DRIVING COST REDUCTION AND CARBON PLANT PRODUCTIVITY IMPROVEMENT THROUGH THEORY OF CONSTRAINTS AND PLANNED MAINTENANCE CAPABILITY

摘要

Theory of Constraints (TOC) is a management approach thatgives clear context for decision-making and can lead to lowercost and more efficient Smelter operations. TOC avoids local(sub) optimization and ensures that actions are aligned with“end-to-end” process performance. When a Smelter TOCoperating strategy is cascaded down to the Carbon Plant, andthen to the Paste Plant, it provides context for how to bestapproach Paste Plant operating and maintenance activities. Inaddition to defining the most appropriate strategy, TOCprinciples and tools can be applied to activities such as routinemaintenance and larger non-routine maintenance projects. Forexample, Critical Chain Project Management (CCPM) is a TOCtechnique that increases the speed and quality of these activitiesand can increase asset reliability and available run time, givinglower cost production runs and greater predictability. This paperdescribes the cascading of TOC thinking and strategies downthrough a Smelter, leading to an example of how CCPM can beapplied to a Carbon Plant maintenance project.