Abstract
Mobile cranes are pivotal to enabling safe, reliable, and efficient lifting operations within various industries. This research study was aimed at investigating factors contributing to mobile crane breakdowns, assessing the alignment of the case company’s maintenance practices with Total Productive Maintenance (TPM) best practices, and providing actionable recommendations for improvement.
This study followed a mixed-method, single-case approach, utilising 36 months of historical maintenance data from the company and survey responses from 30 employees involved in crane operation and maintenance. The online survey was designed using Microsoft Office Forms. It contained Likert scale closed and open-ended questions that allowed respondents to provide answers related to TPM practices without the researchers imposing any restrictions. The survey instrument achieved a Cronbach’s Alpha of 0.81, indicating good internal consistency. Descriptive and correlation analyses were conducted to identify patterns and evaluate relationships among various factors.
The findings identified several factors contributing to mobile crane breakdowns, including crane age, operational misuse by operators, and specific mechanical issues like leaking seals, faulty booms, non-retractable cylinders, flat batteries, and operator errors. The data indicated that 70% of the variation in mobile crane availability could be explained by crane age. This means that there is a strong correlation between the crane age and the availability of crane performance declines with age. Additionally, the company’s maintenance practices were found to be misaligned with Total Productive Maintenance (TPM) standards, particularly in planned maintenance, autonomous maintenance, focused improvement, and early equipment management. Notably, corrective maintenance accounted for 58% of maintenance activities, while only 42% were preventive.
The study recommends closing the identified gaps and optimising the maintenance practices as per TPM principles.