The Project
Routine maintenance and repairs of plant assets are essential for the smooth operation of our client’s production plant in the Northern Territory.
In this facility, all asset inspections or repairs trigger a work order that requires assigned personnel. Unfortunately, determining which of these work orders were most critical became a time-consuming task for already busy production experts. The sheer volume of work orders also created a risk of missing crucial fixes. This resulted in reactive maintenance, where repairs were made after problems arose, rather than proactive maintenance that could have prevented them entirely.
Technical Solutions
Using Excel, VBA and Power Query, WGA developed a maintenance prioritisation tool to increase the automation of this process, minimising the risk of missing critical maintenance. Through complex algorithms, the tool ranks the priority of each work order on ingested real time asset data from data management software SAP.
To prioritise work orders effectively, we collaborated with plant experts to develop a ranking algorithm. This algorithm considers three critical factors: safety, habitability, and production. Each factor is weighted based on the specific asset type, its function within the plant, the area it’s located in, and the urgency of the repair.
Once ranked, the results can be tuned by the maintenance team based on their expert opinion, for continued calibration of the algorithm.
Client Focus
This new maintenance prioritisation tool empowers the maintenance team to quickly identify the most critical work orders. This simplifies the process of workload resourcing and boosts overall efficiency. The tool seamlessly integrates with the existing SAP data using Power Query and VBA, ensuring scalability for future growth. Plus, its secure design protects sensitive information for all users.
Key Personnel
The Maintenance Prioritisation Tool is included in the following sectors & services.
Click on one to find out more about that sector or service.