Reliability, Availability, and Maintainability (RAM) Study of an Ice Cream Industry

• Main Author: Panagiotis Tsarouhas
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2020-06-01
• Series: Applied Sciences
• Subjects: Reliability; maintainability; performance evaluation; trend test; historical data
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/10/12/4265

The purpose of this paper is to provide findings for a thorough review of reliability, availability, and maintainability (RAM) analysis utilizing failure data from an ice cream industry. The case study shows how RAM analysis is very helpful in assessing maintenance intervals and in planning and organizing an effective maintenance strategy. RAM study was computed based on historical data gathered over a twelve-month period. Pareto analysis, descriptive statistics, trend, and serial correlation test of the data were conducted. The parameters for failure and repair data were computed for each machine and the complete ice cream manufacturing system. The RAM analysis assesses the current operations management and improves the quality, productivity, and performance of the line. It was found that: (a) preventive maintenance intervals for each machine and completed system for different reliability periods were calculated. (b) Two machines with the lowest reliabilities are the packaging machine and then on the freezer tunnel. The significance of these machines is vital and their maintenance must be thorough to avoid losses pertaining to quality and productivity, and (c) the worst maintainabilities occur at the exogenous machine, and on the ice cream machine, together with the complete production system. Moreover, as the RAM indices have been calculated to quantify and increase machines’ performance, production managers and engineers can easily evaluate the next moves and decisions made with respect to the function of the system.