What is Early Equipment Management

EEM extends the traditional project focus of delivering a new asset or engineering platform to that of delivering Operational Excellence. The difference is the humanisation of projects to incorporate not just what will be done but how it is done. This is characterised by increased collaboration between commercial, operations and technical personnel at all project steps.

This was developed to counter the root causes of projects which limp along after the planned beneficial operation start date has passed like a car which can be driven but is not firing on all cylinders. It needs a lot more care and attention and costs more to run.

Analysis of the reasons why some projects do not achieve their full potential suggests a number of common causes.

These are not due to technical problems but to people issues including knowledge gaps, poor communication and collaboration.

The goals of Early Equipment Management (EEM) are to achieve “Flawless operation from production day 1” and consistently low Life s Cycle Costs (LCC) for the lifetime of the installation.

Flawless operation from day one means simple zero unplanned stoppages/sporadic failures from the planned operating date. Then during the first few months of operation the performance can be improved as the route to process optimisation becomes clear.

The core of the EEM process is the use of systematic analysis around key decision points or milestones. Activities to deliver each milestone are coordinated by design standards and checklists to avoid omissions and assure objective decision making.

Each milestone incorporates an improvement theme to drive the innovation process and align the efforts of the project team. This also provides a framework for management to review progress, the injection of knowledge from other projects and the capture of lessons learned from the current project

A major oil and gas provider estimated that adopting Early Equipment Management principles on their project contributed an additional 5% operating efficiency per year over the life of the asset. Enough to pay for the original capital investment.

Weaknesses in the early stages of a project have a cumulative impact on the rest of the project. The most important factor in the early stages of a project is getting the right scope of the project. Starting with a broad outline of what you want to achieve and explore a number of options before deciding on the preferred option.

Weaknesses in the early stages of a project have a cumulative impact on the rest of the project. The most important factor in the early stages of a project is getting the right scope of the project.

Starting with a broad outline of what you want to achieve and explore a number of options before deciding on the preferred option. The building blocks of success at the stage are characterised by processes to exclude inappropriate options.

Common weaknesses at this stage are set out in the tables below.

Once the specification scope is defined and a vendor is selected the detailed design process can start.   A common pitfall at this stage is assuming that the impact of any risk of not meeting the specification rests with the vendor.  The vendor can influence only around half of the factors that impact on project delivery risk.  

Successful projects at this step are characterised by working with the vendor to understand how their offering will be used with the goal of reducing asset life cycle costs.  This Design to Life Cycle Cost approach surfaces weaknesses in the design or specification and supports the development of work routines and maintenance standards for the new asset.

The gains include reduction in project life cycle costs and higher than expected return on investment.  Done well, this also speeds up the time to beneficial operation. 

Two common weaknesses at this stage are gaps into the setting of standards and poor design of work routines.  This is something that needs attention to detail by users because vendors do have the product knowledge to be able to define effective work routines.  Naturally they can assist with this but the quality of work routines deepend on the engagement of users.  They are the only ones who can integrate the new practices within the existing routine and develop the skill sets needed to secure stable operation. 

Problems at this step are often due to weaknesses earlier in the project. The focus here is on problem prevention to minimise the risk of human error and factory readiness planning to support the glide path to flawless operation and production ramp up. 

Two common weakness at this stage are gaps in accountabilities and skill development for core, intermediate and specialist task completion.  

Check out our EEM support plan or Contact us to find out more about how we  can help you to deliver better projects faster.

Our support plans develop internal EEM capabilities by coaching stakeholders within the project programme.  This includes:

• Working sessions to lead your team through a review of your capital project process against EEM benchmarks to identify strengths and weakness (gap analysis)
• Coaching to apply EEM to pilot projects to enhance current practices and standards
• Guidance for business leaders, project managers and project team members
• Support where needed to extend the use of EEM tools to all projects.