The problems with KPIs

The reason why we measure performance in organizations is often reduced to simple platitudes, such as, “you can’t manage anything unless you measure it” or “what gets measured gets done.” The three main reasons for measuring performance are:

To learn and improve
To report externally and demonstrate compliance
To control and monitor people.

The problems with KPIs

Why do we measure performance?

In practice, the term ‘KPI’ is overused, and often describes any form of measurement data and performance metrics that measure business performance. Instead of clearly identifying the information needs, and then carefully designing the most appropriate indicators to assess performance, we often observe what we have termed the ‘ICE’ approach:

Identify everything that is easy to measure and count
Collect and report the data on everything that is easy to measure and count
End up scratching your head and thinking, “What the heck are we going to do with all this performance data stuff?”

Comments

DRY GAS SEALS: How to Implement Proactive Monitoring

BY MICHAEL FORSTHOFFER. In the last 10+ years there has been a significant increase in the technology and instrumentation used on dry gas seal systems to monitor the condition of the seals. Most notable has been the call to monitor secondary seal condition – there have been significant failures of the secondary seal without any issue with the primary seal. The majority of these failures have been due to oil migration across the separation seals. As the oil is not drained out, it accumulates around the secondary seal, fills the grooves, and causes the secondary seal faces to contact. There are various approaches to monitoring secondary seal condition. Probably the most beneficial is utilizing a back pressure control valve in the primary vent (Figure). Figure: Using a back pressure control valve in the primary vent as part of the monitoring of secondary seal condition in a dry gas seal. This sets the primary vent at a pressure below the primary seal gas supply pressure, but high en...

[Read more...]

How to clean superalloy parts? brazing technique removes oxides in deep, narrow cracks

Investment cast parts used in modern gas turbines are made of expensive superalloys that can withstand extreme thermal, mechanical and chemical loads experienced by hot gas path components. Parts with hundreds of thousands of service hours, however, become severely oxidized. To improve efficiency and reduce the risk of unscheduled outages, these parts must either be periodically refurbished using a brazing repair process or replaced. To facilitate brazing repair, all oxidation, sulfidation and hot corrosion must be removed from surfaces, cooling passages and deep, narrow cracks. Oxide scale typically forms on the mating faces of cracks that occur in hot gas path areas. These cracks become packed full of scale. It is the goal of the service shop to repair these components by filling the cracks with a braze alloy. Unfortunately, braze alloy cannot flow into cracks filled with oxide scale. Figure 1: By varying the pressure between positive, negative, and atmospheric levels, the Dynamic FI...

[Read more...]

RESOLVING VARNISH CHALLENGES: Varnish Removal Technology in Turbine Oil

BY HASANUR JAMAL MOLLA, SAAD H. AL-DOSSARY, TARIQ NADEEM, AND MOHAMMAD F. AL-SHIHRI. V arnish is an organic residue produced by irreversible chemical degradation of mineral oil lubricants. It can lead to filter plugging, restricted oil flow, poor heat transfer, valve sticking, fail-to-start conditions, and unit trips. Varnish on Spool Valves Varnish on gear Varnish on Journal Bearing During rotating equipment operation, heat generated due to friction degrades the oil and produces very small byproduct particles that settle throughout the system as varnish. Spark discharges from static charge buildup in the lubricating oil filters play a key role in its formation. Over time, these particles attach themselves to surfaces throughout the turbine, producing a sticky film. As varnish builds up, performance of rotating equipment su ﬀ ers. A variety of varnish removal systems are available in the market. As the conversion between soluble and insoluble varnish is a physical equilibr...

[Read more...]

Understanding the Types of Maintenance and Choosing the Right Strategy

This article provides an overview of the nine main types of maintenance, ranging from preventive to corrective maintenance and everything in between. Although specific terminology may vary, it's important to ensure that everyone is talking about the same thing and that the underlying principles are clear. Whether you refer to it as condition-based maintenance or predictive maintenance, what matters most is that we can have a meaningful conversation about when and how to use it. As such, this article also explores the appropriate applications of condition-based maintenance. Many people have questions about the different types of maintenance, so this quick overview provides a helpful starting point: There are nine distinct types of maintenance, which can be classified into two main categories: Preventive Maintenance and Corrective Maintenance. Preventive Maintenance is performed proactively before any equipment failure occurs. This category encompasses: Time-Based Maintenance (TBM)...

[Read more...]

Grounding brush discharge monitoring

In recognition of the possibility of static charge build up in condensing steam turbines, API 612 (2005) specifies that grounding brushes be installed. The electrical flow to ground through these brushes be monitored and useful information can be extracted. This article carries excerpts from the paper, “Babbitted bearing health assessment” by John K Whalen of John Crane, Thomas D Hess of Chestnut Run, Jim Allen of Nova Chemicals and Jack Craighton of Schneider Electric. Grounding brushes take current from the rotor to ground so that a charge does not build up on the rotor to the point where it discharges to ground though the best path possible – which is usually the closest point between the rotor and stator which is usually (hopefully) the point of minimum film thickness in a bearing. Typically this point of minimum film thickness is found in the active thrust bearing (as will be shown later). Shaft grounding brushes serve two purposes. The brushes are able to transmit modest amo...

[Read more...]

Industrial Maintenance Solutions

Search This Blog