If somebody asked you how many times in the past eighteen months your maintenance department repaired or replaced a motor with damaged bearings, could you give the correct answer? If not, you have a maintenance documentation failure.
The solution begins with your list of reason codes. It should be long enough to include common failure reasons, but not so long that people get vertigo.
You might, for example, have nine failure reasons plus “other”. When using “other” make sure it has a write-in. And make sure you record (in the CMMS) what’s provided. For example, your list didn’t include rodent droppings but suddenly those are showing up in the repair logs.
You want items in “other” to be relatively rare. If something there is common, add it to your regular list as a selection (and perhaps remove one that isn’t happening as often as you thought it would).
Conduct a training session on reason codes to ensure people understand why accuracy is important. Make it clear that “unknown” is strongly preferred over guessing
About the Author
Mark Lamendola
Mark is an expert in maintenance management, having racked up an impressive track record during his time working in the field. He also has extensive knowledge of, and practical expertise with, the National Electrical Code (NEC). Through his consulting business, he provides articles and training materials on electrical topics, specializing in making difficult subjects easy to understand and focusing on the practical aspects of electrical work.
Prior to starting his own business, Mark served as the Technical Editor on EC&M for six years, worked three years in nuclear maintenance, six years as a contract project engineer/project manager, three years as a systems engineer, and three years in plant maintenance management.
Mark earned an AAS degree from Rock Valley College, a BSEET from Columbia Pacific University, and an MBA from Lake Erie College. He’s also completed several related certifications over the years and even was formerly licensed as a Master Electrician. He is a Senior Member of the IEEE and past Chairman of the Kansas City Chapters of both the IEEE and the IEEE Computer Society. Mark also served as the program director for, a board member of, and webmaster of, the Midwest Chapter of the 7x24 Exchange. He has also held memberships with the following organizations: NETA, NFPA, International Association of Webmasters, and Institute of Certified Professional Managers.