The OpEx Maintenance and Reliability Workshop at TAPPI PaperCon 2013 in Atlanta, Ga., USA, on April 30, will be the third annual OpEx event in a row, and the fourth counting the extra edition at TAPPI's 2012 PEERS Conference in New Orleans last October. This year's OpEx in Atlanta examines the most successful paths today's P&P mills are taking to improve asset reliability. A special highlight for 2013 is a joint session with the Recycled Paper Trade Association (RPTA) that explores Operator Driven Reliability (ODR) from an up-close, mill case-study perspective.
In the joint session with RPTA, Christer Idhammar with IDCON examines what has been tried with ODR, who's succeeded, what's failed, and why—all based on mill case study results. Tony Kenneson-Adams of RockTenn then looks in-depth at how his Solvay recycled containerboard mill in Syracuse, N.Y., set up its ODR program and the pitfalls they experienced along the way. Rounding out the joint OpEx/RPTA session, Jim Davis of Performance Consultants Associates illustrates how to effectively support ODR programs by building "The Perfect Maintenance Storeroom."
The keynote speaker for OpEx 2013 is John Yolton with SKF, a highly respected paper industry reliability expert who will explore "The Continuing Journey to Asset Reliability Improvement." As Yolton notes, "with the NAM pulp and paper market contracting, only the most reliable equipment can provide a competitive advantage. Data demonstrates that there is clearly a return on investment for those ‘best' within the pool of competitors." Yolton's presentation will identify and discuss primary issues associated with the top 3%, e.g., the "best" and the "rest."
The opening keynote session also includes presentations by Bill Wick of American Industrial Metrology on "A Holistic Approach to Paper Machine Alignment" and Dave Cutnaw of SKF on "Maintenance and Asset Reliability Strategies—Developing a Foundation for Success."
The afternoon OpEx sessions focus on work force structuring and education. In addition to Michael Von Grumbkow of Voith Paper, who will dissect asset management from an OEM perspective, a team from GPAllied will examine new and proven approaches in use by today's pulp and paper mills. David Neikirk will outline how to best implement asset management strategies. Shon Isenhour will present a compendium of best M&R education practices, and Chris Davis and Bobby Allen discuss structuring and managing the Natural Work Team. Also in the afternoon sessions, Dave Mulcahey of SKF will discuss "Sealing Solutions for the Pulp and Paper Industry."
More information about PaperCon 2013 and the OpEx Maintenance and Reliability Workshop, including registration procedures, is available online. Also available online is the 2013 OpEx Workshop program.
TAPPI
http://www.tappi.org/