Cement Manufacturers Association (CMA)

43 Maintenance Cost Optimization in Indian Cement Industry The article covers three simple and time-tested initiatives the Indian cement manufacturers can undertake to optimize maintenance cost and improve equipment availability for promoting efficiency in production. The author, who has trained at various cement plants in India in maintenance, shares practical recommendations that can be implemented with ease without any capital investments. Despite the Cement Industry’s efforts to cut costs, plant maintenance remains a pressing issue. The persistently high maintenance expenses significantly impact profits, necessitating a focus on mastering fundamental practices before venturing into new technologies. The author suggests that companies adopting these recommendations can swiftly achieve substantial returns without the need for further investments. Effective Maintenance Planning and Scheduling While more and more asset intensive industries across the globe including cement are consistently improving their Maintenance Planning and Scheduling practices (MPS), the scenario is far from satisfactory in India.. While maintenance planners and planning engineers are present in various plants, the level of maturity in planning and scheduling is notably lacking. As a result, the wrench time (tool time) of the maintenance work force is dismal and can be estimated to be below 20%. The figure is a distant far from the best-in-class standard of 50% and world class of 62%. By improving the existing MPS practices, companies in India can easily double the wrench to 40% and above within a time frame of 12-18 months with no additional manpower., In addition to a notable increase of over 100% in maintenance technicians’ productivity, the significant advantages of an efficient MPS process would include: • Reduction in Breakdowns • Reduction in Rework • Increase in Equipment Availability and Reliability • Reduction in spares consumption and inventories • Improved Plant safety Preventive Maintenance Optimization (PMO) Preventive Maintenance Optimization (PMO) is another critical area which can help cement companies not only reduce costs but also to improve equipment availability and plant safety. While Preventive Maintenance is an important strategy to prevent breakdowns and maintain asset health, unwarranted tasks result in waste of resources and also cause infant failures. PMO helps eliminating unwarranted tasks, adding, or modifying existing tasks and their frequencies. With effective MPS in Deelip Prabhudesai, Principal Consultant and Business Owner, Maintcons