Seems like every plant I interview with wants run-and-gun — last shop cut our PM rounds from 2 hours to 45 minutes, then wondered why we were swapping three pump seals a week at 10 pm. When you talk terms, are you locking in weekly steam trap checks and alignment time (dial indicator, IR gun), or just taking the calls and overtime?
, that “2 hours to 45 minutes” cut is exactly how you end up with “three pump seals a week at 10 pm.” I bake into offers a protected 90‑minute weekly PM block for steam traps + alignment (dial indicator + IR gun), tied to a simple KPI (seal failures/MTBF) and a 60‑day pilot to prove it; DOE backs the ROI on trap rounds: https://www.energy.gov/eere/amo/improving-steam-system-performance-sourcebook-industry-second-edition. If they balk, I’ll trade to biweekly traps but daily 10‑min walkdowns — would you try the pilot framing?
And i get the frustration… Cutting PM rounds to 45 minutes really does a disservice in the long run. I’ve found that scheduling a 90-minute window and sticking to it helps prevent those late-night seal swaps.
I totally hear you on the time crunch. I’ve pushed for dedicated weekly slots for preventative maintenance and that’s really helped keep the pressure off. How do you usually negotiate those crucial hours?