CORRECTIVE MAINTENANCE (REPAIRS) MANAGEMENT George I. Johnston, MS, PE, CCE

Corrective Maintenance (Repair or Unscheduled Service): Definition Response to on -demand service events including equipment repair, user problems, equipment incidents and general emergencies that are not scheduled.

Unscheduled Service Incoming Inspections Incident investigations Recalls and Alerts Management Servicing the Equipment Corrective Maintenance or REPAIRS

Repairs Critical to have service excellence in this area Repairs Customers immediately see the value of these services on patient care Repairs “Trouble shooting to isolate the cause of device malfunction and taking measures (replacement of parts, adjustments, or other means) to bring the device back into normal function, safety, performance, and reliability.” (ECRI 1990)

GOALS FOR CORRECTIVE MAINTENANCE To assure quality and safe performance of all devices in the equipment management program To minimize down time and turnaround time To manage all maintenance in the most cost-effective manner

Downtime “Equipment not available for patient care” Implies equipment not working to original specifications thus requiring service Turnaround time is time received for service to time returned after correction The basis of the clinical engineers job is to have safe and effective devices available for patient care Limiting down time is critical

Service Options Manufacturer, distributor, third party/ISO, in-house department, other… Payment arrangements Full service contract Partial contracts Time and materials Maintenance insurance? Managed/risk shared program? Service options should be considered during the technology planning stage

Repair Approach Component level Module exchange Lower parts cost, higher labor cost Not practical for many new devices Module exchange Higher parts cost, lower labor cost Equipment design may make this the only choice Approach depends upon the situation, time available, design of equipment, skill of staff

Repair documentation Request

Repair documentation Assignment

Repair documentation Labor

Repair documentation Parts

Repair documentation Action

Resources for unscheduled service Skilled staff Technical expertise and customer service Staff availability 24 x 7 ? Logistics Parts Tools Jigs & Test/repair equipment Software

Replacement parts Parts stock depends upon various factors Planning for parts is cost driven: How fast can vendor supply? Critical nature of equipment? Cost of downtime? Replacement modules or devices? Are there high failure rate components? Cost of each? Software related?

Off site response to expensive equipment repairs Biomed role: manage the repair but give clinicians options and make the vendor aware of your oversight! 1. Get all information - people, equipment, etc. 2. User description of problem and service response 3. Speak with the vendor service rep Who? Cost? Downtime? Parts? Worth putting money into unit? Alternatives?

Off site response to expensive equipment repairs 4. Over a threshold cost, get 2nd opinion 5. If expensive parts, perform alternative parts research 6. Acceptance by vendor and user regarding alternative part, vendor or other change 7. Get service report and related solution information (always maintain documentation) 8. Follow-up with note to user and vendor for less costly alternative use

Summary: Repair Management Maintenance management reduces costs by: Managing labor Vendors or In-house Managing parts Ordered or from Stock Managing data Managing contracts Managing users Set priorities and decision points Communication, communication, communication… Reduce user error via education and training (documentation exposes this need)

Corrective Maintenance (Repairs) Management Questions? Comments?