Effects of a Reliability Engineering Department on an Industrial Organization: An Empirical Investigation

In industrial companies, efficient maintenance is a prerequisite for overall competitiveness and, therefore, needs the utmost attention from the highest management level. Maintenance departments work primarily in a preventive and proactive manner in order to detect and avoid damages early instead of reacting to sudden failures. Some companies have gone further and introduced an independent Reliability Engineering Department (RED). This RED is intended to improve equipment dependability and decisively reduce production downtime to an even greater extent. The effects of a RED on industrial organizations have received little academic attention to date. This study aims to address this research gap by analyzing vital questions concerning the advantages of an independent RED. The research has been carried out using an empirical quantitative online survey. The study results demonstrate that many companies have already introduced an independent RED. It is envisioned that many businesses, if not most, currently missing a RED will soon introduce one. Furthermore, it is presented that companies that have already implemented a RED expect recurring significant annual savings. For the most part, these REDs are organizationally integrated into the existing maintenance department. The surveyed companies demonstrate that a RED, virtually without exception, generates a positive contribution to the company.