English Version / TPM Concepts and Literature Review / Concept / Quality Miantenance

Quality Maintenance Pillar

“Quality maintenance, in a nutshell, is establishment of conditions that will preclude the occurrence of defects and control of such conditions to reduce defects to zero.” (Japan_Institute_of_Plant_Maintenance 1996 p. 134) Quality Maintenance is achieved by establishing conditions for ‘zero defects’, maintaining conditions within specified standards, inspecting and monitoring conditions to eliminate variation, and executing preventive actions in advance of defects or equipment/process failure. The key concept of Quality Maintenance is that it focuses on preventive action ‘before it happens’ (cause oriented approach) rather than reactive measures ‘after it happens’(results oriented approach). (Japan_Institute_of_Plant_Maintenance 1996) Quality Maintenance, like Maintenance Prevention, builds on the fundamental learning and structures developed within the Focused Improvement, Autonomous Maintenance, Planned Maintenance, and Maintenance Prevention TPM pillars. Quality Maintenance supports a key objective of TPM - ensuring that equipment and processes are so reliable that they always function properly. (Schonberger 1986)

The core concept of Quality Maintenance is integrating and executing the structures, practices, and methodologies established within Focused Improvement, Autonomous Maintenance, Planned Maintenance, and Maintenance Prevention. Quality Maintenance occurs during equipment/process planning and design, production technology development, and manufacturing production and maintenance activity. (Shirose 1996) “The precondition for implementation of quality maintenance is to put the equipment, jigs, and tools for ensuring high quality in the manufacturing process, as well as processing conditions, human skills, and working methods, into their desired states.” (Shirose 1996 p. 395) Pre-conditions for successful Quality Maintenance implementation include abolishment of accelerated equipment deterioration, elimination of process problems, and the development of skilled and competent users. (Shirose 1996)

Figure 24 provides an illustration of the integration of TPM pillars to support Quality Maintenance.*

Figure 24 - Quality Maintenance Integration

[Original: Total Productive Maintenance (TPM) Concepts and Literature Review by Thomas R. Pomorski, Principal Consulting Engineer, Brooks Automation, Inc.]

* A detailed discussion of the TPM Training and Education pillar is not included in this paper. The objective of Training and Education is to create and sustain skilled operators able to effectively execute the practices and methodologies established within the other TPM pillars. The Training and Education pillar establishes the human-systems and structures to execute TPM. Training and Education focuses on establishing appropriate and effective training methods, creating the infrastructure for training, and proliferating the learning and knowledge of the other TPM pillars. Training and Education may be the most critical of all TPM pillars for sustaining the TPM program in the long-term. “A test of TPM success is to look at organizational learning, TPM is about continual learning.” Leflar, J. (2003). TPM Interview. T. Pomorski. Fort Collins, CO.