By David Berger, P. Eng.

It’s often said that the condition of your facilities reflects the underlying condition of the entire organization. In this case, the term facilities refers to areas controlled by the maintenance department, including the central shop, machine shop, central stores, satellite cribs, satellite storage areas, change areas and maintenance offices. A dirty, messy, cluttered and quickly deteriorating working environment can translate into a host of problems regarding labor relations and motivation. In turn, this leads to lower levels of productivity and quality. It’s difficult for anyone to enjoy a job and take pride in the work product when burdened with inadequate facilities. Getting the maintenance facilities organized is important not simply for aesthetic value, but for increased safety, ease of locating tools and parts, reduced stockouts and improved response time.

A CMMS can be a useful tool for tracking the productivity of facilities-related strategies or initiatives. For example, if the plan is to move from a centralized maintenance shop to a more decentralized or distributed approach, the CMMS can be used to monitor differences in response time and productivity levels as a result of the change.

So how satisfied are you with your maintenance facilities? Download the spreadsheet below and take this simple test. Review each question and rate your facilities according to the following satisfaction scale:

Rating Score:
1  Not at all satisfied
2  Somewhat satisfied
3  Satisfied
4  Very satisfied
5  Extremely satisfied

Sections:
Maintenance technician safety, efficiency and job satisfaction
Material flow and material handling
Aisles
Storage
Layout flexibility

The form calculates the average rating by section and for the entire form. You can save your results and then, in six months, take the test again and see if things have improved or gotten worse. As well, use your CMMS to track productivity changes.

You can also e-mail the completed form or comments to us at plantservices@putman.net. We will compile the results and present them in a future column by David Berger.

David Berger is contributing editor for Plant Services magazine. E-mail him at david@wmc.on.ca.