How to implement Lean Maintenance in Mining for Maximum Gain

By Lindsey Walker, NEXGEN

Do you own or manage a big mining company? You must’ve realized that in today’s world, investing in management techniques and technologies is crucial to staying competitive in the global market. One key concern you need to address is mining maintenance.

Choosing and implementing the right maintenance system can bring significant cost, time, and energy benefits. That’s where mining lean maintenance comes into play. It offers an effective way to enhance the efficiency and productivity of mines. So, if you’re interested in learning more about lean maintenance in the mining sector, you’ve come to the right place.

What is lean maintenance?

Maintenance is an essential factor that may significantly improve the operation of any business. Lean thinking becomes a requirement for effective production systems by implementing it into maintenance procedures.

Lean maintenance is essentially concerned with the proactive planning and scheduling of maintenance tasks via total productive maintenance (TPM) practices. These strategies are created using reliability-centered maintenance (RCM) and decision logic. Moreover, they are carried out by empowered action teams.

Lean maintenance solutions not only cut costs but also improve production quality. It is the initial stage towards changing organizations into lean enterprises, with the “5S” technologies playing a crucial role. The 5s system attempts to reduce waste and increase productivity. It organizes the workplace and uses visual cues to achieve consistent operational results.

What is the right way to apply the lean principle to the mining industry?

To apply the lean approach to the mining business, first determine the value based on client demands. Products and consumers in the mining business have distinct features. Mining sector goods are standard, having well-defined standards and criteria. The market determines quality and pricing.

The transaction in the mining business takes place on the stock market, with no direct interaction between the product provider (mine industry) and the buyer. As a result, “direct” clients, or firms purchasing the goods, play a little part in this industry.

However, from a more significant viewpoint, the mining sector has indirect clients who contribute to the firm either passively or actively. Among these stakeholders are society, government, the media, and others. Their primary concern is not just the product’s quality, such as the influence on the environment, human well-being, and societal economic success.

The next stage in implementing lean maintenance in mining is identifying waste and executing waste-reduction solutions. Overproduction, repair, rework, excessive motion, excessive processing, inventory, and transportation are all examples of waste in lean thinking.

When implementing the lean concept in the mining sector, remember that lean thinking began in the automobile industry, which has its own set of values, demands, and characteristics. The framework of the “Temple of Lean” comprises aspects such as standardization, Total Productive Maintenance (TPM), and Quick Change Over (QCO), as well as the 5S system and visual factory.

These core principles can be used to understand the critical difficulties for the mining sector. Understanding the mining industry’s specific traits and values allows you to effectively use the lean concept and increase efficiency and overall equipment effectiveness in mining operations.

What are some critical opportunities to leverage lean maintenance in mining?

The mining industry faces a unique set of challenges. Just like suppliers of commodities, mining companies have to deal with fluctuating market prices, changing demand, and cyclical factors. But it doesn’t stop there. When we delve deeper into a mining company’s operations, we see that things are far from easy.

To succeed, you must achieve and sustain high Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) while striving to minimize waste. When you combine all of these issues, it becomes clear that any organization unable to optimize its capital and resources fully will struggle to stay competitive.

Ultimately, this leads to weak profit margins and overall performance. Fortunately, Lean practices are designed to bring long-term efficiencies to demanding businesses. As pressures on miners’ bottom lines increase, more companies are turning to lean for mining maintenance.

It allows them to benefit from increased production efficiency, adaptability to technology, and improvements in safety and environmental programs. Similar to the automotive industry, which gave birth to lean thinking, the mining industry heavily relies on efficient industrial processes, value stream efficiency, and a strong emphasis on safety.

These are all areas where lean maintenance has proven successful in the auto industry.

You might be familiar with the term “Lean Six Sigma,” which was adopted early on by companies like Toyota and General Electric. It’s not limited to a specific industry or procedure. It rather represents a concerted effort to minimize variance or waste at every production stage.

One of the most effective lean approaches is the 5S system. As mentioned before, this principle of lean maintenance focuses on reducing waste and optimizing productivity by maintaining an organized workplace. This has resulted in a safer and more efficient underground work environment.

As the Lean program gains traction, your mine can achieve additional operational gains, such as reducing cycle time, transforming equipment management, and improving the effectiveness of safety and environmental programs. It also enables smooth adaptation to technological and digital changes.

In conclusion, implementing lean maintenance practices in the mining industry can bring about significant improvements in efficiency and cost-effectiveness. By adopting a systematic approach and eliminating waste, you can streamline your total productive maintenance, reduce downtime, and enhance overall production.