Total Productive Maintenance (TPM)Glossary

Total Productive Maintenance (TPM)

Q: How is TPM different from traditional preventive maintenance?

TPM makes reliability a plant-wide habit. Operators perform daily care and detect early deterioration; maintenance focuses on precision work and chronic loss removal. Both groups share OEE goals and use common standards and data.

Q: What’s the fastest way to start?

Pick one constraint asset, install autonomous maintenance with visual standards, right-size PM intervals, capture cause-coded downtime, and run weekly loss reviews that trigger small kaizens. Scale after sustained results.

Q: Do we need sophisticated sensors to do TPM?

No. Start with autonomous maintenance and accurate downtime data. Add condition monitoring where it changes decisions—on critical assets or components with unpredictable wear.

Q: What are typical TPM targets?

Common goals include OEE +10–20 points, >90% PM on-time completion, MTBF +30–50%, MTTR −20–30%, and zero lost-time accidents on maintenance tasks—achieved by building habits, not heroic recoveries.

This topic is part of the SG Systems Global regulatory & operations glossary.

Updated October 2025 • Reliability, OEE & Shop‑Floor Ownership • Maintenance, Manufacturing, Quality

Total Productive Maintenance (TPM) is a plant‑wide system for maximizing equipment effectiveness by eliminating breakdowns, minor stops, speed losses, defects, and accidents. It blends operator‑led daily care (autonomous maintenance) with disciplined planned/predictive maintenance, focused improvement (Kaizen), and a culture of shared ownership. TPM is measured through OEE and underpinned by standard work (SOP), skills (Training Matrix), risk controls (JHA/JSA, PPE), and data integrity across MES and QMS systems.

“TPM turns maintenance from a department into a habit—operators care for assets, engineers eliminate chronic loss, and OEE becomes everybody’s scoreboard.”

TL;DR: TPM is a reliability system that engages everyone to raise OEE by removing the six big losses and preventing failure at the source. It relies on autonomous maintenance (clean‑inspect‑lubricate‑tighten), structured planned/predictive maintenance, PFMEA‑driven control, RCA/CAPA for chronic issues, and skills development via a Training Matrix. Evidence lives in eBMR/MES, maintenance logs with audit trails, and QMS records, governed by Document Control and Record Retention.

1) What TPM Covers—and What It Does Not

Covers: operator daily care, inspection and basic adjustments; structured preventive and predictive maintenance; rapid restoration/centerlining; focused improvement workshops to remove chronic loss; spare‑parts and tooling readiness; quality maintenance to prevent defects at the source; early equipment management (designing for maintainability); and strong safety/health/environment practices. TPM ties directly to OEE and the control plan for the process (PCP).

Does not cover: heroics after a breakdown or “maintenance as a silo.” TPM is not just more PM work orders or a dashboard; it is a cross‑functional discipline embedded into SOPs, training, and the daily management system. If operators cannot detect, tag, and address early deterioration, or if maintenance cannot see quality loss modes, it is not TPM.

2) System & Compliance Anchors

Reliable assets are also compliant assets. Autonomous maintenance and PM procedures must live under Document Control, executed with attributable records and audit trails per Data Integrity. Equipment must be qualified and fit for use (IQ/OQ/PQ), with calibration status visible (Asset Calibration Status). Safety controls begin with JHA/JSA, correct PPE, and clear Out‑of‑Service Tagging. Changes to methods or intervals follow MOC; chronic failures drive RCA and CAPA. Records are retained per policy (Record Retention).

3) The Evidence Pack for TPM

Auditable TPM evidence includes asset masters with criticality ranking, PM plans and histories, autonomous maintenance checklists with electronic sign‑off, lubrication schedules, centerline standards, parts/tooling lists and min/max levels, downtime logs with cause codes, OEE by line/shift, condition‑monitoring trends, calibration and qualification certificates, PFMEA and control plans, safety inspections, Layered Process Audits (LPA), and closed CAPA for chronic loss modes. These records should be attributable, time‑stamped, and easily traceable to the equipment and product lots executed in MES/eBMR.

4) From Kickoff to Daily Habit—A Standard Path

Start by measuring baselines (OEE, MTBF, MTTR) and mapping the six big losses. Pilot one asset family to install autonomous maintenance: clean‑inspect‑lubricate‑tighten, visual standards, abnormality tags, basic restoration, and operator skills uplift via the Training Matrix. Build a realistic PM program: interval optimization (usage‑based where possible), access points, and quick‑change design. Introduce daily/weekly tier meetings with OEE and loss Pareto, trigger RCA for the top offenders, and standardize gains through SOP updates and MOC. Scale horizontally once the pilot sustains itself without external push.

5) The Six Big Losses & How to See Them

TPM targets six recurring wastes seen through OEE: Breakdowns (availability loss), setups/adjustments (changeover and dialing‑in), small stops (jams and misfeeds), reduced speed (running below design rate), startup rejects (warm‑up scrap), and production defects/rework (quality loss). The discipline is to capture every stop and slow‑run with a cause code, relate defects to equipment conditions (e.g., worn seals, drifted sensors), and address systemic causes through design or standards, not workarounds. Complement with SPC to detect drift before it becomes scrap.

6) Autonomous Maintenance (AM)

AM builds operator capability to keep equipment in “like‑new” condition. Daily tasks include cleaning, inspection, lubrication, tightening, and basic adjustments—codified in visual standards and checklists within the eBMR/MES context. Operators tag abnormalities for immediate correction or planned work, and escalate dangerous conditions using Out‑of‑Service Tagging. AM stabilizes basic conditions so technicians can focus on precision maintenance and improvement rather than firefighting.

7) Planned & Predictive Maintenance

Planned maintenance covers time‑ or usage‑based tasks (belts, bearings, seals, filters) and condition‑based actions informed by sensors and inspections. Predictive methods—vibration, temperature, oil analysis, or SPC on performance variables—shift effort from emergency to forecasted work. All PM should reference equipment qualification boundaries (IQ/OQ/PQ) and calibration due dates (Calibration Status) to ensure the asset remains in a validated state where required.

8) Quality Maintenance & Zero Defects

Quality problems often originate as equipment problems. TPM uses PFMEA to identify failure modes and embeds checks in the Control Plan—sensor verifications, centerlines, and changeover confirmations within MES. When defects occur, link them to equipment condition and execute RCA/CAPA. Sustained zero‑defect performance depends on locking in the new standard work under Document Control.

9) Early Equipment Management (EEM)

TPM extends upstream to equipment design and acquisition. In EEM, cross‑functional teams apply lessons from chronic losses to new or modified equipment: design for cleanability and access, mistake‑proofing, quick‑change tooling, robust sensors, common parts, and diagnostic points. Capacity and maintainability requirements become part of the user specification, reducing lifecycle cost and accelerating stable ramp‑up.

10) Safety, Health & Environment

Zero accidents is a core TPM goal. Before any AM or PM task, confirm risk controls with JHA/JSA, verify PPE, and apply Out‑of‑Service Tagging for energy isolation. Integrate safety checks into SOPs and layered audits, and treat near‑misses as improvement signals, not administrative noise.

11) Skills, Roles & Culture

TPM thrives when skills are visible and gaps are actively closed. Map competencies by role in the Training Matrix and gate critical tasks in MES to trained personnel. Use LPA to reinforce behaviors, daily tier boards to review OEE and loss Paretos, and Kaizen events to address top issues. Reward prevention and stability, not heroic recovery.

12) TPM in Regulated Environments

Where GMP applies, TPM interfaces with validation and quality systems. Maintenance can impact product; therefore, PM and adjustments must be captured in eBMR or linked records, assets must remain within qualified state (IQ/OQ/PQ), and software used for scheduling or OEE must be validated proportionately (GAMP 5, audit trails). Deviations arising from equipment issues are handled in QMS (Deviations/NC) with CAPA and MOC.

13) Metrics That Demonstrate TPM Control

OEE by line/asset/shift (Availability, Performance, Quality) with loss Pareto.
MTBF/MTTR and % planned vs unplanned maintenance hours.
PM compliance (on‑time completion) and AM completion (daily/weekly checks done right‑first‑time).
Start‑up yield and changeover stabilization time to first good part.
Defects linked to equipment and recurrence rate post‑CAPA.
Spare‑parts stockouts and maintenance waiting time.
Safety leading indicators (near‑miss resolution cycle time).

These KPIs show whether equipment is reliable and the organization is learning. Trend and review them in daily/weekly tier meetings to keep TPM alive.

14) Common Pitfalls & How to Avoid Them

Maintenance‑only mindset. Remedy by assigning AM ownership to operators and aligning goals across production and maintenance.
Checklist theater. Replace pencil‑whip with MES‑bound checks, visual standards, and LPA verification.
Over‑PM or under‑PM. Use failure history, criticality, and condition data to right‑size intervals; review via PFMEA.
Uncontrolled changes. Route method or interval tweaks through MOC and update SOPs under Document Control.
Poor parts readiness. Define min/max and kitting for services; manage spares through WMS and visual controls.
Data without integrity. Ensure audit trails, user attribution, and time sync so OEE/downtime data are trustworthy.

15) What Belongs in the TPM Record

Each asset should have a traceable dossier: unique ID, location, criticality, qualification and calibration status, AM and PM procedures, schedules and completion history, parts lists and consumption, downtime logs with cause codes, changeovers and centerlines, condition data and alarms, related product lots executed (via MES/eBMR), linked deviations/CAPA, safety analyses, training records, and any MOC. Retain per your Record Retention policy.

16) How This Fits with V5 by SG Systems Global

MES‑embedded care & interlocks. The V5 platform embeds autonomous maintenance and pre‑run checks directly in the V5 MES. Work instructions and checklists are version‑controlled SOPs; operators complete “clean‑inspect‑lubricate‑tighten” with e‑signatures before steps unlock. If an asset is past due on calibration or marked with Out‑of‑Service Tagging, execution is blocked until status is restored—no production without fitness to run.

OEE & downtime made actionable. V5 captures reason‑coded stops and speed losses as they occur, rolls them into OEE, and links them to batches, shifts, and equipment. Loss Paretos seed RCA within the V5 QMS, where findings convert to CAPA and then to controlled SOP updates via Document Control. Improvements are auditable from idea to standardization.

Skills gating & layered assurance. The Training Matrix gates who can perform AM/PM tasks. LPA schedules verify that standards are followed, with findings feeding back to QMS for closure and trending.

Spare‑parts readiness & traceability. The V5 WMS manages maintenance spares with item/lot identity, min/max levels, and scan control from Goods Receipt to point of use. Parts consumption during PM links to the asset and work order for full cost and genealogy.

Validation & data integrity by design. V5 supports proportionate computerized system validation (GAMP 5) with immutable audit trails, e‑signatures, and controlled records, aligning TPM with GMP and regulatory expectations.

Bottom line: V5 turns TPM from meetings and spreadsheets into an execution system: the right people performing the right care at the right time, proof captured automatically, and improvements locked into everyday work.

17) FAQ

Q1. How is TPM different from traditional preventive maintenance?
TPM makes reliability a plant‑wide habit. Operators perform daily care and detect early deterioration; maintenance focuses on precision work and chronic loss removal. Both groups share OEE goals and use common standards and data.

Q2. What’s the fastest way to start?
Pick one constraint asset, install autonomous maintenance (clean‑inspect‑lubricate‑tighten with visual standards), right‑size PM intervals, capture cause‑coded downtime, and run weekly loss reviews that trigger small kaizens. Scale after 8–12 weeks of sustained results.

Q3. How does TPM reduce quality defects?
Many defects stem from drifted conditions. TPM stabilizes centerlines, verifies sensors, and ties defects to equipment state via PFMEA/RCA. Fix the condition and standardize the method, and defects fall without adding inspection.

Q4. Do we need sophisticated sensors to do TPM?
No. Start with AM and accurate downtime data. Add condition monitoring where it changes decisions—on critical assets, for components with unpredictable wear, or when the business case is clear.

Q5. How does TPM fit in GMP environments?
Treat maintenance as part of the validated state: qualified equipment, controlled SOPs, attributable records with audit trails, deviations/CAPA for failures, and MOC for changes. Link PM to eBMR steps so production cannot proceed on unfit assets.

Q6. What are typical TPM targets?
Common goals include OEE +10–20 points on constraint assets, >90% PM on‑time completion, MTBF +30–50%, MTTR −20–30%, and zero lost‑time accidents on maintenance tasks—achieved by building habits, not heroic recoveries.