Reliability centered maintenance

Definition
Reliability centered maintenance (RCM) is a corporate-level maintenance strategy
that is implemented to optimize the maintenance program of a company or facility.
The final result of an RCM program is the implementation of a specific maintenance
strategy on each of the assets of the facility. The maintenance strategies are
optimized so that the productivity of the plant is maintained using cost-effective
maintenance techniques.
The primary objective is to preserve system function
Identify failure modes that can affect the system function
Prioritize the failure modes
Select applicable and effective tasks to control the failure modes
Step 1: Selection of equipment for RCM analysis
The first step is to select the piece of equipment for reliability centered
maintenance analysis. The equipment selected should be critical, in terms of its
effect on operations, its previous costs of repair and previous costs of preventative
maintenance.
Step 2: Define the boundaries and function of the systems that contain the selected
equipment
The equipment belongs to a system that performs a crucial function. The system
can be large or small, but the function of the system, and its inputs and outputs,
should be known. For example, the function of a conveyor belt system is to
transport goods. Its inputs are the goods and mechanical energy powering the belt,
while its outputs are the goods at the other end. In this case, the electric motor
supplying the mechanical energy would be considered as part of a different system.
Step 3: Define the ways that the system can fail (failure modes)
In step 3 the objective is to list all of the ways that the function of the system can
fail. For example, the conveyor belt may fail by being unable to transport the goods
from one end to the other, or perhaps it does not transport the goods quickly
enough.
Step 4: Identify the root causes of the failure modes
With the help of operators, experienced technicians, RCM experts and equipment
experts, the root causes of each of the failure modes can be identified. Root causes
for failure of the conveyor could include a lack of lubrication on the rollers, a failure
of a bearing, or a loosened belt.
Step 5: Assess the effects of failure
In this step the effects of each failure mode are considered. Equipment failures may
affect safety, operations and other equipment. Criticality of each of these failure
modes can also be considered.
There are various recommended techniques that are used to give this step a
systematic approach. These include:

Failure, mode and effects analysis (FMEA)

Failure, mode, effect and criticality analysis
Hazard and operability studies (HAZOPS)
Fault tree analysis (FTA)
The most important failure modes will be determined at the conclusion of this
systematic analysis. Ask yourself questions such as Does this failure mode have
safety implications?, and Does this failure mode result in a full or partial outage of
operations?. Your answer is the most important failure modes that should be
prioritized for further analysis. Importantly, the failure modes that are retained
include only those that have a real probability of occurring under realistic operating
conditions.
Step 6: Select a maintenance tactic for each failure mode
At this step, the most appropriate maintenance tactic for each failure mode is
determined. The maintenance tactic that is selected must be technically and
economically feasible.
Condition-based maintenance
is selected when it is technically and economically feasible to detect the onset of
the failure mode.
Time or usage-based preventative maintenance is selected when it is technically
and economically feasible to reduce the risk of failure using this method.
For failure modes that do not have satisfactory condition based maintenance or
preventative maintenance options, then a redesign of the system to eliminate or
modify the failure mode should be considered.
Failure modes that were not identified as being critical in Step 6 may, at this stage,
be identified as good candidates for a run-to-failure maintenance schedule.
Step 7: Implement and then regularly review the maintenance tactic selected
Importantly, the RCM methodology will only be useful if its maintenance
recommendations are put into practice. When that has been done, it is important
that the recommendations are constantly reviewed and renewed as additional
information is found.

Maintenance organization
The maintenance organization can be define as the people with purpose working
together for maintaining satisfactory equipment and machine reliability in order to
achieve productive operations and high quality products.
There exist no universally admitted method to design maintenance system.
It depends on the organizational structure with defined hierarchy of authority and
defined maintenance procedures and policies.
Directly dependent on factors like
1. Operation business plan:
Maintenance structure that meets the demands of operation functions (plant)
and can support that mode of operation.
2. Maintenance work types:
Maintenance organization must be organized to provide different type of
maintenance tasks like, emergency, preventive maintenance, periodic
maintenance and others.
3. Support and supervision requirements:
Best maintenance practice: Span of control ratios to support effective
identification, prioritization, planning and execution of the maintenance activities
the organization should provide bets support to the bottom line workers.
Key consideration for Organizational structure
Setting organizational principles and rules
Maintenance management is structured in parallel to operations management.
Is not subordinate to operations.
Supportive service Vs subordinate service
Defined roles and responsibilities.
Defining "Maintenance costs"
One universal measurement of maintenance performance, and perhaps the
measure that matters most in the end, is the cost of maintenance. Unfortunately
maintenance costs are often used to compare maintenance performance between
companies or between plants within the same company.
Equally unfortunately, there is no standard for measuring maintenance costs. Each
company, usually each plant within a company and often each department within a
plant develop their own definition of "maintenance costs."

For this reason, maintenance cost comparisons should always be accompanied by a

clear definition of what is included and excluded for each plant included in the
comparison.
If you are in the process of defining maintenance costs, or believe that your
definition needs updating, the following table may be of help.
Type of cost (materials and labor)
Recommended cost category
Preventive maintenance
Maintenance
Corrective maintenance (repair or replacement of failed components)
Maintenance (unless its a capital replacement)
Lubrication (a specific PM task)
Maintenance (In some plants this is a Production cost)
Contracted preventive and corrective maintenance
Maintenance
"Maintenance" work done by Production employees. This can included cleaning,
inspections, replacement of "production" components (e.g. filter media, etc) and
perhaps some lubrication.
Production - but remember to take these costs into account when making
comparisons
"Non-working" maintenance labor (e.g. maintenance safety meetings, waiting time,
etc)
Maintenance
Maintenance supervision, planning and administration
Maintenance
Non-capital plant improvements. This includes both process and reliability
improvements
Probably maintenance, however its a good idea to include an "improvement"
category in Work Order codes to allow improvement costs to be identified
Capital improvements and replacements
Capital (but remember that the definition of "capital" also varies widely)
Disposal of obsolete and surplus stock and inventory adjustments (where inventory
is working capital)
A special expense account, separate from other costs and not in the
maintenance budget

Preventative maintenance (PM)

Definition
Preventative maintenance (or preventive maintenance) is maintenance that is
regularly performed on a piece of equipment to lessen the likelihood of it failing.
Preventative maintenance is performed while the equipment is still working, so that
it does not break down unexpectedly.
Preventative maintenance is planned so that any required resources are available.
The maintenance is scheduled based on a time or usage trigger. A typical example
of an asset with a time based preventative maintenance schedule is an airconditioner wh ich is serviced every year, before summer. A typical example of an
asset with a usage based preventative maintenance schedule is a motor-vehicle
which might be scheduled for service every 10,000km.
Preventative maintenance is more complex to coordinate than run-to-failure
maintenance because the maintenance schedule must be planned. Preventative
maintenance is less complex to coordinate than predictive maintenance because
monitoring strategies do not have to be planned nor the results interpreted.
Advantages of preventative maintenance
Advantages compared with less complex strategies
Planning is the biggest advantage of preventative maintenance over less complex
strategies. Unplanned , reactive maintenance has many overhead costs that can be
avoided during the planning process. The cost of unplanned maintenance includes
lost production, higher costs for parts and shipping, as well as time lost responding
to emergencies and diagnosing faults while equipment is not working. Unplanned
maintenance typically costs three to nine times more than planned maintenance.
When maintenance is planned, each of these costs can be reduced. Equipment can
be shut down to coincide with production downtime. Prior to the shutdown, any
required parts, supplies and personnel can be gathered to minimize the time taken
for a repair. These measures decrease the total cost of the maintenance. Safety is
also improved because equipment breaks down less often than in less complex
strategies.
Advantages compared with more complex strategies
Preventative maintenance does not require condition-based monitoring. This
eliminates the need (and cost) to conduct and interpret condition monitoring data
and act on the results of that interpretation. It also eliminates the need to own and
use condition monitoring equipment.
Disadvantages of preventative maintenance
Disadvantages compared with less complex strategies

Unlike reactive maintenance, preventative maintenance requires maintenance

planning. This requires an investment in time and resources that is not required with
less complex maintenance strategies.
Maintenance may occur too often with a preventative maintenance strategy. Unless,
and until the maintenance frequencies are optimized for minimum maintenance, too
much or too little preventative maintenance will occur.
Preventive Maintenance Schedule
You create one PM schedule for each piece of equipment for which you want to
perform PMs. The PM schedule defines which service types apply to a piece of
equipment. The PM schedule also defines the service interval for each service type.
A service interval refers to the frequency at which the service types are performed.
For example, you could create a PM schedule for a piece of equipment that
schedules a belt inspection every 5,000 hours and a mandatory belt replacement
every 20,000 hours.
You schedule maintenance by periodically updating PM schedule information. When
you update PM schedule information, the system determines which service types
are due to be performed based on meter readings, dates, and other user-defined
criteria. If service types are due to be performed, the system updates the PM status.
In addition, depending on how you set up the system, the system generates a PM
work order.
Condition-Based Maintenance
This program relies on knowing the condition of individual pieces of equipment.
Some features of CBM include: Monitoring equipment parameters such as
temperatures, pressures, vibrations, leakage current, dissolved gas analysis, etc.
Testing on a periodic basis and/or when problems are suspected such as Doble
testing, vibration testing, and infrared scanning. Monitoring carefully operatorgathered data. Securing results in knowledgeable maintenance decisions which
would reduce overall costs by focusing only on equipment that really needs
attention. Drawbacks to CBM include it being very difficult and expensive to monitor
some quantities. It requires knowledgeable and consistent analysis to be effective;
and also condition monitoring equipment and systems themselves require
maintenance. Because of these drawbacks, it is nearly impossible to have an
entirely CBM program.
Creating a PM Schedule
Schedule Type
Enter a value from UDC 13/ST (Schedule Type) that indicates the type of
maintenance schedule. Values are:
Blank: Interval-Based Schedule. This type of preventive maintenance schedule uses
a service interval to determine when maintenance should be performed. Examples
include an oil change that occurs every 3000 miles or an inspection that occurs
every 30 days.

1: Unscheduled Maintenance. This type of preventive maintenance schedule entails

maintenance that is performed on an ad hoc basis. You use the Work With
Unscheduled Maintenance program (P13UM) to specify when the scheduled
maintenance should be performed. Examples include replacing a windshield or
washing a vehicle.
2: Condition-Based Schedule. This type of preventive maintenance schedule uses an
alert level, indicated by the condition of the equipment, to determine when
maintenance should be performed. Examples include replacing tires based on their
tread depth or replacing an electric motor that is overheating.
Service Hours
Enter the hour interval for maintenance.
For example, tractors typically run 100 hours before needing an oil change. This
field is the number of hours in the interval between maintenance occurrences.
Service Miles
Enter the mileage interval for maintenance.
This field is the number of miles in the interval between maintenance occurrences.
Service Fuel
Enter the fuel interval for maintenance.
This field is the amount of fuel in the interval between maintenance occurrences.
Service Meter 4
Enter the meter 4 interval for maintenance.
This field is the interval between maintenance occurrences.
Service Meter 5
Enter the meter 5 interval for maintenance.
This field is the interval between maintenance occurrences.
Service Meter 6
Enter the meter 6 interval for maintenance.
This field is the interval between maintenance occurrences.
Service Days
Enter the number of days to elapse before you schedule maintenance.
You can enter a service interval based on service days and schedule date. If you
enter both service days and a schedule date, the system schedules the
maintenance to come due based on the schedule date.
The system calculates subsequent schedule dates for maintenance based on the
last completed date in conjunction with the service days interval.

Schedule Date
Enter the date that you want to receive a reminder message about an asset.
This is the future date on which the scheduled maintenance is due. You can enter a
service interval based on the schedule date and service days. If you enter both a
schedule date and service days, the system schedules the maintenance to come
due based on the schedule date that you indicate.
Subsequent schedule dates for maintenance are calculated based on the last
completed date in conjunction with either the service days interval or frequency
indicator.
Frequency Indicator
Indicate the frequency at which the system schedules maintenance when used in
conjunction with Schedule Date.
When maintenance is completed, the system automatically schedules the next
maintenance according to the value that you enter in this field. Values are:
Blank: No frequency indicator.
1: Same date each month.
2: Last date each month.
3: Same date each quarter.
4: Same date each year.
5: Same day each week.
6: Semiannually (same date at six month intervals).
Multiple W.O. Code (multiple work order code)
Enter a code to determine whether maintenance service types can be rescheduled
and can come due again before the maintenance task for the originally scheduled
service type has been completed. Values are:
MAINTENANCE/INSPECTION FREQUENCY
Review building codes and
safety regulations

Annually

Fire code inspection

Annually

Fire alarm system

NFPA 72 recommended testing intervals or AHJ

(Authorities Having Jurisdiction) recommendations

Fire extinguishers

Inspect monthly
Maintain annually

Kitchen ranges, ovens and

vent hoods

Semi-annually (NFPA 17A recommendations)

HVAC system inspection and

Quarterly

change filters
Annually or bi-annually, depending on the type of
system

Boiler

Water heaters inspect, drain

Annually
and de-scale

Availability Classifications
there are a number of different classifications of availability, including:

Instantaneous (or Point) Availability

Average Uptime Availability (or Mean Availability)

Steady State Availability

Instantaneous or Point Availability, A(t)

Instantaneous (or point) availability is the probability that a system (or component)
will be operational (up and running) at a specific time, t. This classification is
typically used in the military, as it is sometimes necessary to estimate the
availability of a system at a specific time of interest (e.g., when a certain mission is
to happen). The point availability is very similar to the reliability function in that it
gives a probability that a system will function at the given time, t. Unlike reliability,
however, the instantaneous availability measure incorporates maintainability
information. At a given time, t, the system will be operational if one of the following
conditions is met (1):

The system functioned properly from 0 to t, i.e., it never failed by time t. The
probability of this happening is R(t).
Or,

The system functioned properly since the last repair at time u, 0 < u < t. The
probability of this condition is:

with m(u) being the renewal density function of the system.

Consequently, the point availability is the summation of the above two probabilities,
or:

In BlockSim, the point availability can be obtained through simulation. It can be

estimated for different points of time and can also be plotted as a function of time.
Average Uptime Availability (or Mean Availability),
The mean availability is the proportion of time during a mission or time period that
the system is available for use. It represents the mean value of the instantaneous
availability function over the period (0, T] and is given by:

For systems that have periodical maintenance, availability may be zero at regular
periodical intervals. In this case, mean availability is a more meaningful measure
than instantaneous availability. Such a definition of availability is commonly used in
manufacturing and telecommunication systems.
Steady State Availability,
The steady state availability of the system is the limit of the availability function as
time tends to infinity. Steady state availability is also called the long-run or
asymptotic availability. A common equation for the steady state availability found in
literature is:

However, it must be noted that the steady state also applies to mean availability.
The next figure illustrates the steady state availability graphically.

Figure 1 - Illustration of point availability approaching steady state.

For practical considerations, the availability function will start approaching the
steady state availability value after a time period of approximately four times the
average time-to-failure. This varies depending on the maintainability issues and
complexity of the system. In other words, you can think of the steady state
availability as a stabilizing point where the system's availability is roughly a
constant value.
The steady state availability reflects the long-term availability after the system
"settles." The system availability may initially be unstable due to training/learning
issues, deciding on a good spare parts stocking policy, deciding on the number of
repair personnel, optimizing the efficiency of repair, burn-in of the system, etc., and
could take some time before it stabilizes.
It is important to be very careful in using the steady state availability as the sole
metric for some systems, especially systems that do not need regular maintenance.
A large-scale system with repeated repairs, such as a car, will reach a point where it
is almost certain that something will break and need repair once a month. However,
this state may not be reached until, for instance, 500,000 miles. Obviously, if an
Operations Manager of rental vehicles, for example, keeps the vehicles until they
reach 50,000 miles, then this metric value would not be of any use.
Inherent Availability, AI
Inherent availability is the steady state availability when considering only the
corrective maintenance (CM) downtime of the system. This classification is what is
sometimes referred to as the availability as seen by maintenance personnel. This

classification excludes preventive maintenance downtime, logistic delays, supply

delays and administrative delays. Since these other causes of delay can be
minimized or eliminated, an availability value that considers only the corrective
downtime is the inherent or intrinsic property of the system. Many times, this is the
type of availability that companies use to report the availability of their products
(e.g., computer servers) because they see downtime other than actual repair time
as out of their control and too unpredictable
Introduction to Repairable Systems
Repairable systems receive maintenance actions that restore/renew system
components when they fail. These actions change the overall makeup of the
system. These actions must now be taken into consideration when assessing the
behavior of the system because the age of the system components is no longer
uniform nor is the time of operation of the system continuous.
In attempting to understand the system behavior, additional information and
models are now needed for each system component. Our primary input in the prior
chapters was a model that described how the component failed (its failure
probability distribution). When dealing with components that are repaired, one also
needs to know how long it takes for the component to be restored. That is, at the
very least, one needs a model that describes how the component is restored (a
repair probability distribution).
In general, maintenance is defined as any action that restores failed units to an
operational condition or retains non-failed units in an operational state. For
repairable systems, maintenance plays a vital role in the life of a system. It affects
the system's overall reliability, availability, downtime, cost of operation, etc.
Generally, maintenance actions can be divided into three types: corrective
maintenance, preventive maintenance and inspections.
Corrective Maintenance
Corrective maintenance consists of the action(s) taken to restore a failed system to
operational status. This usually involves replacing or repairing the component that
is responsible for the failure of the overall system. Corrective maintenance is
performed at unpredictable intervals because a component's failure time is not
known a priori. The objective of corrective maintenance is to restore the system to
satisfactory operation within the shortest possible time. Corrective maintenance is
typically carried out in three steps:

Diagnosis of the problem. The maintenance technician must take time to

locate the failed parts or otherwise satisfactorily assess the cause of the
system failure.

Repair and/or replacement of faulty component(s). Once the cause of system

failure has been determined, action must be taken to address the cause,
usually by replacing or repairing the components that caused the system to
fail.

Verification of the repair action. Once the components in question have been
repaired or replaced, the maintenance technician must verify that the system
is again successfully operating.

Preventive Maintenance
Preventive maintenance, unlike corrective maintenance, is the practice of replacing
components or subsystems before they fail in order to promote continuous system
operation. The schedule for preventive maintenance is based on observation of past
system behavior, component wear-out mechanisms and knowledge of which
components are vital to continued system operation. Cost is always a factor in the
scheduling of preventive maintenance. In many circumstances, it is financially more
sensible to replace parts or components that have not failed at predetermined
intervals rather than to wait for a system failure that may result in a costly
disruption in operations. Preventive maintenance scheduling strategies are
discussed in more detail later in this chapter.
Inspections
Inspections are used in order to uncover hidden failures (also called dormant
failures). In general, no maintenance action is performed on the component during
an inspection unless the component is found failed, in which case a corrective
maintenance action is initiated. However, there might be cases where a partial
restoration of the inspected item would be performed during an inspection. For
example, when checking the motor oil in a car between scheduled oil changes, one
might occasionally add some oil in order to keep it at a constant level.
TOYATA
The practical expression of Toyota's people and customer-oriented philosophy is
known as the Toyota Production System (TPS). This is not a rigid company-imposed
procedure but a set of principles that have been proven in day-to-day practice over
many years. Many of these ideas have been adopted and imitated all over the
world.
TPS has three desired outcomes:

To provide the customer with the highest quality vehicles, at lowest possible
cost, in a timely manner with the shortest possible lead times.

To provide members with work satisfaction, job security and fair treatment.

It gives the company flexibility to respond to the market, achieve profit

through cost reduction activities and long-term prosperity.

TPS strives for the absolute elimination of waste, overburden and unevenness in all
areas to allow members to work smoothly and efficiently. The foundations of TPS are
built on standardization to ensure a safe method of operation and a consistent
approach to quality. Toyota members seek to continually improve their standard
processes and procedures in order to ensure maximum quality, improve efficiency
and eliminate waste. This is known as kaizen and is applied to every sphere of the
company's activities.
Kaizen - Continuous Improvement

Kaizen is the heart of the Toyota Production System.

Like all mass-production systems, the Toyota process requires that all tasks, both
human and mechanical, be very precisely defined and standardized to ensure
maximum quality, eliminate waste and improve efficiency.
Toyota Members have a responsibility not only to follow closely these standardized
work guidelines but also to seek their continual improvement. This is simply
common sense - since it is clear that inherent inefficiencies or problems in any
procedure will always be most apparent to those closest to the process.
The day-to-day improvements that Members and their Team Leaders make to their
working practices and equipment are known as kaizen. But the term also has a
wider meeting: it means a continual striving for improvement in every sphere of the
Company's activities - from the most basic manufacturing process to serving the
customer and the wider community beyond.
Just In Time
It is perhaps not widely known that the 'just in time' approach to production that has
now gained almost universal acceptance in world manufacturing was actually
pioneered by Toyota. In fact, a Toyota engineer coined the term itself.
This, too, is a simple but inspired application of common sense.
Essentially, 'just in time' manufacturing consists of allowing the entire production
process to be regulated by the natural laws of supply and demand.
Customer demand stimulates production of a vehicle. In turn the production of the
vehicle stimulates production and delivery of the necessary parts and so on.
The result is that the right parts and materials are manufactured and provided in
the exact amount needed - and when and where they are needed.
Under 'just in time' the ultimate arbiter is always the customer. This is because
activity in the system only occurs in response to customer orders. Production is
'pulled' by the customer rather than being 'pushed' by the needs or capabilities of
the production system itself.
The linkage between customer demand and production is made by analyzing take
time, a device for measuring the pace of sales in the market in relation to the
capacity of a manufacturing plant. For example, if a plant operates for 920 minutes
per day and daily demand is for 400 vehicles, then take time will be 2.3 minutes.
If take times are reduced more resources are allocated. Toyota never tries to
accommodate changes in demand by making substantial changes in individuals'
workloads.
Assigning more Members to a line means that each handles a narrower range of
work. Assigning fewer means that each handles a broader range. Hence the
paramount importance of having a well-trained, flexible and multi-skilled workforce.
Within the plant itself, the mechanism whereby production is regulated in this way is
known as the kanban.

A kanban is simply a message. For example, in the assembly shop this message
takes the form of a card attached to every component that is removed and returned
when the component is used. The return of the kanban to its source stimulates the
automatic re-ordering of the component in question.
Paperwork is minimized. Efficiency is maximized. And the Members themselves are
completely in charge.
Jidoka
In Japanese 'jidoka' simply means automation. At Toyota it means 'automation with
a human touch'.
In 1902 Sakichi Toyoda invented the world's first automatic loom that would stop
automatically if any of the threads snapped. This principal, jidoka, of designing
equipment and processes to stop and call attention to problems immediately when
they sense a problem is a central concept of TPS.
The most visible manifestation of 'automation with a human touch' at the Altona
plant is the andon cord situated above the line. The presence of the andon cord
permits any Team Member to intervene and bring production to a halt if
abnormalities occur.
The Toyota Production System has inherited the principle originated by Henry Ford
of breaking down work into simple steps and distributing those steps amongst
employees on the line. But employees in the Toyota system are in charge of their
own jobs. Through their teams, they run their own worksites. They identify
opportunities for making improvements and take the initiative in implementing
those improvements in co-operation with management.
Maintenance staffing

Driving Factors
Accepted Industry Standards: California Association of School Business Officials
International Facility Managers Association Association of Higher Education
Facilities Officers (APPA)
Perception of Faculty, Staff, Students, and Visitors
Staffing Models
Maintenance Technicians
Grounds Workers
Custodians
Management

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staffing
Optimal workforce levels are indispensable for the good functioning of an
organization. Staff shortages increase the workload of existing employees and
forces them into overtime, and this leads to ill-effects such as low morale, loss of
productivity, absenteeism, and higher overtime wages. Hiring excess staff leads to
unnecessary wage payouts and creates inefficiencies It also denies all employees
enough opportunities, and is the root cause for interpersonal conflicts and disputes.
Quantification

One simple way to estimate staffing levels is to quantify labor demand and
supply.

Possible factors that shape demand for employees are existing business volumes,
possible expansion related growth, a favorable business climate or marketing
campaign, or a reduction in sales volume owing to the impact of competition or a
poor economic outlook. Possible factors that influence availability of workforce are
present staffing levels less possible attrition owing to resignations, terminations,
and retirements, and losses owing to transfers and promotions. One good way to
prepare a staffing plan is by quantifying such factors to make an assessment.

Assume the case of a fleet operation company. The company operates 24 trucks
around the clock. The total weekly man-hours required are 24 hours 24 trucks x 7
days = 4,032 hours. A normal truck driver works 40 hours. Dividing the total
requirement of 4,032 by 40 hours per driver generates a requirement of 100.8,
rounded off to 101 drivers.

Scientific Calculations

Calculating Staffing Requirements Applying the same principle to work that involves
varying levels of output and multiple activities makes quantification more complex.
Traditional methods such as time and motion for an assembly line operations study
involves observing people at work to record time taken for specific tasks, and other
specific work related actions to identify time required to complete tasks and
productivity levels. The total work is then divided by time taken, to calculate the
staffing requirements.

Other industries have since then developed their own methods of estimating time
and productivity. The Erlang C formula, for instance is a good choice for calculating
staffing requirements by interval, useful for customer support and call centers. This
method calculates the optimal staffing levels after calculating metrics such as call
volumes, average handling times, and service level goals. Shrinkage or
unproductive time may distort such calculations.
Informal Managerial Judgments

Very often, determining staffing needs depends on the subjective and rule of thumb
judgment of an experienced manager. The popular joke a project manager is the
one who thinks that if a mother can deliver a baby in nine months, nine mothers
can deliver a baby in one month" illustrates the limitations of relying solely on a
statistical analysis over floor level practical knowledge.

A seasoned manager, foreman, or business owner, over time would have a correct
understanding of the extent of work involved in the firm or department, seasonal
spikes and lows, nature of skills and competencies required and more. A variation of
this approach is to employ a few personnel first, and then add to the head count as
the managers or business owners find existing personnel overwhelmed with work
and having to engage in overtime on a regular basis. Most small organizations
adopt this method by default.
Benchmarking

Benchmarking is a way for calculating staffing requirements, especially when the

company lacks competent managerial staff to make informed judgments.

A new retail shop may look at the staffing levels of its competitor who sells the
same product, has the shop of a similar size, and spends the same amount in
advertisements. There is no reason to believe why the business would not require
any less or more staff than the competitor. Such benchmarking, however, needs to
factor in distortions caused by the competitors better learning curve and

experience that may make their workers more productive and thereby, require
lesser hands, or more people frequenting an already established shop, requiring
more hands.

Optimal staffing levels allow the organization to work at its efficient best, and allows
employees an enriching work experience that translates to better productivity.
Things change over time, and good organizations should conduct such an exercise
periodically.