{"id":4845,"date":"2021-08-03T06:10:32","date_gmt":"2021-08-03T12:10:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/limblecmms.com\/?p=4845"},"modified":"2025-05-30T13:06:27","modified_gmt":"2025-05-30T19:06:27","slug":"total","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/limblecmms.com\/blog\/total\/","title":{"rendered":"The What and Why of Total Preventive Maintenance (TPM)"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/span>In a truly efficient organization, asset care cannot be the sole responsibility of the <\/span>maintenance team<\/span><\/a>. Total preventive maintenance recognizes that and offers a framework to expand the maintenance responsibilities across the production floor.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

An increasing number of manufacturers are trying to implement TPM in an effort to lower operating costs, reduce downtime, and improve <\/span>Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE)<\/span><\/a>. Let\u2019s see why.\u00a0 \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The essence of total preventive maintenance (TPM)<\/span><\/h2>\n

Total preventive maintenance represents an organized, standardized, and structured approach to preventive maintenance. What is unique to TPM is that it empowers machine operators to take on basic maintenance responsibilities. The idea is that people who operate the equipment can be upskilled to <\/span>perform routine maintenance tasks<\/span><\/a> on \u201ctheir\u201d machines.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Total preventive maintenance is used as a synonym for <\/span>total productive maintenance<\/span><\/a>. They share the same acronym – TPM.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

TPM was developed by Seiichi Nakajima in the late 1950s. It lays out a robust framework that is represented by the 5S foundation and eight pillars you can see in the image below.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

Any implementation of total productive maintenance is doomed to fail if it isn\u2019t built upon a strong foundation, which is achieved by employing the <\/span>5S methodology<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The 5S system outlines best practices employees should follow to eliminate wasteful actions, standardize common procedures, and ensure that the working environment is always clean and organized.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

When that is in place, the organization can start implementing the pillars. Each pillar focuses on optimizing a specific part of maintenance operations or quality management. <\/span>This leads to the creation of company-wide proactive maintenance culture and the development of efficient <\/b>preventive maintenance procedures<\/b><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Stopping at autonomous maintenance<\/span><\/h2>\n

The ultimate goal of implementing TPM is to get an organization as close as possible to perfect production:\u00a0 zero defects, zero breakdowns, zero accidents, and zero waste. Reaching that level can take years of continuous improvement.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Many organizations aren\u2019t ready for such a commitment. However, they can still benefit from the core idea of TPM – involving operators in <\/span>equipment maintenance<\/span><\/a>. That is done by implementing the first pillar of total productive maintenance called <\/span>autonomous maintenance<\/b>.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

In autonomous maintenance, machine operators take the responsibility for basic maintenance tasks like <\/span>visual inspections<\/span><\/a>, safety checks, cleaning, and lubrication. This frees up maintenance techs to concentrate on more complex maintenance tasks.<\/span><\/p>\n

To learn more about how to implement it, <\/span>check out our guide on autonomous maintenance<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Pros and cons of using TPM<\/span><\/h2>\n

Successful implementation of total preventive maintenance:<\/span><\/p>\n