MAINTENANCE

Achieving World-class Mining

Maintenance: Step 5 Organize Properly
In the fifth installment of this six-part series, the author explains how identifying
and structuring the right type of organization can improve maintenance performance
By Paul Tomlingson

Development of the mining maintenance
program acknowledges the unusual, often
harsh demands on maintenance personnel
in support of mining operations. It re
quires fortitude to change a shovel cable
while snow is arriving horizontally and skill
to command several hundred such person
nel as their managers must do. Program
documentation spells out who does what,
how, when and why serving as a starting
point for determining the best organiza
tional configuration.
As these aspects are being considered,
the desirable attributes of a future organi
zation must also fit the demanding cir
cumstances of mining. Will the organiza
tion, for example, interact cooperatively
with other departments? Can it be flexible
and responsive and use information effec
tively? Can our personnel adapt?
Examining the Types
Against such requirements, a range of orga
nizational types should be examined to
identify possibilities. Would traditional
organizational models work? Could the best
features of several models be successfully
blended together in a hybrid organization?
Could existing staff and personnel fit orga
nizational demands? Various types of
organizations will exhibit pros and cons
requiring critical examination. For example:
Centrally controlled organization
Centrally controlled maintenance organiza
tions lack flexibility and responsiveness.
They are best used in mine-wide support
organizations like lubrication or a compo
nent-rebuilding shop staffed with person
nel possessing unique skills.
Craft organization The craft organiza
tion assigns personnel of the same craft to a
single supervisor. This single-craft orienta
tion means that major jobs requiring many
different skills must be drawn from other
organizations. Thus, the success of many
major multicraft jobs performed by craft
organizations will depend on the quality of
job coordination. Anytime all personnel are
placed within one organization, that organi
zation tends to become the sole decision
maker on how the group will be utilized.
Then, when maintenance needs at the
plant-level are unknown to the group, the
result is often the wrong or least productive
use of personnel. Herein is a significant
drawback of the craft organization. The most
prominent justification for the craft organi
zation is the promotion of the groups craft
skill. This is also a weakness. The boundary
lines within which craftsmen apply their
skills are invariably too narrow. Then, when
compounded by labor contract craft juris
dictions, poor productivity can result.
Consider, for example, the task of
replacing a simple electric motor. A m ill
wright could easily do the job but, if the
labor contract prohibits him from perform
ing electrical work, an electrician must
assist. Thus, a simple one-man, half-hour
job costs twice as much and downtime
may be doubled if the electrician is not
immediately available. The expansion of
the jurisdiction of each craft would
improve this situation. However, this is not
always easy to negotiate. Moreover, while
newly negotiated language might broaden
craft jurisdictions, it may not change the
Figure 1 The craft organization assigns all personnel of the same to craft to a single supervisor.
way individuals do the work. Thus, old
habits and poor productivity remain.
Separation of electrical and mechanical
skills often plagues the craft organization.
The single-craft alignment of personnel in
craft organizations also inhibits the expan
sion of skills that are required to maintain
modern equipment. This is best seen in the
traditional separation of mechanical and
electrical trades in the craft organization.
While the skills involved are different, there
is no reason for the physical separation of
crews. Some organizations justify this sep
aration by claiming that only a mechanical
supervisor can supervise mechanics and
only an electrical supervisor can supervise
electricians. This limited view overlooks the
fact that the job of the supervisor is work
control, not overseeing work. Supervisors
are chosen primarily as effective managers
of their crews and not as technicians. In
addition, operations personnel often won
der why their inoperative equipment must
await the arrival of the electrician hours
after the mechanical group proclaimed
their part of the job is finished," for exam
ple. Any organization still committed to this
physical separation may detract from over
all labor productivity (Figure 1).

5 6 E & M J M AR C H 2 0 1 6 www.e-mj.com

Modern m ining equipm ent m anufactur
ers w ill prescribe a total m aintenance
requirement for th e ir equipm ent. If craft
personnel perform the prescribed m ainte
nance in the separate, disjointed fashion of
craft organizations, they handicap their a bil
ity to satisfy the skill needs of the equip
m ent they m ust m aintain. They lim it their
practical maintenance capabilities by their
one-skill orientation. The craft organization
is unlikely to be flexible and responsive and
while they may control th e ir own resources
properly, they may not have direct access to
all supporting labor resources. Instead,
there is often considerable "horse-trading"
among craft supervisors as they haggle over
exchanging people to assemble the right
skills for a major job. In the meantime, valu
able response tim e is lost adding downtime.
Area organization An area organization
makes one supervisor responsible for all main
tenance within a specific geographic plant
area like a refinery or smelter. The area organ
ization includes all of the craft personnel nec
essary to meet day-to-day maintenance
needs. Therefore, mechanics, millwrights or
electricians could be in the same crew,
depending on the workload of a particular
plant area. The area organization successfully
eliminates the craft jurisdiction problem of
the craft organization (Figure 2).
The area organization also suggests that
ope ra tio n s w ould be more sa tisfie d
because problems requiring several craft
skills are responded to sooner. Therefore,
for a plant operation, the characteristics of
the area organization are more prom ising
than the craft organization because of th e ir
greater fle x ib ility and responsiveness.
Area organizations also have access to
other craft personnel required to reinforce
them during peak workloads. This suggests
that the areas must be supported by other
craft groups. Therefore, these groups must
have a variety of craft personnel to meet the
diverse needs of peak workloads of several
areas concurrently. Consequently, the alloca
tion of labor resources is more likely to meet
plant-wide priorities than is the craft organi
zation. Typically, plants wishing to be able to
reinforce field areas with additional craft per
sonnel during peak workload periods prefer
the area organization. They find that the clear
definition of responsibilities is more effective.
The most common support organization for
the area organization is a pool of backup per
sonnel of all skills needed. Personnel from
this pool are awarded to field areas experi
encing peak workloads, like a periodic shut
down, based on plant-level work priorities.
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Figure 2 Each area supervisor has all of the right craft personnel to meet day-to-day maintenance requirements.
The area organization is often operated with a back-up group providing access to reinforcing craft personnel dur
ing peak workloads.
Pool personnel are returned to the pool after
completing work assignments. Depending on
plant needs, these personnel are assigned
elsewhere to meet labor demands.
In contrasting the craft and area organi
zations, the best choice in terms of fle xib ili
ty and responsiveness would be the area
organization. However, the quality of plan
ning, the use of technology and quality infor
mation are also im portant considerations.
Team organization The visualization
of smaller, more productive workforces
using team s, operating w ith o u t supervi
sion and working e fficie n tly to yield high
q u a lity work at lower cost, has great
appeal. Organizations visualize better work
control through employee empowerment
and reduced operating cost w ith fewer peo
ple and potentially greater productivity.
However, m oving successfully from a tra d i
tional m aintenance organization to a team
organization is a process th a t m ust be care
fu lly prepared for and expertly im plem ent
ed. Thus, form ing a team is more than a
m atter of identifying a group w ith com pat
ible skills and congenial personalities. It is,
more im portantly, a m atter of m aking cer
tain the fundam ental work control proce
dures are in place, fu lly functional and the
team members are com petent in th e ir use.
Team organizations emerging from a tra
ditional supervisor-crew arrangement often
have d iffic u lty coping w ith who's in
charge now th a t they are w ithout a super
visor. As a result, few traditional m ainte
nance organizations can move directly to a
MAINTENANCE
self-directed team. Generally, they make
this transition by using a rotating coordina
tor. With a rotating coordinator, one of the
team members calls the shots for two to
three weeks and then another replaces him.
Team members suggest different or better
ways of getting the work done. Soon, work
able methods emerge for some, but not all,
aspects of work control. The ones that work
best are retained. Then, another rotating
coordinator takes over and tries other m eth
ods, focusing on the areas still in need of
improvement. Finally, the whole team devel
ops an acceptable way of working together,
and they discontinue the rotating coordina
tor and graduate to a self-directed team.
The Challenges of
Implementation
Im plem enting team organizations brings
some challenges. Team members must be
convinced that the team w ill help them to
operate more effectively, produce better work
and realize greater job satisfaction. While
productivity, improved performance and cost-
reduction are among the team expectations
of management, they know the cost of main
tenance will not go down unless the number
of people doing it and the frequency at which
it is done are reduced. Employees are also
aware of these facts and opposition to fewer
people can result in an adverse reaction to
the idea of teams. The maintenance program
can provide a framework for team members
who as craftsmen had significant experience
in diagnosis and repair, but little experience
M AR C H 2 0 1 6 E & M J 57
 MAINTENANCE
in work control. The maintenance program
fills this potential void.
As supervisors are phased out, mean
ingful tasks must be created to match their
considerable talents and experience.
Maintenance engineering and reliability
tasks are potential solutions. Above all,
avoid having former supervisors feel they
are redundant as some might try to preserve
the status quo or downplay the team effort.
Team formation also means choosing
team players carefully to avoid taking on
d iffic u lt behavioral changes that are
required to make the team functional. And,
decide whether the new team will be
salaried or hourly; salaried employees may
be looking for the perks" (like flexible
lunch periods), but maintenance work
assignments may not permit them the
same latitude afforded salaried personnel.
Establish team decision-making param
eters carefully. A team may be qualified to
make decisions on how to perform work but
not when. Determine in advance the
boundaries within which the teams can
make decisions.
Determine how craft skills will be eval
uated and remedial training provided to
improve lagging skills. A team could
become a hiding place for a worker who
needs skill training. Similarly, others might
become whistle blowers, anxious to point
someone out who doesnt carry a fair share
of the work. These situations can demoral
ize the teams overall efforts and should be
precluded before they can develop.
One newly formed team established a
way to find and correct training needs. By
linking skills with incremental wage
increases, craft personnel were able to
request consideration for an increase. A
Figure 3 The business unit manager controls both operations and maintenance. If the maintenance activity is large
and complex, he may utilize a planner exclusively. Otherwise, planning services would be made available as needed.
58 E&MJ MARCH 2016
group of the candidates peers assembled a
group to judge the candidates knowledge.
Questioning was tough and fair. If the can
didate met the interview requirement, he
was then tested for practical experience.
For example, a unit of equipment had been
rigged with several faults. The candidate
was given an opportunity to diagnose and
correct all of the faults and restore the
equipment to satisfactory condition within a
specific period of time. If both the interview
and the practical experience requirements
were met, the candidate was endorsed for
the new skill status and wage increase.
Most team members have not had the
training or the experience to develop their
own work control procedures. However, a
solid program can guide them in develop
ing these skills.
Finally, as the team settles in, verify that
a good working relationship with operations
exists so that new team members will not
have to struggle with people" problems.
Business-unit organization Business
units, in which one supervisor is responsible
for both operations and maintenance, are a
very practical and workable organization.
Aside from removing the obvious finger
pointing between operations and mainte
nance, the business unit builds leadership
and professionalism. If, for example, the unit
manager is a long-term production type, he
can aid the development of greater profes
sionalism among craft personnel. They
depend on him to lead and he is fully depend
ent on them for quality work. Thus, the busi
ness unit manager who exhibits quality lead
ership will realize professional" support from
craft personnel in return (Figure 3).
The business unit also brings equip
ment operators and craft personnel into
closer working proximity. There is opportu
nity for them to create an operations-main-
tenance team. Soon, the capabilities of
operators to perform specific, helpful
maintenance tasks become apparent.
Similarly, equipment operators learn more
about the way their equipment works and
are better able to identify potential prob
lems. As the operations-maintenance
team effort grows, the equipment opera
tors see maintenance personnel in a differ
ent light. They are more confident and
report problems promptly and correctly.
Maintenance personnel, in turn, volunteer
shortcuts in adjusting or calibrating equip
ment. A real team environment emerges.
Business units are a potentially valuable
method of improving maintenance produc
tivity. Many of these same benefits can
apply to the team organization as well.
Pay Attention to Critical
Elements
Critical parts of organizations must be
carefully examined. Some, like planning,
have existed for a long time and are still
misunderstood. Others are new as with
maintenance and reliability engineering
and present challenges in their use and
placement in the organization.
Planning The significant benefits of
planning and scheduling warrant the correct
use of maintenance planners. Their principal
task is to organize selected major jobs in
advance. Selection of these jobs should
adhere to criteria. Resulting work can then
be carried productively, with minimum man
power in the least elapsed downtime. This
productivity assures quality work to yield
longer periods before work has to be repeat
ed, thus slowing the rate of material and
spare parts consumption. The benefits are
real but often the incorrect use of planners as
parts chaser or work order administra-
torscan limit planning effectiveness. Ensure
that program documentation establishes
their duties and responsibilities, correct uti
lization and verification of compliance.
Maintainability and reliability Ensuring
equipment maintainability and reliability
are vital objectives for mining operations.
Yet, they have also been elusive for the lack
of an organizational structure and a cohe
sive strategy to achieve them. A mainte
nance engineer provides the tactics that
ensure equipment maintainability while the
reliability engineer focuses on equipment
defect elimination. They function in unison
to support the efforts of field supervisors.
The maintenance engineer, for example,
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 MAINTENANCE
Figure 4 Maintenance and reliability engineers oversee a range of m aintainability and reliability activities while
their technicians assist maintenance foremen in carrying out maintenance program elements and applying relia
bility technologies.
assures that the detection orientation' of
the PM program finds problems far enough
in advance of failure to allow most mainte
nance to be planned. The reliability engi
neer analyzes failures to determine why they
occurred and develop solutions to reduce or
eliminate them. The results of his efforts are
combined with those of the maintenance
engineer to enhance the overall mainte
nance effectiveness. Special attention
should be given to including maintenance
and reliability engineering in mining organi
zations (Figure 4).
Organizational change The biggest
single problem in implementing a new
organization or making any organizational
change is dealing with resistance to
change. Personnel affected must be con
vinced that the changes are beneficial, first
to them as individuals, then to their imme
diate work groups (crews) and finally to the
total operation. They are often aware of
pending changes, even if not officially
informed. Many may suspect an unfavor
able outcome and resist. However, if they
are informed of the nature of the changes,
they will be supportive. Potential resist
ance can become support for a potentially
beneficial change because they know more
about it. Resistance to change is always in
proportion to the degree of knowledge
about the changes. Therefore, the sooner
the education process begins, the greater
are the chances of overcoming resistance
and getting on with beneficial changes.
60 E&MJ MARCH 2016
Let people know what the changes are
and how they will be affected. The more
personnel know about the changes being
considered, the more that they will think
about them in terms of their own situations.
With an opportunity to think through the
changes and offer alternate proposals, the
positive aspects of the change will influ
ence those who are uncertain or opposed.
Allow adequate time for a trial period to
prove changes are positive and demon
strate that economic security remains
intact. Their income, job security and
future promotions must not be endangered.
Measuring the Workload
How many personnel, what crafts? This
determination seems like a straightforward
proposition, but methods for determining it
have never been satisfactorily resolved.
Ambivalence toward workload measurement
must be converted into a logical method.
Establish a policy requiring that the work
load be measured. Don't expect any mainte
nance department to do it voluntarily.
Carefully identify and define the work
required of maintenance and acknowledge
the implications of how the work is controlled
and performed. Measure the manpower
required to perform each category of work, PM
versus planned work, for example. Assemble
a preliminary manpower distribution: What
percent of our manpower will be necessary, for
example, to perform all PM services or limit
emergency work to 10% of manpower?
Tie these considerations to labor utiliza
tion reports and watch labor control perform
ance trends. Establish productivity measure
ments to determine progress while checking
backlog levels and PM schedule compliance.
Labor utilization reports will confirm whether
target percentages are being met.
Mining operations require equipment
with much greater productive capacity and
improved reliability. But, it will also be
much more complex to maintain. Mainten
ance must also provide the means of apply
ing the newest technology and quality
information along with modern manage
ment techniques.
But, who will ensure that the personnel
who do the actual work are used productive
ly? Regrettably, maintenance departments
that check productivity regularly are rare. Yet,
productivity measurements remain the most
effective way of verifying the quality of labor
control. Regular productivity measurements,
identification and correction of delays and
active steps to constantly improve productiv
ity are part of successful maintenance.
Should mines adopt team or business
unit organizations, work control will be
accomplished largely by craftsmen team
members. With this new responsibility, the
task of improving productivity passes to
these newly empowered personnel. They
must recognize the need and be guided in
accomplishing it.
In summary, a variety of possible main
tenance organizations are available to min
ing operations. While selection is guided by
program definition and information needs,
the care and consideration in developing
these elements impacts selection. What key
personnel do, along with how, when and
why they do it, are aided by effective infor
mation utilization. But, the right organiza
tion, properly implemented, brings the pro
gram to life. Only then can the continuing
evaluation process verify the compatibility,
progress and achievement required to
ensure effective mining maintenance.
Next month: Step 6 The author summa
rizes the evaluation process and explains
and illustrates useful evaluation techniques.
Paul D. Tomlingson (pdtmtc@msn.com) is a
Denver-based maintenance management con
sultant. These articles are based on his book:
Maintenance in Transition-The Journey to
World-class Maintenance. Readers can obtain
information on the book from the author and
may request an electronic copy of any one
chapter or appendix as a professional courtesy.
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