A Digitalised, Cumulative Risk Management Approach to Maintenance Backlog Prioritization on High-Hazard Installations 

Melios addresses the challenges of maintenance backlog management, particularly for Safety and Environmental Critical Equipment (SECE). We have developed a dynamic and automated approach that prioritizes equipment in backlog by evaluating their cumulative risk impact, thereby minimizing human errors, and optimizing available manhours. 

Abstract

When an item of equipment on a plant is due for maintenance or if there is a fault, a work order is created either for preventive or corrective action. The work order contains the maintenance activities to be carried out and includes a completion date. If the work is not done before the set completion date the equipment goes into maintenance backlog. Operating equipment in backlog, especially for a prolonged period, could compromise an installation's safety and integrity.

Monitoring and reducing equipment in maintenance backlog to the barest minimum, particularly Safety and Environmental Critical Equipment (SECE) is a goal of owners of high-hazard installations, but it remains a daunting task.

The process of prioritizing equipment in backlog is typically done manually requiring considerable manhours to clear the backlog and is often prone to human errors and inconsistencies.

This paper presents an alternative digitalised approach to prioritizing equipment in backlog with a focus on SECEs. The methodology accounts for the cumulative risk impact of SECEs in backlog, available manhours limitation, and allows dynamic data processing and automation. The methodology is applied to a Use Case to show how equipment in backlog can effectively be reduced while reducing risks and optimizing manhours.

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