ABSTRACT
Prominent Japanese businessmen created a furor in recent years with their claim that Americans have become lazy, arrogant, and complacent. The Japan Institute of Plant Maintenance (JIPM), with Seiichi Nakajima as the driving force, quickly absorbed Total Productive Maintenance (TPM) principles and began spreading them to other Japanese plants. The JIPM charter states that the entity is “dedicated to developing and sharing methods for increasing organization efficiency and profitability through improved maintenance of manufacturing equipment, processes, and facilities.” Several North American organizations and conferences are dedicated to the maintenance professional or maintenance improvement. Among the organizations are the American Institute of Plant Engineers, the American Institute for Total Productive Maintenance, the Institute of Industrial Engineers, the Society of Maintenance and Reliability Professionals, and the International Maintenance Institute. In November, 1991, JIPM celebrated the 20th anniversary of TPM by holding the first TPM World Congress meeting in Tokyo.
