Preventive maintenance planning considering machines’ reliability using group technology

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to develop an efficient and effective preventive maintenance (PM) plan that considers machines’ maintenance needs in addition to their reliability factor.Design/methodology/approachSimilarity coefficient method in group technology (GT) philosophy is used. Machines’ reliability factor is considered to develop virtual machine cells based on their need for maintenance according to the type of failures they encounter.FindingsUsing similarity coefficient method in GT philosophy for PM planning results in grouping machines based on their common failures and maintenance needs. Using machines' reliability factor makes the plan more efficient since machines will be maintained at the same time intervals and when their maintenance is due. This helps to schedule a standard and efficient maintenance process where maintenance material, tools and labor are scheduled accordingly.Practical implicationsThe proposed procedure will assist maintenance managers in developing an efficient and effective PM plans. These maintenance plans provide better inventory management for the maintenance materials and tools needed using the developed virtual machine cells.Originality/valueThis paper presents a new procedure to implement PM using the similarity coefficient method in GT. A new similarity coefficient equation that considers machines reliability is developed. Also a clustering algorithm that calculates the similarity between machine groups and form virtual machine cells is developed. A numerical example adopted from the literature is solved to demonstrate the proposed heuristic method.