In the field of reliability engineering activities TECSA S.r.l. is able to offer wide-ranging consultancy in the maintenance engineering sector aimed at planning and checking maintenance control systems or at modelling and analysing them. Maintenance engineering today represents a discipline that must necessarily integrate the services based on the verification of the reliability and availability of components and systems, the preparation of business continuity and risk management systems for an organisation, the verification of the degree of resilience of complex, distributed systems such as infrastructures and finally quality management systems.
TECSA S.r.l. experts before risk analysts and RAMS experts are therefore maintenance engineers with knowledge of the main techniques of analysis and planning of maintenance operations including RCM and TPM and of inspection and programmatic verification operations in relation to risk (including RBI).
This makes it possible to develop maintenance management models that take into account all aspects of planned maintenance:
- administrative plan and maintenance policy;
- database of items to be maintained;
- company register;
- scheduling of interventions;
- specification of the work;
- maintenance programme;
- programming control.
The maintenance management models are used to verify specific aspects of the maintenance process in order to proceed with the shared implementation of subsequent optimisations. Among the aspects investigated, a key role is assumed by the analysis of the costs associated with maintenance, the management of spare parts and their classification also in relation to the criticality for safety (including functional safety connected with electrical, electronic and electronic programmable logic safety systems) and for business continuity.
The planning of maintenance activities to be incorporated into management models is carried out using both consolidated techniques (e.g. PERT) and more analytical techniques (including network diagrams, evaluation of minimum and critical paths, mathematical planning). This also makes it possible to optimise periodic maintenance connected to plant turnarounds (planning, programming and reporting).
All activities in the field of maintenance engineering are substantially aimed at guaranteeing the efficiency and effectiveness of maintenance activities also through the study with the customer of suitable tools for the verification of maintenance quality, including, first of all, statistical process controls (from the checklist to cause-effect graphs, “fishbone”, Pareto maps, FMEA/FMECA/FMEDA worksheets, etc.).
TECSA S.r.l. also conducts audits to verify the quality of the maintenance system which takes into account a number of factors:
- factors related to procedures, standards and guidelines;
- factors related to the human resources available to the process;
- factors related to material resources;
- factors connected with instruments and equipment.
This is specifically the asset performance management developed through a customised procedure that defines the maturity of the maintenance process and its areas for improvement in order to build an optimal management model at a certain cost, based on event simulation paths and reasoning based on the concept “what if…”. (“What if” analysis). This is fundamental in the context of global maintenance service contracts based on obtaining results in accordance with the UNI 10685 standard.
Maintenance activities are also checked in the light of UNI EN 16646. This standard also establishes the relationship between the organisational strategic plan and the maintenance system and describes the interrelationships between the maintenance process and all other physical asset management processes. It addresses the role and importance of maintenance within the physical asset management system throughout the life cycle of an asset.
TECSA S.r.l. assists its customers in the selection and customisation in relation to the actual needs identified through the above mentioned studies of computerised maintenance management systems (CMMS) translating real needs into requirements for the software (this always particularly delicate passage which, often not correctly conducted, determines the inclusion in the organisation of information systems that are completely detached from the operational reality and not correctly dimensioned in relation to the available resources).
This is intended to support the implementation of a specific metric for maintenance activities. In fact, the periodic review of the maintenance management system cannot fail to take into account the performance of maintenance activities, also with a view to verifying the achievement of the expected benefits with the implementation of the optimisations resulting from the application of models. The metrics can be declined in an index or score system that can also facilitate comparisons and auditing for the purposes of periodic benchmarking that can also be reported on information dashboards.
TECSA S.r.l. carries out audits to verify the compliance of the maintenance information system with the UNI 10584 standard concerning the SIM maintenance information system identified as that set of rules, procedures and tools (computerized or not) suitable to collect and process the information necessary for the management of maintenance activities and for the monitoring of plant activities. The verification and optimization of maintenance management systems is also carried out taking into account the requirements of UNI/TR 11542:2014.
These activities are complemented by the experience of TECSA S.r.l. in the preparation of inspection and maintenance plans as well as operating instructions for individual machines and equipment in compliance with the provisions of the reference legislation both in terms of health and safety protection in the workplace and in terms of certification of the machines themselves, including the ‘CE’ marking in application of the Machinery Directive 2006/42/EC (until the Technical Construction File is drawn up).
As far as safety is concerned, article 71 of LD 81/08 “Employer’s obligations”, paragraph 4 of article 71 gives indications on the instructions with which a machine must be accompanied (see point 2 of the said paragraph):
“The employer shall take the necessary measures to ensure that:
(a) the work equipment is:
- installed and used in accordance with the operating instructions;
- subject to appropriate maintenance in order to guarantee the permanence of the safety requirements referred to in Article 70 over time and accompanied, where necessary, by appropriate instructions for use and maintenance booklet;
- subject to the measures to update the minimum safety requirements established by specific regulatory measures adopted in relation to the requirements referred to in Article 18, paragraph 1, letter z);
- b) the maintenance and updating of the control register of the work equipment for which it is provided for is ensured”.
Safety analysis of machines and systems, including support in the event of an accident in terms of technical expertise, is an integral part of workplace safety analysis activities.
Through the partnership with ULTIMO, TECSA S.r.l. is able to offer the Italian market the IT platform for the advanced management of inspection and maintenance activities, asset management, work permits, company HSE processes (MOC, NC/AC, …).
