achieve an advantage by differentiating their product or service offering from that of their competitors. In certain industries this can be secured through marketing driven initiatives that are often nothing more than ‘smoke and mirrors’. Thankfully, when it comes to the arena of cranes and lifting equipment, for safety reasons alone differentiation initiatives demand full transparency and are based on hard evidence and facts. When it comes to helping companies effectively manage their lifting equipment asset base there are already numerous service and maintenance tools available across the industry. As with all aspects of business, technology driven change is continuing to positively shape the look of the asset management landscape for the benefit of all organisations that operate cranes and lifting equipment.
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CONSULTATION SERVICES It is here that we take an in-depth look at the field of consultation services, a process that is fast developing thanks to its potential to effectively and efficiently answer the major concerns that crane and lifting equipment owners have to live with on a daily basis. Given the future strategic importance that is deemed to exist within this arena Konecranes has appointed dedicated UK consultancy service manager Lee Thorne to help fully implement the service offering. By definition, many of the individual
elements that fall within consultation services have been employed within the lifting industry for many years. What has changed though, is the power of the technology that the likes of Konecranes has developed to deliver the analysis, inspections and studies involved. With technology comes not just speed
and greater accuracy but a service providers ability to deliver a more cost- effective solution in the process. In essence it’s a win-win situation as
the scope that consultation services can provide is effective in answering the key concerns that any crane owner has. Broadly speaking these are: ● What is the crane’s current condition and remaining life expectancy?
16 MAY 2015 | FACTORY EQUIPMENT
actions that might be required to maximise the use of equipment, thereby enhancing safety, improving performance and increasing reliability. At its heart CRS uses advanced methods to provide a dependable technology roadmap to guide customers through improving equipment performance and reliability.
● How can cranes be improved from a safety and productivity standpoint? ● Can they be modified to accommodate increased production, greater capacity and increased load? ● What maintenance and modernisation investment is likely to be required in the future? ● Is maintenance and modernisation investment being optimised? ● Is it possible to prevent maintenance costs rising or reduce them? In seeking to deliver answers that can be used to create and implement future planning mechanisms based on informed decisions, organisations carrying out the consultation process have at their disposal tools that are effective at looking at areas including lifetime and geometric analysis, maintenance and working conditions and critical and structural component monitoring.
CRANE RELIABILITY STUDY Central to the whole process is a crane reliability study (CRS) that serves to provide a deep insight into the condition, safety and efficiency of all types of overhead and port cranes with a view to optimally predicting and controlling total cost of capital equipment ownership. CRS provides an exhaustive analysis and
comprehensive report for all makes and models of overhead cranes and lifting equipment, outlining its condition and current operating capacity. A CRS report encompasses recommendations for future
CRS provides an exhaustive analysis and comprehensive report for all makes and models of overhead cranes and lifting equipment
LONG-TERM MODERNISATION SCHEDULE Knowing what specific repairs, upgrades and modernisations are needed in advance allows a long-term modernisation schedule to be created, resulting in maximum productivity while helping minimise downtime. This includes not just technology based processes but in-depth visual inspections, interviews with operatives, production and maintenance engineers and a detailed analysis of historical maintenance and inspection information. In essence, it’s about future proofing and ensuring a customer’s lifting equipment is fit for projected production needs.
ADDITIONAL CONSULTATION PRODUCTS Driving the efficiency with which such decision making is based is an additional raft of consultation products that are beginning to make their presence felt alongside the likes of 3D mapping of gantry rails, bridge runway and crane geometric surveys. These include design life, rope, steel structure and gear case analysis. Whereas problem solving in the past has centred on audible, visual and temperature changes occurring, acoustic emission, vibration analysis and thermal imaging equipment is now ensuring that operators receive maximum pre-warning ahead of potential failure occurring. Already proving popular with cross-sector industry leaders, consultation services remain the intention of providers such as Konecranes to sing their praises from the rooftops, the results that the process is proven to deliver on will continue doing all the talking that is needed.
Konecranes T: 01633 838311
www.konecranes.co.uk Enter 308
/ FACTORYEQUIPMENT
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