The document discusses the significant issue of deferred maintenance, highlighting that it poses a much greater risk to society compared to rare terrorist events that attract considerable funding for prevention. It outlines the staggering financial implications of neglecting infrastructure maintenance, estimating a national liability of $3.6 trillion, which exceeds annual anti-terrorism expenditures. The author proposes strategies to improve maintenance practices and emphasizes the need for effective communication about maintenance importance to garner necessary resources.

1. MAINTENANCE:
HOW TO NOT HATE IT
Brian Gongol, M.Ed.
DJ Gongol & Associates, Inc.
September 7, 2022
Iowa Water Environment Association
Operators/Pretreatment Conference
Newton, Iowa

2. Terrorism is scary.

3. We spend massive sums on detection

NSA

CIA

TSA

FBI

Homeland Security

Local law enforcement

4. Cameras

5. Sensors

Radiation

X-ray

Biological weapons

Full-body scanners

6. The detection doesn't always work
Resulting in failures
that grip the
world's attention

7. Detection failures

1993 WTC bombing

Khobar Towers bombing

9/11

Shoe bomber

Underwear bomber

Boston Marathon bombing

Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 (?)

8. More attention leads to more surveillance
Even though the events are incredibly rare

9. Story-tellers magnify the story
Reporters, pundits, politicians, and others

10. ...until we spend billions without thinking twice
$16.6 billion a year

11. What's a lot scarier?
Deferred maintenance.

12. Scarier, really?
Not to diminish the tragedies that have occurred,
but they are extremely low-probability events.
Your individual chances of being affected are
indistinguishable from zero.
But our choices as a society mean that
infrastructure failures are certain to occur,
with extremely widespread impact,
and can range from inconveniences to calamities.

13. Truth time
It should terrify us to think that we
choose to put ourselves at risk
solely due to a lack of willpower
to take responsibility for
an entirely preventable condition

14. How much deferred maintenance is there?

(A) $50 per person

(B) $750 per person

(C) $3,000 per person

(D) $11,000 per person

15. $3.6 trillion in deferred maintenance

Anti-terrorism:

$16.6 billion spent yearly

$50 per person

Deferred maintenance:

$3,600.0 billion needed

$11,000 per person

16. That's $3,600 billion

Or about 217 years of anti-terrorism funding

17. Nobody talks about it, though.

18. A simple question and a troubling answer
Who has been asked to defer maintenance
because of a budget shortfall?

19. A simple question and a troubling answer
Who has been asked to accelerate maintenance
to make up for what has been deferred?

20. That gap you're seeing
We treat "maintenance" like a bank account
from which we only ever borrow

21. Maintenance means just holding the line
What we should really advocate is
continuous improvement

22. You're in an unenviable position
Here's your problem if you're in water/wastewater:
Having to address an expensive problem
with under-funded resources

23. A three-fold strategy for easier maintenance

24. 1. Fix our concept of maintenance
It can't always be an emergency

25. 2. Make practical maintenance easier

26. 3. Communicate the problem effectively

27. CONCEPT

28. Even nature has maintenance cycles

29. Small forest fires are natural

30. Big fires result from human intervention

31. Not all maintenance is worth doing!

32. Maintenance is about one thing
Getting the full life-cycle value from a product

33. Extending life means actively saving money

34. Pick a tax rate, any tax rate
37% for individuals over $523,600 ($628,300)
35% over $209,425 ($418,850 married)
32% over $164,925 ($329,850 married)
24% over $86,375 ($172,750 married)
22% over $40,525 ($81,050 married)
12% over $9,950 ($19,900 married)

35. Think of operational savings in pretax dollars
Every post-tax dollar spent represents
$1.12 to $1.37 in pretax income
to the ordinary taxpayer

36. So let's save some money!

37. Types of maintenance

Fix on failure

Scheduled

Preventive

Predictive

38. Each approach has its place
But it's up to you to figure out which way to go

39. Fix on failure
When it's cheap, simple, and in-stock, like a pen

40. Scheduled maintenance
When there is lots of data from prior experience

41. Preventive maintenance
When a failure puts you at serious risk
of long-term downtime

42. Predictive maintenance
When the signals of trouble are well-known
and surveillance is cheap

43. In the context of your health...

44. Fix on failure
Bandage on a papercut

45. Scheduled maintenance
Getting your annual physical
(prostate exams, colonoscopies, cholesterol tests...)

46. Preventive maintenance
Regular exercise

47. Predictive maintenance

Blood pressure checks

Body-composition bathroom scales

Blood-sugar tests

48. We rely too heavily on fix-on-failure
(Not a recommended
maintenance strategy.)

49. You would never fly Fix-On-Failure Airlines

50. Pop quiz: Which strategy would you use here?

Fix-on-failure

Scheduled maintenance

Preventive maintenance

Predictive maintenance

51. Pop quiz: Which strategy would you use here?

Fix-on-failure

Scheduled maintenance

Preventive maintenance

Predictive maintenance

A serial number of 1,726,778
suggests that the factory
has a pretty robust idea of
what maintenance is
needed and when

52. PRACTICE

53. Avoid the curse of Shary Bobbins

54. Always put safety first

55. You are the most valuable piece of equipment

56. Lock out, tag out

57. Check for gases

58. Seriously. Check for gases.

59. Gas detection in a Covid-endemic world
You might not know
that you can't smell
hydrogen sulfide, methane, or chlorine

60. Prevent slips, trips, and falls
Carpet pattern designed as if to maximize disorientation
CHI Health Center, Omaha

61. Prevent muscle strain

62. Keep safety equipment in good repair

Guards

Belts

Sensors

Handrails

63. Measurement means control

64. Everyone knows quantitative measurements

65. Pump run times

66. Energy consumption

67. Flows

68. Pressure readings

69. Oil temperatures

70. Motor casing temperatures

71. Any wine, beer, or whiskey snobs present?

72. Qualitative measurements matter, too

73. Vibration

74. Smells/scents/odors

75. Smells/scents/odors

bitter

burnt

citrusy

fermented

fishy

fresh

fruity

grassy

hot

moldy

musty

oily

oppressive

organic

pungent

rotten

sharp

smoky

sour

sulfuric

sweet

76. Sounds

77. Sounds

bassy

buzz

chirp

clack

clap

click

crescendo

dissonant

echo

grind

growl

harmonic

hum

knock

loud

muffled

piercing

ping

quiet

rattle

rhythmic

ringing

rumble

screech

sharp

squeak

squeal

staccato

tap

whinny

whoosh

78. Why take measurements?
And keep qualitative records?

79. From fix-on-failure to anticipation
Making the change means
collecting and using data

80. Can you name it?
What spectacularly expensive regulation
could we eliminate if we really
dedicated our industry to doing
predictive and preventive maintenance?

81. Can you name it?
Total redundancy rules

82. Not appropriate to everything

83. Litmus test
If downtime would wake you in the middle of the night
and a replacement isn't on your own shelf,
use some kind of predictive/preventive measurement

84. Make it easy to measure and record

85. Make it easy to review performance

86. Take the time to review

87. I-35W: Calculations were "too much work"

88. Take records straight to a tablet or netbook

Eliminates handwriting errors

Eliminates copying errors

Promotes rapid visualization

89. Prices are so low, it's highly justifiable

90. Use free resources

91. E-mail

92. Calendars

93. Charts, checklists, and task lists

94. Correction: GOOD checklists

95. Follow the 7x7 rule

96. Focus on the CLAWS for rotating equipment
Clearances
Lubricants
Alignment
Wear
Solids

97. Make it comprehensible in one look

98. Make them easy to digest at a glance

99. People like to keep up unbroken chains

100. "X" days without a safety incident

101. Know your indicators

Problem indicators

Smoke from under the hood

Planned indicators

Squeaking brakes

102. Conduct a post-mortem on failures and incidents

What did it cost you?

What signals were missed?

103. Primary predictive-maintenance indicators

Temperatures

Oil/lubricant conditions

Ultrasonic analysis

Vibration

Performance trends

104. Nobody wants to do the dirtiest job

105. Create a culture that encourages maintenance
Starting with ownership of the process

106. Wax/paint/clean the equipment

107. Broken window effect

108. A baseline for what's right...
...makes it easier to see when something's wrong

109. A hidden payback
When you practice regular maintenance,
you get to know the equipment
on an expert level
Expert-level understanding makes
trouble resolution much faster

110. What you have in common with machines
Some of the things that
make your life more pleasant
help equipment, too

111. Winter heating
Proper heating in winter prevents freezing

112. Summer cooling
Well-ventilated motors
are more reliable and more efficient

113. Who here plays Wordle?

114. Turn better maintenance into a game

115. Rival departments (or shifts)

116. Rival communities

117. Leverage your efforts & improve motivation
Friendly rivalries with
something on the line
(pride or a small wager)
raise the level of performance
all around

118. Make it a measurable goal with a small wager
Doughnuts?
Lunch?
A round of beers?

119. Buddy system aids information-sharing

120. Create your own "peer group"
Valuable for comparisons in reports

121. If you're doing well
The peer group helps you take credit

122. If you're doing badly
Peer pressure can motivate improvement

123. If you need more resources
The peer group helps you make the case

124. Reward good maintenance ideas
Multi-thousand-dollar ideas go un-shared
because people don't think they'll be rewarded

125. Rewards beget buy-in
"You can achieve amazing progress
if you set a clear goal and find a measure
that will drive progress toward that goal
in a feedback loop."
- Bill Gates

126. Use mental tricks to help yourself
Make maintenance automatic

127. Conserve mental energy
Don't make more
choices than
necessary

128. Color-coded tools

129. Opt-in versus opt-out

When the default option is participation, one-third of people
stick with retirement plans who wouldn't have signed up on
their own

130. Add a third choice to make

131. Add a third choice to make

132. Batches of three
Just clustering tasks and choices
in groups of three
reduces the mental tax
of decision-making

133. Conserve mental energy for what matters
"What do you want for dinner?"
"I don't know. What do you want?"
"I don't know."

134. Are you "impossible to buy presents for"?

135. Tools under $25 to improve maintenance

136. Kneepad

137. Graph pads

138. Fold-out two-wheeler

139. Lock-out, tag-out devices

140. Pilot's kneeboard

141. Custom toolkits for frequent tasks

142. Foam roller

143. Reach extender

144. Zip ties (cable ties)

145. Carabiners

146. It is not wasteful to duplicate tools

If it's the difference between doing the maintenance and not

If it saves time on a quick payback period

147. Play hurt sometimes
Figure out what is adding extra strain,
then eliminate it

148. The most important maintenance step
The most important step in maintenance
takes place before the first scoop of dirt is moved

149. The most important maintenance step
Design,
Equipment, &
Facilities
...that value maintenance

150. Concept and practice: Done.
Now...

151. COMMUNICATION

152. Get the resources you need

153. Explaining to people who don't do maintenance
Maybe not even at home

154. Give them three forecasts
Best case, worst case, and most likely
(Remember: People default to the middle)

155. We have to engage people who think:

Infrastructure happens by magic

The work gets done by people who are beneath them

156. Professionals speak up for themselves

CPAs funding "Feed the Pig" commercials

Medical journals in the news

Trial lawyers making campaign contributions

157. We can't be timid about real needs!
Worn-out infrastructure is no good
for the people actually doing the work,
and it does no service to customers

158. Reluctant? Why?
Too time-consuming?
Too much effort?
No motivation?

159. Just because we don't do it now...
...doesn't mean it goes away.
It usually just gets worse.

160. If time is short...
Can a better strategy save time?

161. If time is short...
Are you valuing the opportunity cost of your time?

162. If it requires too much effort...
Are we just hoping to run out the clock
and avoid the eventual catastrophic failure?

163. If you're unmotivated...
Think about saving yourself a 2 a.m. weekend call

164. If it's external, examine why

Not enough staff or hours in the day?

Not enough funding?

No support from "on high"?

165. Just because it isn't done
...doesn't mean it doesn't have to be done

166. Troubles happen

Potholes

Bridge collapses (I-35W)

Levee failures (Hamburg)

Main breaks

Sewer backups

167. People see (and feel) potholes

168. Water-related utilities are relatively invisible
We have to speak up about the invisible
"potholes" in water and sewer systems

169. Cost deferral isn't cost prevention

170. Cost deferral is usually cost compounding

171. If we don't communicate what we need
...we shouldn't be surprised if we don't get it.

172. You have to tell them what you need

173. Add a little bit of "Why?"
Make it a "Why" that matters to the decision-maker

174. Words matter
"Honey Wagon"

175. Euphemisms don't really help
But we must consider
real perceptions and
their consequences

176. Since 1989, people have watched

177. ...which is a more compelling title than

178. Words really do matter
The same food waste
is perceived differently
when it moves
from the garbage can
to the compost bin

179. Words really do matter
Consider the magical transformation
from sludge to biosolids

180. Honest improvements to "Maintenance"

Asset manager

Capital-preservation specialist

Incident-prevention supervisor

Public-health technician

Service reliability agent

181. Alternative titles to avoid

Museum curator

Crisis-response team

Equipment babysitter

182. People rarely ask what maintenance will cost
Or how much good maintenance
changes the life expectancy

183. Caring for assets makes you a:

Guardian

Conservator

Trustee

Custodian

Steward

Fiduciary

184. "Cheap" isn't always cheap
"Cheap" up-front
may cost you a fortune

185. Doing maintenance right saves you grief
AVOID PAIN!

186. Good maintenance saves customers money
PLEASE THE PEOPLE!

187. Summary:

Do the right maintenance for the right equipment

Fix-on-failure, scheduled, preventive, predictive

Use your brain as often as your hands

Place a real value on maintenance and communicate it

188. Questions?

Thank you for coming!

This presentation is
available at
gongol.net/presentations

Brian Gongol
DJ Gongol & Associates

515-223-4144

info@djgongol.com

@djgongol on LinkedIn,
Facebook, and Twitter

189. References:

Cost of anti-terrorism:

http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2013/09/11/u-s-spends-over-16-billion-annually-on-counter-
terrorism/

Cost of deferred maintenance:

http://www.infrastructurereportcard.org/news/

Retirement opt-in participation:

http://www.nber.org/bah/summer06/w12009.html

Airport security photo (public domain):

https://twitter.com/TSAMedia_RossF/status/375424954600157185/photo/1

I-35W "too much work":

http://www.startribune.com/local/minneapolis/52124637.html

I-35W photo (public domain):

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:I35W_Collapse_-_Day_4_-_Operations_%26_Scene_(95).jpg

Osama bin Laden screen capture:

http://www.fbi.gov/wanted/topten/usama-bin-laden

Aircraft boneyard photo (public domain):

http://research.archives.gov/description/6505216

All other photos and illustrations are original work by Brian Gongol. Copyright and all other rights are reserved.