Total productive maintenance by cement companies in Kenya

Abstract

Global competition and the demand to increase productivity of manufacturing and production lines have attracted many industrial organizations from a wide spectrum to implement Total Productive Maintenance (TPM) as a tool for improving productivity and system's output. TPM is a production‐driven improvement methodology that is designed to optimize equipment reliability and ensure the efficient management of plant assets. It has been found to impact the bottom‐line, drive down costs, improve capacity, improve quality and workplace safety and help organizations respond faster to customer requirements all enabling an organization to be competitive in the market. The objective of the study was to establish the extent to which the Nairobi Grinding Plant (NGP) had applied TPM practices, the challenges and success factors to effective TPM implementation and the benefits of TPM implementation at NGP. The research methodology used was a case study using NGP as a unit of study. The research findings revealed that NGP has began to implement TPM with 6 pillars already implemented. Office TPM and early management pillars have not been implemented. All TPM practices have been implemented except the practice of 5S. Health and safety systems to achieve zero accidents and downtime countermeasures have been fully implemented. The TPM recommended measurements of manufacturing performance are in use at NGP forming some of the key performance indicators for the plant. The measurements are the cost of production, overall equipment effectiveness, delivery performance, customer satisfaction and quality. Two main hurdles that NGP encountered during TPM implementation were employees considering TPM as additional work and lack of sufficient training and education. The key drivers of effective TPM implementation were found to be; training and employee involvement, thorough planning and preparation, managing synergic cooperation of production and maintenance, top management support and commitment and effective communication. The benefits of effective TPM implementation include; improved workplace safety, high levels of product quality, strong delivery performance, improved overall equipment effectiveness, increased customer satisfaction, higher equipment utilization, reduction in number of equipment breakdowns and reduced cost of production. The results confirm that TPM implementation does deliver benefits to organizations that effectively implement the program. The management at NGP should focus on the development and deployment of their highly dedicated employees to fully implement TPM through the success factors already in place and to overcome the challenges at hand in order to reap the full benefits of TPM implementation.