Maintenance Connection Best Practices: Establishing Naming Conventions

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“A little forethought at the start can save a lot of time in the future”

Establishing a robust Naming Convention and protocols during the initial system set-up will assist staff to become familiar with navigating through the Maintenance Connection modules. By employing a consistent and logical format, the Explorer lists will naturally group listings together to simplify the Look-up and Search process.

There are five modules where this is particularly relevant:

  • Assets
  • Inventory
  • Classifications
  • Procedures
  • Preventative Maintenance

Assets

As Assets are often added, modified or moved within the Asset tree, the ID and Name need to contain sufficient information to make them identifiable without requiring them to be altered if modified or moved. The ID can often incorporate the Classification or unique numbering associated with that Asset. The name should start with a general description followed by increasing levels of refinement.

Example:

Asset ID: GENDSL200-026

Asset Name:  Generator, Diesel Standby 200KVA Siemens

Always make allowances in the ID for future additions and larger sizes. In the given example, -026 was used in preference to -26 as there is the possibility that there may be more than 99 Generators in the future.

Inventory

Inventory / Stock items can number into the thousands for many Companies. The ID and naming of these need to be standardised to allow:

  • Efficient searching for a part
  • Remove duplication from non-standard descriptions
  • Sufficient descriptors to avoid ambiguity
  • New items to be added which match the existing naming convention

Often the Inventory ID is not related to the description of the item, but rather a simple indexed number which matches a barcode. A defined number of numerals/letters is valuable it keeping Inventory in order. The name however should follow a Noun-Adjective protocol. It can also include Manufacturer or Model details in situations where this is relevant to correct selection.

Example:

Inventory ID: FIX1003456

Inventory Name:  Bolt, M16 x 100 SST

Inventory ID: MTR040403F

Inventory Name:  Motor, 4KW 4Pole 3PH 415V Foot Mount

Classifications

In several major industries there are standards which can help in creating a set of Classifications. By having major Classification groups which are broken down further into more specific descriptions, reporting and analysis can be enhanced. They can also be incorporated into the Procedure and Preventative Maintenance ID as described later.

In the International Standard for the Petroleum, Petrochemical and Gas industry ISO 14224, they have used a four letter abbreviation to group and sort Classifications

Example:

COAX = Compressor (CO) – Axial (AX)

VESE = Vessel (VE) – Separator (SE)

A similar convention can be used incorporating the same or more letters or numbers for other industries which do not have existing standards.

Procedures

By using the Classifications in the Procedure and PM IDs, you can avoid creating duplicate Procedures and easily identify all applicable Procedures when updates are required.

As the Procedure can either relate to a time or meter based interval, or an unscheduled type of repair, the ID and name needs to be flexible enough to allow for all variables.

Example:

VESE-M48-M-30  = Vessel, Separator 48-Monthly Mechanical Internal & External Inspection

VESE-X01-M-01 = Vessel, Separator Recoating of Corrosion Protection

Preventative Maintenance

As with the Procedures, the Classification can also be incorporated in the ID and the Name. A similar protocol can be used, with the main variation being the inclusion of the Asset within the PM.

Example:

PM-VESE-M-COMPSTN-01 = Vessel, Separator Mechanical Service Compression Station 01

If you’re interested in learning more about getting setup with a trial of Maintenance Connection, we’d love to demonstrate what we can do for you in 2015.

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