Haris: Hello Martin, how are you?

Martin: Hi, bonjour, comment ça va?

Haris: Come again?

Martin: I thought we would have been inclusive for our friends.

Haris: Well, I can be inclusive in English.

Martin: Ok, Good man… How are you?

Haris: I’m fine. Do you know that this is our 26th episode, which is half of the 52 weeks in a year, and after my deep calculation, that means 6 months since we started with Lubrication and coffee and ice cream?

So, as a conclusion, my hope is that we shared some experience, we shared some thoughts … hopefully, we helped someone to start his Lubrication excellence program, hopefully helped someone to get more traction in already ongoing program … or sustain well implemented program. So, that’s from the hope side.

From the facts side, what we can really check is that we really had a lot of coffee and a lot of ice creams.

So, what do you think about that?

Martin: I think that’s a lot of ice cream and I’m gonna have to go on diet, but I sincerely hope as well that there’s been value for everybody in the process.

Haris: Great, now, taking into consideration that some strange people out there, they have this nasty habit called vacation, so, this episode concludes our first season, and, please, don’t get all emotional because there will be more in autumn. We’ll do it again, but at this final episode; I want to introduce two of my colleagues who did an incredible job to make all of our episodes possible and some of them even nice and I know that it was not always easy to cook up a nice clean episode out from our discussions, but we often get carried away and seven minutes becomes 27 minutes in few minutes time.

So, this time we’ll do it differently and you will see how it all works nice and according to schedule when someone else runs the show. So, let me introduce Chiara and Fred, our marketing team in SDT International. So, welcome Chiara, welcome Fred.

Fred: Hello!

Chiara: Hello!

Haris: So, first of all, thanks a lot for the great work you did.

Fred: Yes, Haris, you are right. The two of you really lose sense of time in your discussions and I had to work a lot to make it, you know, shorter.
So, for the final episode, we do it organized, in a disciplined way (Martin) and strictly by the schedule.

Chiara: So, we have 20 questions we received from our friends all around the world, and you owe them all an answer; but short and clear.

Martin: Short and clear… Seriously? We can do that, Haris?

Okay, maybe, we have to move away from Condition-Based conversations and discussions where that condition is based upon how much ice cream and coffee we’ve had and moved to Time-Based, what do you think?

Haris: Well, I don’t know, I’m completely a Condition-Based guy and the words short and clear are not really in my vocabulary. But, ok, let’s try to see what we can do.

Martin: Yeah, let’s be proactive on this one.

Haris: Great.

Chiara: Consider that we had 25 Condition-Based episodes and now we want just one Time-Based episode.

Haris: Okay, deal!

Fred: So, we have 20 questions, you have 20 answers, from each of you. Simple and short, and then we can all go and have a coffee or an ice cream.

Haris: Okay.

Martin: Or both.

Fred: Or both. So, are you ready for the questions?

Martin: Yeah!

Haris: Absolutely.

Fred: How important is Lubrication on a scale 1 – 100?

Martin: I’m gonna go 99.

Haris: 100.

Chiara: Okay, is lubrication taken as seriously as it should be, in all companies?

Martin: No.

Haris: Absolutely not.

Fred: And why is it not taken seriously enough?

Martin: Ignorance.

Haris: The lack of awareness.

Chiara: Okay, so, how do we start? What do we need first to implement a Lubrication program?

Martin: I would say training, oops sorry, not training. I meant raise awareness.

Haris: The same thing for me, get the whole picture and start working on awareness.

Fred: And, how do we create awareness?

Martin: I’m going to say training, I’m not supposed to mention training, am I? I would say case studies and just generally audits.

Haris: Well in my opinion translating consequences in the language of each stakeholder so they can understand what the problem is.

Chiara: And how do we make Lubrication people feel important and be perceived that way?

Martin: I believe that they should be taken far more seriously through a process of employing the right people for the job, putting in place an implementation of a career guidance program with and, let me use the word, training.

Haris: Yes, my answer would be education.

Fred: But, Martin, Haris, why do we lubricate?

Martin: As far as I’m concerned, that it’s what keeps the cogs of industry rotating smoothly.

Haris: We lubricate, in my opinion, to increase the profit, decrease negative environmental impact and to increase safety.

Chiara: Okay and what is the cost of proper Lubrication excellence program?

Martin: Again, there shouldn’t be a question about the cost because the benefits so far outweigh that cost that it is a no-brainer to begin the process.

Haris: Not worth mentioning at all, insignificant if compared with the benefit.

Fred: And this lubrication program do you do it in-house or do you outsource it?

Martin: My view is always primarily in-house where ownership is going to be the driving factor but if it’s not going to be in-house and it’s going to be subcontracted, then, at least, make sure that the subcontractor is properly qualified and has a proven track record.

Haris: My first choice would be in-house, absolutely, however it depends really on the company it’s not always possible.

Chiara: So, we go deeper and deeper: time-based or condition-based lubrication?

Martin: I would say as appropriate to the asset and that is taking into consideration factors like reliability centered maintenance to make that decision.

Haris: Condition-based, definitely.

Fred: Next question, how do you recognize a good trainer?

Martin: I’d like to think you’re looking at one. Qualified with a good track record.

Haris: Passion.

Chiara: Okay, and, how to evaluate proper lubrication program?

Martin: The International Council for Machinery Lubrication has just launched ICML 55 which is an audit awareness program and that if used is a platform that can measure up a company’s success on a comparable basis globally.

Haris: In my opinion, it’s evaluated by benefits it brings, if it doesn’t bring tangible benefit, it’s just a well-defined hobby.

Fred: Oil analysis, what do I need to know, if I have an outsourced lab doing it for me?

Martin: You cannot outsource your company’s reliability; you have to take ownership. So, you need to really understand what oil analysis is telling you, in the same way we have to look at oil analysis as being something we can learn from, it’s telling us things, just like you won’t lose weight just standing on the bathroom scales.

Haris: You need to know what you’re looking for, because lab knows how to find it.

Chiara: And, what about grease, that’s simple, right?

Martin: Yes, but not so simple that you can have a one size fits all grease that can be used for every application, but it is perhaps easier to deal with than oil.

Haris: In my opinion, certainly not any lubricant cannot be simple it has a very very difficult task to do.

Fred: A good time-based plan works great on a machine, can I copy/paste it for identical machine?

Martin: Only if the identical machines are operating under identical parameters such as load speed etc. as well as identical environments. In other words, yes to a point but making allowance for the fact that there will be differences that may require different approaches.

Haris: There are no two identical machines, in my opinion.

Chiara: And what are the differences and the similarities between condition-based maintenance and condition-based lubrication?

Martin: I don’t see differences per se because it’s all condition-based uh just maybe the key performance indicators and the metrics you might use to make that condition-based judgment.

Haris: So, in my opinion, no difference in concept because they both answer three basic questions:

  • What is the condition?
  • What needs to be done?
  • And what’s the outcome?

So, as a concept is very simple and it’s the same approach.

Fred: And how does success look like?

Martin: For me, that’s an easy one: an Aston Martin! Oh, sorry, a program that really works in the sense that people are actually being proactive and not fixing broken machines but are simply maintaining the machines in a healthy order.

Haris: So, well, if you want to evaluate success there are many many different KPIs, but I think the final one, when everything else with all the other boxes are checked, is smiling faces of the team, that means the team is confident, doing a good job, enjoying it, being educated and they smile, that’s the final KPI.

Chiara: And, also, they smile with a good ice cream so what’s the best ice cream?

Martin: For me, it’s a Magnum, preferably the white Magnum.

Haris: Best ice cream is a cold one!

Martin: Actually, adding to that, the best one is when somebody’s bought it for you.

Haris: Yeah, cold and free!

Fred: And what about coffee then, what is the best coffee?

Martin: Côte Noire instant blend.

Haris: The best coffee is the one that keeps on coming.

Chiara: So, last question, Maradona’s famous goal against England ‘86 … hand or head?

Martin: Well, I suspect Haris only put this question in because he’s still bitter about the loss against England last week.

Haris: But, what’s your answer?

Martin: I’m not a football fan, I wouldn’t have any idea.

Haris: So, I think that goal was La Mano de Dios’s divine intervention as late Maradona had said himself.

Fred: So, that’s it: 20 questions.

Haris: Fast and simple.

Chiara: Absolutely!

Fred: Nice.

Chiara: Thank you to both of you, to SDT.

Fred: It was fun!

Haris: Big thanks to Martin! Martin, I want to thank you for the wisdom you shared with us and the time you dedicated to this project. And I want to thank to Chiara and Fred to make all this possible and work so nicely.

Martin: Yeah, well, now I’ve been told I’ve got to give an Oscar winning award speech, but I will simply say thank you to everyone involved in the process and Haris for chasing me up on these calls and sorting out but of course all the guys in the background helping with this. As you’ve said in the text there: kiss kiss and goodbye!

Haris: Yes, kiss kiss and goodbye and see you all again in autumn!