What is a Wrench-time Study? (and the benefits expected from a wrench-time study)

 What is a Wrench-time Study? (and the benefits expected from a wrench-time study)

 

Wrench-time is a measure of maintenance personnel’s time accomplishing proactive work on time, on schedule, and on budget. Wrench-time does not include time obtaining parts, tools or instructions, and work associated with those tasks, traveling to or from job sites, or time spent obtaining work assignments. It is about only focused on “hands on tool” time. 

Required elements of Optimal Wrench-time; 

> Proactive Maintenance Planning and Scheduling 

> Repeatable procedures must have step by step instructions, specifications, craft type, time to complete, etc. (should be written to lowest skill level of maintenance personnel) 

> Maintenance personnel must have the required knowledge and skills to complete proactive work to specifications. 

A wrench-time study in a reactive organization will typically show that maintenance personnel spend 5% to 20% of their time actually “hands on tool” time. Proactive wrench-time ranges from 40-70%. 

(optimizing wrench-time is one tool in the maintenance continuous improvement process)

Increasing wrench-time from 20% to 40% is similar to hiring double your current maintenance staff without the increased labor cost.

Results from a wrench time study, when a proactive strategy to optimize equipment reliability is designed and implemented could/will results on.

production cost reduction of 20-40% …maintenance cost reduction of 30-65% …capacity increase of 5-35 % plus 

The causes of low wrench-time are:

 1.  Reactive Maintenance and Production (if one is reactive then they are both reactive, like it or not it is a fact) 

2.  Ineffective or no Maintenance Planning and Scheduling 

3.  Lack of Repeatable Procedures with step by step instructions (with sign off by each step on procedure), specifications, time estimate, labor requirements, etc. 

4.  Lack of Management commitment to Maintenance Schedules which were agreed upon 

5.  Lack of discipline by Maintenance staff. 

6.  Lack of effective storeroom management and control. 

7.  Lack of vendors delivering the right part at the right time 

8.  And so much more

Typical findings from reactive organizations:

 > Direct labor (wrench time): 5-23%

> Obtaining material/parts:  24-60%

> Waiting for parts, production or maintenance: 17-30%

> Searching for information: 11%

> Maintenance budgets are too high and unpredictable

> Production losses and cost per unit produced are high

> Complaints by customers are common because deliveries are late

 

Your thoughts or comments are appreciated.

 

The Author: Ricky Smith CMRP, CMRT, CRL

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