Human Precision: the human side of reliability

Reliability in terms of a human being can best be measured by the precision the individual puts into the task being performed, according to Ronald L Hughes of Reliability Center, Inc

Reliability in terms of a human being can best be measured by the precision the individual puts into the task being performed.

After all, of all the areas affecting reliability, none has a greater influence than the precision that can be added by people.

People not only add the most value, but are also the most sensitive form of precision and therefore, have the greatest influence on reliability.

Obviously, reliability begins and ends with the precision efforts of the people involved.

For precision to achieve its expected results everyone, from the CEO on down, must be committed to working towards obtaining the highest degree of accuracy possible.

Precision must be second nature in that all aspects of job performance are accomplished to exacting standards that allow no tolerance or deviation.

For example, if a piece of equipment is designed to operate with 5 quarts of clean 10W - 30 synthetic oil then it should have 5 quarts of clean 10W - 30 synthetic oil.

This means that although 4 1/2 quarts of oil may be within tolerance for the allowed lubricant level, 5 quarts is what is required and what must be in the crankcase of the equipment.

This also means that if the crankcase has 4 quarts of dirty oil, adding one quart of new oil is not acceptable because the requirement is for 5 quarts of clean lubricant.

In short, 5 quarts of clean 10W - 30 are what is required and are precisely what must be installed.

Even changing the brand of lubricant would fall outside the requirements demanded by precision.

When some aspect of a job does not measure up to the expected precision requirements then it must be analyzed to determine why it is failing.

A commitment to precision dictates that a thorough root cause analysis (to find all the causes for the lack of precision) be performed and that the actions necessary for correction are taken.

This doesn't mean just the surface causes that when remedied will fix the immediate problem, but the underlying reasons why the problem occurred in the first place.

For example, if a machine goes down because the wrong part was installed in the machine during overhaul then replacing the incorrect component with the correct one would immediately fix the problem but would not provide the reasons why the wrong part was installed in the first place.

Precision requires that the reason for the incorrect part being installed be determined and eliminated from the possibility of happening again.

Precision doesn't end with just making sure that everything is installed and operating exactly as specified (although it is a good place to start).

A true commitment to precision requires that every individual strive to not only perform each task as required, but to enhance the precision level of task performance whenever possible.

It is incumbent upon each of us to ask ourselves "is the task accomplishing its desired results?" And, if so, "can the task be performed better to achieve improved results." Humans tend to get very complacent when things appear to be going well.

People believe that by fully achieving the opportunity presented by today's technology that no room for improvement exists.

True precision can only be accomplished when the individual understands that to be truly proactive one must take advantage of tomorrow's opportunity with tomorrow's technology.

Everything, no matter what the job, can be thought of as a process.

Within each process there are a number of sequential steps that must be performed for the successful completion of that process.

When the process fails, the steps are analyzed to determine why the failure occurred.

For example, writing payroll checks is a process that is performed by every company.

When the process is interrupted, or no longer works as required, the steps involved are then analyzed and the problem corrected (procedure doesn't work, computer program is not adequate, etc.).

Studies have shown that on the average it takes 10 to 14 errors occurring in a particular sequence to cause a random event (an action that results in a secondary component failure).

Humans make errors, however with every error that we make there is typically an associated change, or something out of the ordinary occurring in our environment.

The difference between humans and machines is that people have the ability to sense change; e.g., hear, smell, see, feel or taste something different and take the necessary actions to correct the anomaly.

Predictive maintenance programs are prime examples of sensitivity to the work environment.

These programs are established to anticipate potential machinery problems before they occur.

For example, when vibration monitoring indicates an excessive amount of vibration (error), and analysis is performed to determine why the vibrations are happening and actions are taken to eliminate the cause (change).

The chain of probable errors has been broken so that the random event (e.g., loss of bearing, coupling, seal, etc.) does not occur.

An error can be defined as an action planned but not executed according to the plan.

Research by Dr.James Reasons of the University of Manchester in England, has found that humans commit an average of 6 errors per week.

With all the errors that are occurring and all the ways that we could destroy ourselves, how come we don't? The answer is quite simple - because humans have the ability to sense change and break the error chains.

There are many areas involving people that can be either newly implemented or improved upon in order to enhance precision.

Some take a conscious effort by every individual involved while others require some form of administrative action.

No matter what the case, increased precision should be the goal.

It is a known fact that a manufacturing facility will achieve greater production at a higher degree of quality and with less loss time accidents if the plant is clean, neat and orderly.

Obviously, a clean working environment makes it easier to get the job done because workers are not constantly dodging obstacles or looking for job aides under piles of paper and other debris.

In addition, when people clean they inspect.

This is an added benefit of good housekeeping as the natural inspection process that occurs during the cleaning operation often reveals defects long before they would otherwise be detected.

Good housekeeping practices are the norm in a precision environment.

Even during maintenance activities the practice should be to work as clean as possible.

The first step in any maintenance activity must be to establish a clean work area before disassembling any equipment.

The benefits of this practice are obvious; a clean work area reduces the chances of contamination when the equipment is apart.

A clean work area has the added benefit of safety in that a neat and tidy area reduces the chance for accidents to occur.

When parts are cleaned prior to re-assembly they should be brought back to like new condition with solvents, tools and rags that are clean and lint free.

In addition, items such as files, wire brushes and grinder disks should be used with the idea of minimizing contamination.

For example, cleaning stainless steel components with a carbon steel wire brush will contaminate the stainless steel.

Using the same illustration, if stainless steel wire brushes are not available, then those brushes to be used on stainless should be used only on stainless.

This will greatly minimize the effects of carbide precipitation between the dissimilar materials (stainless and carbon steel).

The choices we make will greatly influence the precision of the end product.

For example, how much tolerance will be allowed? Consider the effect that our decisions have on how our children turn out when they are grown and making their own decisions.

What we as parents tolerate from our offspring will have either a positive or negative connotation when they become adults.

If we tolerate profanity then we can expect to have a child who uses profanity when they become adults.

This tolerance is passed on from generation-to-generation until some tightening of the tolerance (what we will tolerate) has occurred.

We can't expect improvement without a conscious effort to move towards improvement.

The same holds true for what we will tolerate in our facilities.

The decisions we make concerning precision must be weighed with an overall understanding of what the effect will be on the end product.

Even though our intentions may be good, we must realize that our decisions may have a negative impact somewhere else.

To illustrate, increasing the inspection frequency in a procedure will increase precision by reducing the chance for errors to occur, but will reduce efficiency because the operator must spend a proportional amount of time measuring for discrepancies in the end product.

Once a decision has been made concerning what can be tolerated, then consistency becomes the key.

This is important because if everything is consistent then it becomes much easier to change the end product.

For example, if a series of machines are all set up exactly the same to manufacture a product to a specific size and shape, changing the size of the product is much easier if changing the variable of the machines is consistent.

Many of today's decision-making processes have been automated in order to increase production while at the same time achieving a higher degree of precision.

So why not automate everything? The main reason is that automation cannot account for all the five senses of a human being all at the same time.

With this in mind, the question now, more precisely, becomes should a system be automated? Before this question can be answered, the positive and negative effects of introducing automation must be considered.

Two primary types of effects are technical and economic.

Because automated systems are able to perform routine decision-making tasks, they enable a company or organization to increase productivity.

In other words, more goods are manufactured or more services rendered.

Often quality is improved as well.

However, a word of caution about automation, it can reduce reliability by adding more components to the system.

Fundamentally, the more components that make up a system, the lower the reliability of that system.

Automation also makes possible the performance of tasks that are well beyond the limits of human capabilities, as for example the launching, tracking and control of the United States space shuttle.

A project of this kind requires so many complex computations and such rapid control responses that it can only be accomplished through the employment of high-speed computerized systems.

Automated systems, however, do have certain limitations and drawbacks.

Although usually very reliable, they can malfunction.

Moreover, an entire system may fail to operate properly if there is a single error in setting it up.

A backup system has to be provided or a human "override" capability built into the system so that operations can be handled manually.

Automated systems lack the flexibility of humans.

Any significant change in their function may thus require extensive redesigning of the equipment.

This problem has been mitigated by the use of computer programs that can be modified with relative ease, but action, sensing and control components still have to be tailored to specific applications.

This is one reason that large amounts of money are required as a company or industry becomes increasingly more automated.

In the long term, automation generally yields economic benefits.

An exception would be a situation where an operation has to be automated for technical or safety reasons only; e.g., the automation required for the operation of a reactor in a nuclear power plant.

Remember, whether raising a child, running a plant, or just doing your job, you have to live with the choices you make.

Whether written or oral, we all have some sort of reporting mechanism associated with our jobs.

The key to adding precision in reporting is the accuracy of the content.

For example, let's say an employee is injured while working in a tank that has an argon purge.

Another employee sees the accident and immediately reports it to the safety department.

Unless he/she reports that the accident has occurred in a tank with an argon purge the safety department will not know that they need respirators in order to assist the injured person.

Other things about this scenario that need to be accurately reported are items such as location within the plant and any limiting conditions like restricted access, or special equipment requirements such as a crane needed to lift out the injured person.

Without an accurate report, valuable time could be wasted when time is of the essence.

No matter what the case, reports should reflect the degree of precision required or used.

Let's say you are given the task of making a report on the quality of a product.

In your report you indicate that the product is 1/2 inch thick.

The person reading the report would surmise that the measurement indicated was taken with a tape measure or a rule.

This is fine if that is the measuring instrument used.

But suppose the measurement was taken with a precision measurement device like a micrometer or caliper and it was 0.500 inch.

Unless the measurement was reported as 0.500 inch then the reader of the report cannot determine that a precision measuring device was used.

In short, the report should reflect the degree of accuracy of the instrument used.

There has been a lot of discussion on the amount of detail to include in written reports.

Too little detail is of no use while too much detail is so cumbersome it is not user friendly.

Most people tend to err on the side of caution and provide much unnecessary detail.

Precision requires that reports be of sufficient detail for the end user and not overly cumbersome.

This may require that a report be issued in two or more formats (with varying degrees of detail) in order to meet the different needs of the various users.

This technique will provide added assurance that the report will be read and acted upon as necessary by the different departments within the organization.

A word of caution, watch out for paralysis by analysis.

Sometimes it is not proper to use precision in reporting.

For example, an analyst reporting the benefits of a proposed modification can use conservative estimates instead of spending the time and resources necessary to be precise in formulating the cost savings to the exact penny.

People don't often make mistakes on purpose.

The most common errors occur because people either don't know the right way to perform their jobs or they have been taught to do their jobs incorrectly.

Training in job performance is therefore essential to precision.

Not only training in each task to be performed under a specific discipline but also training on how to work productively with others.

Human relations skills is an area that will add enormous benefits to precision in the workplace.

A few companies are beginning to recognize the value of training in this area.

As a training method, apprenticeship has been criticized for a number of reasons.

Many apprentices, especially in small and medium-sized firms, are used as workers rather than as learners and receive training only when it fits into production schedules.

Classroom training is sometimes poorly coordinated with practical learning on the job.

For training to be effective the apprentice must be allowed to practice what was learned, and not be expected to produce at a level equal to an experienced employee.

Teaching the individual to perform the task right the first time and every time is what precision is all about.

A successful training program will use both typical and atypical internal resources to meet training needs.

Not all training needs are to be provided in the training room.

Training can occur in such settings as department meetings, on the plant floor, with interactive training programs, at the customer's site or with work instructions in the form of videotapes and picture-based materials.

Nor does all training need to be provided by an external trainer.

Within any organization there are likely to be people with the knowledge and ability to train, although some might need to be trained as trainers.

Use as many of the internal personnel as possible.

Training employees to implement new customer requirements (such as ISO 9000) does obtain the desired effect of increasing precision.

Making training a top strategic management responsibility, understanding how people learn, respecting the employees' ability to learn and make performance changes, employing a training curriculum requiring audience participation and using in-house personnel for training are the key factors to a successful training program.

After training has taken place it is important to follow up with coaching that verifies the transfer of knowledge and skills to the training participants.

If the knowledge or skill was not transferred, use the coaching time to provide whatever was missing during the training.

This eliminates the necessity for repeat training and allows the participants to save face.

Finally, record all training.

The records will assist in verifying that personnel are adequately trained to manage, perform work, and verify activities relative to the customer's requirements.

Human relations, the study of how people get along with one another is very important to human precision.

Human relations can involve something as simple as how a brother and sister share the last pancake at breakfast, or, can help world leaders handle an international dispute.

Whenever people come in contact with one another on a personal or professional level, human relations is at work.

The goal of human relations is to help people associate with one another in positive ways.

When good human relations are practiced, people feel good about themselves.

They can work together better, and they can accomplish more in their personal lives and in their jobs.

Like so many other skills, the art of human relations is something we must learn.

From the day we are born, life teaches us how to get along with others.

We learn by our experiences that some things make people happy and other things make them sad or angry.

For most people, learning human relations is an easy task.

Learning the basic rules for successful human relations is easy once everyone realizes that the most important ingredient in human relations is the individual.

A willingness to learn about yourself and other people will determine how successful you become.

This includes the ability to critique oneself by analyzing personal blunders.

Practicing good human relation skills and having a positive attitude will increase productivity on many levels.

An increase in individual productivity sets an example for others.

Modeling (behaving as you would like others to behave) is a powerful force that improves productivity.

The efforts of one good worker can often motivate others to reach their potential.

When several productive individuals work together in harmony, their positive attitudes spread.

This also means a resiliency to the negative forces in any given culture.

For example, a co-worker's sloppy work practices should never be allowed to negatively affect personal efforts to achieve excellence.

Individual success breeds success in others through recognition and improved self-esteem.

Working as a member of a team involves some sacrifice.

Sacrifice might involve working late to finish an assignment or to teach a fellow employee how to operate a new machine.

When someone sacrifices for the good of the team, they can earn respect.

Individuals who respect one another develop a sense of togetherness and work as a team.

There is a question of whether teams are a practical application of resources (precision producers) or a waste of time (precision distracters).

The answer seems rather simplistic; "it depends." It does depend - on the perceptions of all individuals as a whole.

If properly trained and supported, teams will be seen as a good investment that greatly enhances precision, and they will return the investment many times over.

If there is a doubt, however, and teams are approached as an experiment, and not given proper support and training, they will fail and become a waste of time and effort.

For example, consider one large national defense contractor's manufacturing facilities.

The company implemented ergonomics teams, despite a prevailing opinion that teams were a waste of resources.

The teams failed within the year and the idea was scrapped because of political conflict and lack of support.

However, three individuals who met on the formal ergonomics team continued to work together after it was disbanded.

Policy at this corporation allowed individuals of like mind to form a shared office by combining cubicles if they so desired.

These three individuals now share an office and a library of ergonomics related books.

Their desire to make a difference while working on something they believe in - improving working conditions and quality of life for their fellow employees - has led them to create an informal ergonomics team.

The team has achieved success, and participated in solutions to several ergonomic challenges without a budget or formal endorsement by the corporation.

Perhaps the most important ingredient in the success of implementing teams is a heartfelt belief that success is possible and necessary.

After all, training and support can supply only tools, not the desire to apply them.

Leadership is the ability to move people in a direction they are fundamentally uncomfortable going.

A leader motivates people by including them in the process, inspiring them toward achieving an objective, and encouraging them to perform at or above their known capabilities or perceived limits.

A good leader is one who is an expert in human relations.

The successful leader always places the art of listening and persuasion over the exercise of positional authority in the decision making process.

They take the time to convince - rather than coerce - others into the direction they wish to proceed.

This is accomplished by sharing the planned vision of the future, thus encouraging people to think beyond today's reality.

To develop a foresight of the consequences of our decisions we must understand the lessons learned from the past, the realities of the present and the likely ramification of our decisions for the future.

The more "what ifs" we can squeeze into making decisions, the better the odds of finding potential failures before they find us.

A leader must think outside the norm/box.

He must ignore how the rules, customs, and procedures were developed over the years and attempt to seamlessly rebuild the system from square one.

In short, a leader is a cross between a salesman and a manager.

He must look at the operating vision and lead the troops down that path, all the while convincing others it is the right thing to do.

As a leader one must be committed to self-awareness.

After all, true leadership is dependent more upon the man than the rank.

Each must explore their individual ethics and values in the decision making process.

Awareness is not a giver of solace - it does just the opposite; producing grief and anxiety.

Able leaders are sharply aware and reasonably disturbed because of their keen sense of awareness.

Always remember that people need to be accepted and recognized for their uniqueness.

Being empathetic will enable one to correct other's behavior or performance skills while at the same time not rejecting them as persons.

Leaders learn to heal (which is an extremely powerful force) and not inflict damage, pain or suffering from others.

Through healing, other's abilities are strengthened as well as their individual will and sense of personal worth.

Like most skills, the more the individual practices good human relations, the greater the rewards.

Ergonomics or human engineering adds to precision by making sure that the machinery, tools and even the furniture associated with a job reduce fatigue while at the same time increasing safety.

Ergonomics looks at the interaction between human beings and machines.

For example, Saturn Corporation has found that vehicle assembly is best accomplished at waist level.

Therefore, their assembly lines are designed to allow employees to perform their jobs at this height (waist level).

Another example of ergonomics is the Ergon chair developed by the American industrial designer William Stumpf.

The chair applies the principles of ergonomics, or biotechnology, to accommodate body shapes and to stabilize the body while leaving the arms and legs free to move.

It seems that just about everywhere we look ergonomics has played an important role.

From the computer mouse to the tools we use, ergonomics has been employed to help us achieve increased productivity at a higher degree of precision and maximum safety.

Think of the ergonomics that is built into many plants.

Line numbering and color-coding to make it easier to determine what medium is being conveyed in a piping system.

Chain operators and reach rods allow operators to position valves without having to climb on piping systems or enter controlled areas.

Rigging paths that have been carefully laid out to consider the safe removal of plant equipment for not only the equipment itself, but also, plant personnel.

These are but a few examples of the application of ergonomics to enhance precision.

Obviously doing precision work and making mistakes go together about as well as oil and water.

Mistake proofing adds to precision through the elimination of potential inadvertent mistakes or mishaps.

A good example of this is the error messages that we see on the modern personal computer.

For example, early versions of DOS allowed the computer operator to delete a file with one simple command (delete filename).

This often resulted in the inadvertent deletion of valuable records.

Today the computer will ask, "are you sure" one or more times before the file can be deleted.

In addition, other error messages are now built into the operating system that will either prevent humans from making a mistake by not allowing the operation to take place, or reconfirm the operation before it will take place.

In the power industry mistakes where often made by plant operators because the control knobs and switches on the control panel where identical (in both operation and appearance) and aligned in neat columns and rows that made it easy for the operator to flip the wrong switch.

Modern control rooms have controls that are offset from one another as well as different in physical operation, greatly reducing the risk of the operator inadvertently performing an unintended operation.

To conclude this discussion on human reliability, it is necessary to consider how human interfaces will affect precision.

Without precision at the interfaces of organizations (maintenance and operations for example) precision is unlikely to exist.

In fact, when outstanding competence exists on both sides of the interface there is a need for more rules that are enforced with discipline and interface definitions.

The problem arises when the competence of each side conflicts with each other.

For example, both sides may have developed techniques that will achieve a common goal.

The problem arises when these techniques conflict in style, implementation or resource allocation.

Perhaps a good example of this would be Reliability Centered Maintenance (RCM) and Root Cause Analysis (RCA).

Both programs will individually add precision.

Together they will greatly improve precision, but when used separately by two competent sides there can be a conflict.

It is similar to an equation in which the answer is already known; to arrive at the precise conclusion both sides of the equation still must be equal.

For precision to be truly achieved there must be accountability by both interfacing parties, as well as shared ownership.

The trick is for the interfaces to compliment, not conflict, with each other.

If procedures are put in place that will ensure that the interfaces work in harmony, precision is increased by direct proportion to the successful interface.

Conversely, when procedures allow a conflict at the interface, precision will be reduced in proportion to the existing conflict.

The ultimate goal should always be the achievement of nothing less than absolute precision.

With this in mind consider the fact that if absolute precision were actually achieved the result would be shear and utter boredom.

With no problems to tackle the need to generate new and creative means for resolution would be eliminated, resulting in complacency and perhaps reduced personal precision.

Only when the addition of new capital projects where planned and executed would the need to exercise precision techniques again be necessary.

Fortunately, the achievement of true precision is virtually impossible because the world continues to grow and change.

So this becomes truly an exercise in successive approximations towards precision.

However, we must always keep in mind that in the game of life the one having the most precision at any one time wins.

(2001 Reliability Center, Inc.

Back to top