FIXING EQUIPMENT ( CONT .)
RAMP Technician Heather Burrola monitors data coming from equipment sensors that can serve as an early warning that maintenance or repairs are necessary .
The reliability initiative applies to all equipment , both fixed and mobile . However , special attention is being given to fixed equipment , particularly the concentrators , since those tend to dictate the processing capacity of an operation , he said .
In the past , maintenance and reliability efforts have focused more intensely on mobile fleets , where the company has achieved some of the best performance in the industry . Going forward , the effort will bring that same focus to fixed plants , specifically concentrators .
When a concentrator breaks down unexpectedly or between preventive maintenance cycles , that can back up the whole operation , and the opportunity for extracting maximum production value is missed , Dunn said .
Since mid-2021 , teams at each site have been evaluating everything having to do with equipment reliability , from the training and skills of their mechanics and technicians to the maintenance schedules for individual parts and components . New standards , practices and procedures were developed , and now are being implemented at every site in the Americas . There also is a “ huge push as part of the program to upskill our people ” with additional training , he said .
Today ’ s Maintenance Helps Prevent Tomorrow ’ s Emergency
A reliability plan is far more than a routine maintenance schedule . Rather , it is a predictive analysis of the type and timing of work needed for each piece of machinery as well as the skills needed by the person doing the work . Everything about a given part , from its history and related data to feedback from trained employees in the field , is used to estimate when a part likely will fail . Anticipated failures are addressed during planned maintenance before they occur .
For instance , if history shows a particular part on a ball mill usually breaks after a year , the preventive maintenance plan might include replacing the part during a routine maintenance shutdown , even if it is not showing visible signs of failure . The scheduled maintenance for that individual component would become part of the plant ’ s overall maintenance plan , or “ philosophy .”
The work is integrated with the plans for proactive maintenance and repairs of other equipment throughout the production line . Ideally , everything that needs to be done on any of the equipment affected by a planned shutdown is done at once , thereby avoiding unplanned stoppages and maximizing plant run time .
The idea is that if maintenance is planned , coordinated and executed with precision , there is less likelihood a failure would result in an unplanned shutdown . That translates into improved operational efficiency and increased production because of less down time from the same equipment . The approach also is safer because preparations can be made ahead of time to help ensure the proper parts , tools and technicians are in place .
Breaking production bottlenecks
The maintenance and reliability standards also are being used to identify and remove production bottlenecks , said Sunil Nannepaga , Maintenance Manager-Morenci . One of the first applications of the new procedures at Morenci was to identify why the ball mill was not operating at peak capacity . It turned out the logjam was in the crushing plant that feeds the mill , where lubrication issues and misaligned pulleys were a problem . New lubrication procedures were implemented , pulleys were properly aligned , and production improved significantly .
While equipment monitoring , data analytics and repair scheduling are all important to the company ’ s maintenance and reliability efforts , what is most important is having people in place with the right skills , training and confidence to make critical decisions , Nannepaga said .
“ Reliability maintenance is not just a maintenance function ,” he said . “ It is our business function . We are creating a reliability culture at Freeport by creating an environment where we attract and retain talented people who are empowered to make decisions because they have the talent and skills to do that .”
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