Identification of critical parameters of TPM and development of pragmatic model of maintenance management strategy applicable to SMES

Abstract

quotBackground: newlineThe Government of India has launched the Lean Manufacturing Competitiveness Scheme (LMCS) for SMEs, but only 49% success rate is reported for the pilot phase implementation. SMEs are working with many inherent limitations, and in addition, the work-culture and attitude towards the quality of Indian SMEs are entirely different from large-sized enterprises. In this context, Maintenance Management Strategy (MMS) framework is developed under the MOU signed with a Special Purpose Vehicle which has facilitated the LMCS project in South Gujarat (India). newline newlineAim: newlineThe Total Productive Maintenance (TPM) has a pivotal role in creating a significant impact on manufacturing performance but its implementation is quite challenging because of the involvement of numerous perplexed parameters. Although many researchers have well discussed the broad definition, pillar structure and signification of TPM, the context of cultural difference is pretermitted. Hence, the research is aimed to formulate the pragmatic framework of Maintenance Management based on the modification of TPM, especially for Indian SMEs. newline newlineMaterial and Method: newlineAlong with the extensive review of the literature, a prima facie survey was conducted in industries to reveal the critical parameters and existing scenario of maintenance management in SMEs. The methodology of a structured questionnaire and semi-structured interviews were used to collect the relevant data which were analyzed by SPSS software. For the furtherance of the research, hypotheses were formulated, and TPM questionnaire instrument was developed. The data were accounted to Reliability test, One-way ANOVA, Tukey Pairwise Comparisons, Cross Tabulation Chi-Square test, and other descriptive statistics. Both quantitative and qualitative data were utilized to the Maintenance Management Strategy (MMS) which is validated through a case study approach. newline newlineResult and Discussion: newlineThe deliverables of research have two folds. First is the critical parameters of SMEs affecting the Maintenance Management,