RELATIONSHIP WITH OTHER FUNCTIONS
To
be effective, maintenance planners need:
• To be recognized as an important
contributor to the maintenance mission
• Resources that are continuously
balanced with the workload
• Clear definition of their relationships
with maintenance superintendents, supervisors, mechanics and operations
• Work requests written by requestors
with adequate identification, descriptive information, and sufficient lead-time
to plan properly and schedule appropriate manpower
• Proper computer support to allow
development of a comprehensive planning database
• Effective logistical support from purchasing
and stores with timely, availability of required materials and spare parts
• Effective storeroom support so that
planners need only identify required withdrawals by preparing necessary stores
requisitions, and need not do stock picking, job kitting, order staging, order
security, or order delivery to the job site
• Effective purchasing support so that
planners need only prepare purchase order requests, without need for the
planner to source, purchase, prepare purchase orders, or track and expedite
delivery
• Proper receiving support so that the
planner is reliably alerted when purchased items are received
• Commitment from maintenance and
operating management to hold structured weekly coordination and scheduling
sessions to establish priorities for daily, weekly, down day, and major outage
work
• Adequate maintenance engineering
support so that planners do not have to develop standard operating and safety
procedures, and do not have to devote time or engineering attention to
recurring maintenance problems
• Cooperation from maintenance
supervisors, mechanics, and operating supervisors in the effective use and
application of efforts put into meaningful planned job packages
• Feedback from mechanics and supervisors
(maintenance and operations) regarding specific shortfalls in planned job
packages so that improvement of future packages is facilitated
• Feedback from maintenance supervisors
regarding compliance with and exceptions to the weekly schedule with noted
“reason”.
• Recognition that they are planners and
not foremen
• A proper work station
As
previously mentioned, when there are more than five positions in the control
function (including planners, schedulers, material coordinators, clerks,
dispatchers, and maintenance engineers), they should report to a position such
as “Manager of Maintenance Support Services.” Such a position brings to the
group coordination, functional discipline, and integrity, as well as managerial
acumen and clout. These benefits are not always gained by maintenance managers
who are consumed by demands of supervision, budgetary control, and response to
upper management. When responsibility for formal planning and scheduling are
added, the burden often becomes too much for the maintenance manager to cover
effectively. The “Manager of Maintenance Support Services” position is
discussed in further detail in Chapter 4 and a position description is provided
among the appendices.
Copyright © 2001 by Industrial Press Inc.