Are We Ready for RCM Blitz™?

I got an e-mail from a new potential customer yesterday, it was one of those that starts out with, "We really like what you do, we like the RCM Blitz™ process, we think it could help us to significantly improve how we perform maintenance on our assets, however our management and CMMS system are not ready to handle the structure and discipline that comes with completing a RCM analysis. We are going to work on implementing a new CMMS system this year and I think next year we will be closer to being ready for RCM Blitz."

As you close out a e-mail this reads like this as a consultant you are left to wonder in regard to how a company comes to decide it they are ready to perform and implement a RCM analysis. Is my company ready for RCM Blitz™?

I wish I had an easy answer. A simple questioner that one could fill out in a excel spread sheet, circle some numbers and come up with a magic score that says "Congratulations! You scored a perfect 1600 and you are now ready for your first RCM Blitz™ analysis!"

The fact is I have something easier than a questioner and spreadsheet. Having been in the RCM consulting business for over 10 years I have come to determine a company is ready when a group or single individual is ready to take on the responsibility of doing the following items;

1) Build a business case for performing your first RCM analysis by selecting a critical asset that is suffering from human or equipment based losses.

2) Gather the drawings and upfront information necessary to begin your analysis.

3) Select a small team of experts to work with an experienced RCM facilitator to complete the analysis.

4) Develop and track the implementation of the tasks developed in your RCM analysis.

5) Continue to track the reliability measures of this asset and report on the success that resulted from implementing and performing your RCM tasks.

The five steps listed above should take no more than three months to complete and be able to begin showing the improvement that will result from completing and implementing a RCM Blitz™ analysis. And, you should all take note that there is not a single step that asks, if your corporate managers are ready for RCM or what CMMS system you are using, or if there is an interface to automatically transfer the tasks from the RCM database to your CMMS system.

Plain and simple, a company is ready for RCM Blitz™ the day they first recognize that that having unreliable equipment and costly maintenance is affecting the profits of your business.