SANITATION
•;Serial;number
• Description
•;Maintenance;schedule
• Responsibility
• Procedures
For;most;pieces;of;equipment,
there are several different maintenance
schedules.;There;is;routine;maintenance,
that;is,;what;is;done;daily,;lubrication
schedules and different kinds of more
complex;maintenance.;As;an;example,
it is normal in most operations to shut
down a piece of equipment at least once
a;year;for;a;complete;check.;However,
the schedule may also call for replacing
gaskets;or;some;other;item;every;month.
Therefore,;the;bottom;line;is;that;for
each piece of equipment, there are sev-
eral;levels;of;maintenance.
When;establishing;maintenance
schedules, a risk assessment on each
piece;of;equipment;should;be;conduct-ed.;How;important;is;that;operation;or
activity to product quality, safety or legal
compliance?;Let’s;look;at;something;as
simple;as;a;gasket.;Too;many;processors
let;gasket;changing;or;inspection;slide.
But;if;a;gasket;breaks;down;and;the;com-pany ends up with a foreign materials
complaint or spoilage, they suddenly get
religion.;Gasket;inspection;or;replace-ment is deemed a high-risk activity and
must;be;scrupulously;adhered;to.;When
this exercise is done, the company will
have;established;high-,;medium-;and
low-risk;activities.;Based;on;the;risk
assessment, the operation may decide to
perform maintenance activities more or
less;frequently.
Maintenance Procedures
It;has;been;said;that;“If;it;is;not;writ-ten;down,;it;never;happened.”;There-fore,;it;is;absolutely;imperative;that;the
maintenance program include proce-dures;that;describe;how;to;do;the;work
and properly document that the work
is;being;done;and;being;done;properly.
The;maintenance;master;list;would;be
only;one;document;in;the;program.;The
following;procedures;would;be;con-sidered integral parts of a documented
maintenance program:
•;Maintenance;procedures
•;Lubrication;procedures
•;Tool;reconciliation;procedures
•;Procedures;for;temporary;repairs
•;Procedures;for;emergency;repairs
•;Spare;parts;inventory;program
•;Training;procedures
•;“Hand-over”;procedures
•;Audit;procedures;to;verify;that;the
work;is;being;done;properly
Let’s;look;at;how;these;protocols
should;be;drafted.;Food;processors
should;establish;a;standard;for;drafting,
reviewing;and;approving;procedures.
These;should;include;a;title,;step-by-step
actions to complete the work, who is
responsible;for;the;work,;how;and;where
records;shall;be;maintained;(references
to;the;appropriate;form;or;forms),;cor-
rective;actions;to;be;carried;out;and,
finally,;procedures;for;management;to
verify that the work was not only done,
but;done;properly.;When;developing
preventive maintenance procedures, the
company should draw on the manuals
provided;by;the;equipment;manu-
facturers, the risk assessments they have
conducted;and;their;own;experiences.;In
most cases, equipment manuals are far
too;detailed;and;bulky;for;everyday;use,
so;procedures;need;to;be;streamlined.
Lubrication;is;always;a;hot;button
issue;during;third-party;audits.;The
lubrication;procedures;should;describe
not;only;how;and;when;to;lubricate,;but
should specify the type and amount of
lubricant.;Ideally,;the;lubrication;records
should;capture;all;of;this;information.
The;lubrication;program;should;also
include;procedures;describing;how;food-and;nonfood-grade;lubricants;are;identi-fied;to;ensure;that;the;proper;material
is;used.;Processors;are;now;color-coding
lubricants;and/or;the;grease;guns;used;to
apply;them.;Since;this;is;an;important;is-sue,;suppliers;of;lubricants;have;stepped
forward;to;help;ensure;better;control;of
Figure 2: Color-coded Lubricants
lubricants.;Some;vendors;now;sell;color-
coded;lubricants;(Figure;2).
The;best;way;to;describe;tool;and
parts reconciliation is to look at the
medical;profession.;One;of;the;things
done during surgeries is to ensure that all
tools present at the start of the operation
are;there;when;the;work;is;done.;One
doesn’t want to leave something in the
patient,;which;does;happen.;There;are
different ways to ensure tools are reconciled.
One;is;to;set;up;a;tool;cabinet;in;the
area;of;the;machinery;being;maintained,
Figure 3: Toolbox
with;a;location;for;each;tool;(Figure;3).;If
a;tool;is;missing;from;the;cabinet;after;a
project,;it;must;be;accounted;for.;When
using a system such as this, companies
assign keys to selected individuals, which
both;controls;access;and;defines;who
is;responsible;for;tool;reconciliation.
Another means to reconcile tools is to
have the maintenance people supply
their;own;tools.;They;are;more;prone
to;keep;an;eye;on;their;own;property.
Many;companies;do;this.;An;integral
part of such programs is to provide the
maintenance people with a tool allow-ance;to;ensure;they;have;what;they;need.
Finally,;an;outfit;can;use;a;checklist;like
surgeons;do.;What;goes;into;the;plant
must;be;accounted;for;when;the;work;is
completed.
All;companies;must;establish;a
procedure for temporary repairs, which
use;many;different;materials.;These
include tape of various types, string,
wire,;twist-ties;and;cardboard.;None;of
these items is considered proper material
for;doing;repairs.;In;fact,;there;is;a;good
chance that they could cause product
contamination.;If;one;or;more;of;these
