How to treat others with dignity and respect
1 - Acknowledge each person's basic dignity.
2 - Have empathy for every person's life situation.
3 - Listen to and encourage each other's opinions and input.
4 - Validate other people's contributions.
5 - Avoid gossip, teasing and other unprofessional behavior.
How Bad Maintenance Can Hurt You
Poor maintenance hurts everyone. Consumers pay higher prices. Profits decline. Individual plants suffer downtime, uncertainty and chaos. Taken to its worst possible conclusion, bad maintenance is a safety threat that can put lives at risk.
Poor maintenance makes companies less competitive than other firms that follow sound maintenance procedures. And many small start-up companies can't wait to replace weak competitors.
History of Maintenance
A glimpse at the history of maintenance--where it started and where it has been--will provide an understanding of poor and ineffective maintenance.
World War II forced the U.S. military to develop a top-notch maintenance system, using nearly limitless resources. After the war, however, these excellent practices failed to transfer to civilian industry because of bottom-line constraints.
According to post-war management theory, producing the maximum number product units would slash the setup cost per unit. A year's supply of units might be held as work in progress (WIP) inventory. But by the 1960s, capital costs began increasing. WIP became a major expense to carry, and innovative engineering reduced setup costs. These trends ushered in just-in-time (JIT) manufacturing--making a minimal run and shipping it to the next operation or to the customer just in time to meet the need.
JIT increased the need for reliability. Before JIT, if equipment broke down, a plant could ship WIP inventory during repairs. With JIT, there is no inventory in reserve. Equipment must remain operating. Management's demand for greater reliability has elevated maintenance from an unwanted expense to an integral, recognized profession.
OSHA's mission is to ensure that employees work in a safe and healthful environment by setting and enforcing standards, and by providing training, outreach, education and assistance. Employers must comply with all applicable OSHA standards. They must also comply with the General Duty Clause the OSH Act, which requires employers to keep their workplace free of serious recognized hazards.
