The eLearning Center for Gatlin Education Services

Overview

Worldwide competition for consumer goods has placed enormous burdens on American manufacturing companies to improve their productivity or lose market share. Companies have responded in recent years with improvements in the way they manage suppliers, inventories, planning, manufacturing, and even the methods used for design and development of products. Although these changes have proved to be positive influences on company profitability, they fall short of addressing all the areas where improvement is needed. One area often overlooked for improvement potential is machine maintenance (i.e. maintenance performed on the equipment required for manufacturing products). This course introduces the student to some of the methods and tools available for improving machine maintenance. It also reviews the types of improvements that can be achieved if the same improvement principles are applied to machine maintenance that have been applied to other factory processes.

This course is recommended for engineers in all disciplines who interface with equipment maintenance functions. Although written with manufacturing companies specifically in mind, the principles taught herein can be applied equally well to the maintenance of equipment used to produce products or services in any industry. Previous experience with machine maintenance or facilities management is NOT required for successful completion of this course.

The student must take a multiple-choice quiz consisting of ten (10) questions at the end of this course to earn PDH credits.

Specific Knowledge or Skill Attained

This course teaches the following specific knowledge and skills related to equipment maintenance:

  · Historical background for manufacturing process improvement and how machine maintenance is related to it
  · A review of the standard Corrective Maintenance method and its limitations
  · A review of the Preventive Maintenance method and the improvements it can bring to a company's performance
  · A review of the Predictive Maintenance method and how it can be used to augment a Preventive Maintenance program for further performance improvements
  · A review of Computerized Maintenance Management Systems and their application to machine maintenance
  · Examples of how the three major maintenance philosophies are typically applied
  · Two simple methods of assigning priorities to maintenance tasks

State Board Acceptance

This course can be used by professional engineers to fulfill PDH requirements mandated by state and provincial licensing boards. Decatur Professional Development is an approved provider of continuing education in all states that pre-approve course providers. In all other states that mandate continuing education for engineers, it is the individual engineer's responsibility to determine the suitability of activities for PDH credit. The state boards typically accept online* courses that cover technical, managerial** or ethical content and which are relevant to the practice of engineering. The course must have a clear purpose or objective with a content that will maintain, improve or expand the skills and knowledge of the licensee's field of practice. For questions about your mandatory PDH requirements, visit the website of your state licensing board.

*Online courses are accepted by all state licensing boards that mandate continuing education. Other than New York (which limits online courses to 18 PDH) and Iowa (which limits online courses to 6 PDH), there are no limits placed by other states on the number of hours that can be earned through online continuing education. Consult with your state licensing board if you have any questions about the acceptability of online courses.

**The New York State Board of Engineers does not accept general office management courses, but will accept project management courses that are offered by an approved provider and that are technical in nature and contribute to the engineer's professional practice.

Please Note: Continuing Education credits for this course are awarded as PDH (Professional Development Hour Credits).