ABSTRACT
Chronic breakdowns and defects have many causes, one of which is people. Breakdowns are the root of all problems, because when they occur, production stops, deliveries are delayed, and product defects are created; in other words, a single breakdown can wreak havoc throughout the factory and can "break down" the entire operation. In this situation, the damaged equipment had been signaling its abnormal condition through unusual vibrations or noises. There are ways to reduce and even completely eliminate breakdowns, and one such important is total productive maintenance. In particular, the equipment operators need to be taught how to discover abnormalities so they can identify problems early on. For their part, the maintenance staff must apply their specialized skills to analyze equipment data provided by the production department, find the causes of breakdowns and abnormalities, and take effective measures to prevent the recurrence of similar problems.
