EUROMAINTENANCE JOURNAL - DNV Germany

INTERVIEW
ABOUT THE EFNMS
ROLE OF SIGNIFICANCE IN THE
EUROPEAN MAINTENANCE COMMUNITY
Maintenance is no longer the art of keeping the machine base
operational. Today, maintenance is expected to keep the equipment in
optimum condition, in order to achieve the company goals, i.e., maximum
asset utilization, as well as the rigorous governmental and environmental
requirements. To be able to play its role in this spectrum of developments,
the European Federation of National Maintenance Societies – EFNMS -
actively participates in a wide range of projects, either as an organisation
or through its members. Euromaintenance is one of those activities.
The EFNMS, which was founded in
November 1970 as a non-profi t
organisation and comprises today
of 21 member countries, with the objective
to promote effective and professional
maintenance and provide future directions
regarding technology , management
and processes in maintenance. To
this end, agreements are made to harmonise
knowledge development, policy
and regulations within Europe. This is not
only in the interest of the industry and
globalisation, but also in the interest of
the employee’s active in the sector. “All
projects organised by the EFNMS are
aimed at better preparing maintenance
personnel at all levels, organized in the
national maintenance associations, for
the above-mentioned tasks and responsibilities,
now and in the long term. We
organise not only projects within the EF-
NMS, but also at European level in close
collaboration with other organizations”,
says Hans Klemme-Wolff, chairman of
the European organisation.
Objectives and developments
New developments in (maintenance)
technology and in statistical methods
have resulted in a new approach. We
have learned to measure the condition
of a component during operation and to
calculate the residual life time based on
statistically calculated life histories of similar
equipment. However, the fi rst question
to be asked in this respect is: “What
is good maintenance?” Hans Klemme-
Wolff: We have seen a signifi cant development
in the years behind us. It started
with what is also known as ‘break down
maintenance’, or repair what is broken,
i.e. corrective maintenance. This subsequently
evolved to preventive mainte-
nance, and later to ‘condition-dependent
maintenance’. Maintenance has thus
become an activity that can be incorporated
into the planning and is therefore
no longer exclusively a cost item. For the
maintenance professional this means that
Hans Klemme-Wolff: “Euromaintenance 2008
is a unique event at a truly European level”
he is no longer a ‘necessary evil’ that
only costs money, but instead becomes
a valuable employee who has a high
degree of expertise in his discipline.
This expertise will be cherished by the
management.”
Both the national associations – members
of the EFNMS – and the EFNMS itself
aim to provide the maintenance professional
with the knowledge and skills that
will enable him to properly carry out the
‘new’ tasks. Hans Klemme-Wolff: “Studies
in the fi eld of maintenance management
have and are being conducted,
often in collaboration with other specialised
institutions. This includes the investigation
of the differences between European
cultures and how these differences
can reinforce each other. Other projects
pursued at the European level are ‘Training
and Certifi cation’ projects. EFNMS
has developed a curriculum vitae for
training programmes at various levels,
to be applied within national training
programmes. In addition, we organise
exams for certifi cation as ‘Professional
in Maintenance’, based on standards
agreed at European level. This professional
certifi cate is recognised in all European
countries and beyond.”
All these, and many other, programmes
are developed and implemented by the
member associations, not only on behalf
of their own members, but on behalf of
the European industry. Close collaboration
with universities and other educational
establishments is actively pursued
and stimulated. The results of these efforts
will be presented at the Euromaintenance
conference.
Euromaintenance
Euromaintenance is an initiative of the
EFNMS which was fi rst organised in
1972. Since then, the event has grown
to become the leading biennial maintenance
conference in Europe. Euromaintenance
2008 looks set to become the
largest event in the sector. This year,
too, a Euromaintenance Award will be
awarded to the most successful Maintenance
Manager, active in Europe. Hans
Klemme-Wolff concludes: “Euromaintenance
is a unique event in that it aims
to be not only a conference with presentations
of high technical and scientifi c
quality, but also an exhibition at a truly
European level, where all participants
fi nd what they are looking for”.