What are the best practices for using maintenance performance indicators in plant operations?

2 Align MPIs with plant goals

Your MPIs should reflect the strategic goals and priorities of your plant operations. For instance, if your plant aims to reduce energy consumption and environmental impact, you should use MPIs that measure the energy efficiency and emissions of your equipment and systems. Likewise, if your plant focuses on customer satisfaction and quality assurance, you should use MPIs that measure the defect rate and delivery time of your products or services. By aligning your MPIs with your plant goals, you can ensure that your maintenance activities support your desired outcomes.

3 Use a balanced mix of MPIs

There are different types of MPIs that capture different aspects of maintenance performance. For example, some MPIs are lagging, meaning that they measure the results or outcomes of maintenance activities, such as the mean time between failures (MTBF) or the maintenance cost per unit. Other MPIs are leading, meaning that they measure the inputs or processes of maintenance activities, such as the preventive maintenance ratio (PMR) or the availability of spare parts. You should use a balanced mix of lagging and leading MPIs to get a comprehensive picture of your maintenance performance and identify areas of improvement.

4 Benchmark and communicate MPIs

To use MPIs effectively, you need to compare them with relevant benchmarks and communicate them with your stakeholders. Benchmarks are standards or references that help you evaluate your MPIs and set realistic targets. You can use internal benchmarks, such as historical data or best practices within your plant, or external benchmarks, such as industry averages or competitors' performance. Communication is also crucial for using MPIs, as it helps you share your results, feedback, and action plans with your managers, technicians, and customers.

5 Review and update MPIs

MPIs are not static or fixed. They need to be reviewed and updated regularly to reflect the changing conditions and challenges of your plant operations. You should monitor your MPIs and analyze their trends and patterns over time. You should also solicit feedback and suggestions from your stakeholders and incorporate them into your MPI reviews. If you find that your MPIs are no longer SMART, aligned, balanced, or relevant, you should modify or replace them with more suitable ones.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?