Building a Preventive Maintenance Foundation for a Critical Roll Coat Line


The Problem

This manufacturer had recently commissioned a new, world-class roll coat line designed to increase production capacity, improve operating speed, and support growing customer demand in a highly competitive market. The new line represented a significant capital investment and was critical to the company’s long-term growth strategy.

During the project kickoff, the site’s Continuous Improvement Director emphasized the importance of the investment by stating:

“This is a 60-year investment into the community. Families will work here for generations.”
Despite the importance of the asset, the preventive maintenance program required to support long-term reliability had not been fully developed. Many required PMs were missing, while weekly and monthly maintenance activities were already falling behind. Existing tasks were being created between outages and reactive work, limiting the site’s ability to establish a complete and sustainable maintenance strategy.

Although OEM documentation and subcontractor recommendations were available, they had not yet been translated into clear, technician-ready job plans. Maintenance personnel lacked standardized procedures that defined task expectations, pass/fail criteria, and response actions. As a result, the facility faced increased risk of avoidable failures, unplanned downtime, and inconsistent maintenance execution on one of its most important production assets.

Recognizing the need to accelerate PM development and establish a reliability foundation capable of supporting the asset throughout its lifecycle, the site engaged Marshall Institute for support.

The Client

Large Aluminum Manufacturer

The Project 

Develop Preventive Maintenance Program for a New Roll Coat Line

Services Leveraged

Preventive Maintenance Development

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The Solution

Marshall Institute implemented a Preventive Maintenance Development initiative focused on protecting the client’s investment by establishing a comprehensive preventive maintenance strategy for Roll Line 4.
The engagement began with an onsite kickoff to align stakeholders on PM format, level of detail, use of visual aids, and project success criteria. OEM documentation, operational requirements, and existing maintenance information were reviewed to establish the foundation for PM development and prioritize assets based on criticality and risk.
Working collaboratively with the planner, supervisors, and technicians, Marshall Institute translated OEM recommendations and equipment knowledge into technician-ready preventive maintenance tasks. Each PM was developed to clearly define task intent, execution steps, pass/fail criteria, and required response actions.
Particular emphasis was placed on creating PMs that were practical and actionable in the field. Tasks were written with the clarity necessary to support both experienced and new technicians, ensuring maintenance activities could be performed consistently regardless of individual experience levels.
The engagement also established a standardized PM template for future development efforts. The template included defined task expectations, visual guidance where appropriate, and a dedicated Follow-Up Work Escalation section to document findings that required additional corrective action.

The Outcome

The project established the preventive maintenance foundation for Roll Line 4, creating a structured asset care strategy designed to support long-term reliability and performance.

A comprehensive review of OEM documentation was completed to develop value-added PMs aligned with equipment requirements and known failure modes. Lubrication recommendations were incorporated to identify lubrication points, required lubricants, and maintenance frequencies for assets throughout the production line.

Visual inspection criteria were incorporated into PM tasks to help technicians identify abnormal conditions and take appropriate action before failures occurred. Detailed response guidance was included to ensure findings were documented, escalated, and addressed consistently. Visual inspection tasks were also developed for drive motors, gearboxes, and universal joints to improve early detection of equipment issues that could lead to corrective maintenance.

During the development process, Marshall Institute identified two additional assets that were not included in the original documentation and developed preventive maintenance tasks to ensure they were incorporated into the overall maintenance strategy.

The project resulted in:
  • 73 Roll Line 4 assets reviewed
  • 119 asset-specific PMs developed
  • 9 regulatory PMs developed
  • 128 total PMs developed

Most importantly, the facility now has a standardized preventive maintenance program designed to protect a critical production asset and support reliability for decades to come. The PMs provide technicians with clear instructions, defined expectations, and actionable response criteria, increasing confidence in maintenance execution and reducing the likelihood of avoidable failures.

By establishing a comprehensive preventive maintenance strategy early in the asset’s lifecycle, the organization strengthened its ability to reduce unscheduled downtime, improve asset reliability, and protect a capital investment intended to serve the facility and community for generations.