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Transitioning to a New Lube Supplier
Kevin Anderson, Maintenance Engineer, Cessna
Aircraft Company
If you are the engineer caught in the middle this change, you
will find this to be a challenging task, but very beneficial as
well. Depending on the quantity of lube products you use and the
number of PM tasks that are performed, you may have a major chore
ahead of you. Additionally, there is a degree of liability when
changing lubrication products so you will have to work closely
with your new vendor checking and double-checking compatibility.
On critical equipment with special lubrication products you may
need to send samples to a lab for verification.
Some changes that may need to be made are replacement of labels
at lubrication points and editing of PM tasks if they are identified
with the previous vendors products. You will also have to change
part descriptions in your inventory system, and develop cross-reference
sheets to help everyone adapt to the new product.
Step 1
So far this all sounds like a lot of worry and work, but here
is where the benefits may be reaped. If you were using the previous
vendors product name or numbers now is the perfect time to create
your own lubrication codes. Having your own codes will save you
from going through all of this trouble the next time purchasing
decides to save a small percentage by changing vendors.
To develop your codes, use a combination of ISO viscosity codes
and common industry letter codes for oils and a combination of
common industry letter codes and NLGI codes for grease. An example
of your code for anti-wear oil with a viscosity of ISO 32 is AW32.
Although the AW is not yet an official standard code for anti-wear,
any lubrication distributor will know exactly what AW32 means.
EP2L is an example for Extreme Pressure NLGI 2, Lithium grease.
You will have to put a lot of thought into creating your codes,
but get your new vendor involved in helping you with this. You
can get a good start by creating your own company codes for the
lubrication products that are in your inventory. Remember, these
are your companies codes, so as long as you build a cross reference
and do your best at using common industry, ISO, and NLGI codes
you will do fine.
Step 2
Step 2 actually goes hand in hand with Step 1. Now is a great
time to review your PM tasks for inaccuracies. If your PM program
has been in place for a few years you probably have some inaccuracies.
Your tasks may reference lubrication products that have been substituted.
When this happens it is possible the technician has made a decision
to change to a product that may or may not be correct. During
this step you may find a few more products to add to your cross-reference
sheet.
Step 3
Now that you have identified all of the lubrication products you
are using you should work with your vendor to identify products
that can be consolidated. Although some consolidations can be
made with oil products, grease products are the best bet for consolidation.
It is common to have several different greases made by different
manufacturers that are actually all the same. Additionally, you
may be able to move up to a slightly better grade of grease at
little or no additional cost that will further consolidate your
inventory. Your parts clerks will be very pleased to have fewer
products to stock and newfound space in their cabinets, and your
technicians will appreciate having fewer grease guns and oil jugs
to haul.
Step 4
Now that all the research is over it is time to roll up your sleeves
and make the changes. Remember to add your newly developed codes
to the new vendors part information in your inventory. Using your
new codes, replace any reference of other vendor’s product
information in your PM tasks and on your equipment. Your technicians
will need the cross-reference sheets you developed until you have
completed the change.
Be patient! This is a major undertaking that may take months
to complete and fully implement, but keep in mind there are many
benefits other than the cost savings that purchasing is after.
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