A new look at world class physical asset management strategies

Abstract

The need for enhancing manufacturing systems is increasing, with growing attention on the management of physical assets. This has arisen because of a number of new pressures, such as stringent cost control, automation requiring higher availability and reliability from equipment, and greater attention being paid to safety and environmental issues. This study (following the general approach adopted by Meredith) considers some new maintenance thinking, which has been summarised as a series of postulates. These postulates are analysed as a theory building exercise by referring to a number of case organisations to assess their wider applicability and relevance in physical asset management. The study concludes that there is general acceptance of the new maintenance thinking.