An Assessment of Maintenance Practices and problems in Jordanian Industries

In the move towards world-class manufacturing, many firms are realizing a need for the use of proper maintenance of production facilities and systems. Industrial plants, machines and equipment are becoming technologically more advanced and at the same time more complex and difficult to control. Therefore, the importance of the maintenance function has been greater than before, due to its role in maintaining and improving availability, performance efficiency, on-time deliveries, safety requirements and overall plant productivity. In this context, Jordanian industries are more and more realizing the importance of the maintenance function. This paper aims at assessing the maintenance requirements in local industries. To achieve this goal, a questionnaire was designed in order to investigate maintenance needs and problems, namely, maintenance planning, spare parts, equipment calibration and maintenance staff training. The questionnaire was distributed on a selected sample of Jordanian industries and was filled, mostly, through personal interviews. A hundred industries from all different existing sectors and from all sizes responded to the questionnaire. The collected data were analyzed using SPSS. It was found that most of the industrial firms in Jordan have maintenance departments, but still not all of them allocate budgets to these departments. About half of the firms apply preventive maintenance along side with corrective maintenance. Nearly 15% of the respondent firms were found not well aware of the different types of maintenance systems. Half of the firms calibrate their equipment locally. In this study, the main problems in machines’ maintenance were highlighted. It was found that the major problem is the unavailability of spare parts in the local market. About 44% of the respondent firms consult foreign experts. The needs of industries related to specialties in the field of maintenance were also investigated. Finally, conclusions regarding the current situation of maintenance in Jordanian industries were derived. © 2011 Jordan Journal of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering. All rights reserved