Spare parts management is integral to an organized, orderly, and efficient inventory system. Keeping a comprehensive catalog of the plant’s spare parts and tools enables personnel to locate the parts immediately and keep management aware of what needs to be added to the list for regular equipment maintenance or replacements.

Have an Operating Strategy

The most efficient way to good spare parts management is to have an operating strategy. This should be the first act in every inventory preparation. The system will ensure that a company or organization can appropriately dispense resources where they are needed to maintain the plant’s infrastructure. Having a roadmap or a plan for maintaining the equipment and its parts helps you determine which parts should have priority.

Standardize Your Work Orders

A work order process determines how parts are issued and ensures that all parts remain accounted for. It helps personnel decide which parts were used, when, and where. From here, the inventory can track which parts are running out and need replenishment. Spare parts management calls for monitoring hundreds, possibly thousands of parts. Standardizing the work order system ensures everything stays accurate.

Make Sure All Lead Times are Comfortable

One of the chief troubles of replacing spare parts is the lead time, especially for highly-specialized industrial machinery that requires custom parts. When replenishing parts supplies, make sure that the protocol calls for a comfortable lead time that guarantees you’ll always have the part on hand while the new components are on their way to you. This ensures that even during incidents of sudden machine failure, there will always be a part to use to fix it.

Use Reliable Suppliers

For organizations that heavily rely on specific machinery components, it’s crucial to get trustworthy, reliable spare parts suppliers that deliver on time. You don’t want to be caught relying on only one supplier who may not get the parts delivered on time. Have multiple options if you can, and leverage sales and maintenance records to determine if you can trust the supplier.

Having the right parts can mean the difference between plant operations going smoothly or many hours of productivity (and therefore thousands, even millions, of dollars) lost. Spare parts management keeps things working like a well-oiled machine.

KC Supply Co knows the importance of maintaining your industrial equipment. Visit KCSupply.com to find resources on maintenance, plant safety, and more.

A plant shutdown is more than simply flipping a switch to “off.” It also means shutting down a significant operation safely and with as little risk as possible to machinery and personnel. Before performing a plant shutdown, take note of this checklist that keeps everyone safe.

Check or Have a Shutdown Plan

As with any major operation, you need to have a plan. Your business or company should have a previously dictated protocol on what should be done in the event of a plant shutdown and who is responsible for checks and steps.

Arrange Barricades

Setting up barricades in high-danger or high-sensitivity areas should be prioritized. This ensures that employees, workers, and staff do not enter these areas before and during the plant shutdown. Barricading off these areas minimizes the risk of personnel getting into accidents.

Equipment Check

Before proceeding with the plant shutdown:

1. Have a team check all electrical equipment to ensure that belts are not too worn or have tears.
2. Look into any machinery to check for proper lubrication and that the bearings are in working order.
3. Most importantly, check that the power connections are not loose and that any cooling fans are working. If needed, you also need to ensure that critical equipment and utilities are isolated during the shutdown.

Fire Security Check

The most important concern during a plant shutdown is ensuring that the building’s fire and safety protocols remain intact. The fire and security systems will be relied upon with the plant shutdown. Ensure that teams are patrolling the shutdown plant, any combustibles or flammables such as trash, gas, and other materials are isolated and ensure that all security systems and fire alarms are working. Check that the sprinkler and fire extinguishing systems are operational and conduct regular watch rounds.

Apart from other details depending on the plant’s purpose, all these should be a part of any good company’s plant shutdown checklist. The shutdown can proceed safely by ensuring equipment is operational, security and safety redundancies are functional, and all personnel knows their responsibilities and restrictions.

KC Supply emphasizes the importance of safety in all plant procedures, including shutdowns. Find more informative checklists and reminders at KCSupply.com.

Following the pandemic, just about everyone may be familiar with PPEs and their regular use. PPEs are vital to maintaining a clean and safe workplace and are helpful for numerous practical reasons. They also come in various forms and features, with specific PPEs more effective than others depending on application and use.

Why wear PPEs?

They’re not just a “safety” outfit: PPEs are often mandated by law and OSHA standards for specific workplaces. The purpose of a PPE is to minimize any hazards and risks to a person as much as possible. They help to avoid exposure to harmful compounds or biological substances.

The PPEs protect your most sensitive areas or regions that could cause critical damage if harmed. These are your head, eyes, extreme ties (feet and hands), and skin. It also can protect your lungs from breathing in any toxicity.

Why PPEs matter in the workplace

You may not know, but your workplace may already use PPEs. Not all PPEs look the same. For example, a hard hat and safety glasses are already forms of PPE. These are often found in construction sites to protect against head injuries and prevent debris from getting into your eyes. Here are some of the common PPEs:

• In medical facilities, full-body PPEs and gowns are crucial to avoid exposure to microbes and viruses.
• High visibility clothing or body suits are also a form of PPE. A fluorescent and reflective PPE can highlight where a worker is when working in dark areas such as underground shafts and channels or at night. It helps prevent accidents where they may not have been seen and struck by a piece of machinery.
• Another form of PPE is fall-protection equipment. These body harnesses help keep workers attached to lifelines and ensure they do not fall when working at great heights.

OSHA regulations state that injuries and illnesses may result from coming into contact with chemical, medical, radiological, physical, electrical, mechanical, and other workplace hazards. While PPEs may not completely prevent harm against these hazards, they go a long way in ensuring that all workers are protected.

KC Supply Co is committed to workplace safety in workspaces of all kinds, from construction zones to infrastructure maintenance. Visit KC Supply Co to find a full range of protective equipment.

Access doors are a common and crucial feature in many industrial areas and factories. These access doors serve as means of entry into tanks, pipes, ducts, chambers, and more. Any specific equipment or confined space should have its access door, typically any small hinged door.

However, access doors have different classifications and features depending on their usage. Business owners need to consider what the entry should contain behind it, how convenient it should be for personnel to get through, and what pressure-safety measures are necessary.

KC Supply specializes in three classes of access doors.

Non-Pressure Rated

Non-pressure rated access doors look similar to maintenance holes or caps. They allow access to bins and can be used for clean-outs, inspections, sampling, and more. They come in various styles and forms. For example, a cross-arm style access door flips down to close and is self-locking. A clamp-ring style access door has a clamp ring that attaches the cover to the weld ring, providing a strong seal. It’s best used for covers that aren’t opened often.

Pressure Rated

Pressure-rated access doors are specially designed to provide access to high-pressure ducts, often for inspection purposes. When not in use, they should be durable enough to contain that pressure, which is why they’re usually designed with six levers or seals that keep the cap in place. They come in carbon steel, aluminum, zinc, and other materials and have different diameters. Ensure that you select a lid that seals the gap perfectly for absolute safety.

Pressure Relieving

A pressure-relieving access door should handle both positive and negative forces. Often, these are used for duct and chamber access, where safety and ventilation are the foremost concerns. They are also frequently used for food storage or food applications, so it’s crucial to select a door that has food-grade materials if to be used for this purpose.

KC Supply emphasizes that by selecting the correct type of access door for your containment, you can ensure the safety of the personnel around it and prevent any mechanical or equipment issues that could come from faulty doors.

Learn the different types of access doors and find the right one for your needs at KC Supply.

Storage tank safety is crucial when working around them. Like in industrial grain and storage bins, storage tanks pose a fall, drowning, or suffocation risk. Moreover, they are likely to contain highly hazardous materials that could instantly kill in an accident. Therefore, the following storage tank safety tips are worth noting to ensure the protection of all staff working around them.

Establish a full plan

A careful plan is essential. Whether the idea is to clean the tank, do some maintenance, reconnect it, or remove it — whatever the procedure may be — it’s critical to have a careful plan of every step, as well as contingencies and backups in case something goes wrong.

Only allow certified professionals around the tank

Different types of tanks are designed to handle hazardous materials, and it’s crucial only to have experienced, trained, and certified professionals handling any procedure involving them. As this personnel is properly trained, they know precisely how every process works and the storage tank safety procedures.

Always check temperature indicators

Whatever is inside the tank, it’s always good to keep a close eye on temperature indicators. While this is most useful for liquid storage tanks that heat or store hot water, any volatile material inside the storage tanks should have temperature monitoring. It may indicate if things are stable inside or if something is amiss.

Comply with state and national requirements

Safety standards for storage tanks, especially for oil and fuel, are incredibly stringent for a reason—ensuring that everyone handling the tank, its contents, and the surrounding environment remains safe. Always have regular checks to ensure that all procedures and handling involving the tanks fall under these storage tank safety requirements.

Test Annually

Testing should be done every year, whether it’s testing the tanks and their system’s stability or the staff’s professionalism, knowledge, and understanding. This makes sure everyone is always aware of the safety protocols.

By keeping these practical tips in mind, every staff member can maintain your storage tanks’ safety.

KC Supply places the safety of personnel handling storage tanks at the utmost priority. Visit us to find essential safety equipment as well as tips to keep everything stable.

Industrial storage tanks come in many forms, each specially designed for different uses and applications. Most importantly, some tanks are more effective storage containers for specific types of fluid or materials. Here are some of the most common types of storage tanks in various industrial industries.

Industrial Chemical Tank

These industrial tanks are best used for natural gas or petroleum. They have specifically been built to withstand the most corrosive or hazardous chemicals, and the tanks come in various shapes and sizes. They can also handle the raw materials that combine these chemicals and take pre-processed fluids.

Industrial Oil Storage Tanks

Used primarily for long-term storage or reservoirs, these industrial storage tanks handle oil in all its stages, from the initial processing to consumer-ready forms. Great care is taken in constructing these tanks as they need the utmost safety, environmental, and legal considerations when they are built. Oil can be hazardous to the environment in case of spills — therefore, the tank must be completely reliable.

Industrial Water and Liquid Storage Tanks

These tanks may hold hot or non-heated water for storage or use in plants. They are often very well insulated to maintain the temperature of the water within. The insulation is often thicker and made of fiberglass if used for hot or heating water in the industrial storage tank.

Other forms of these tanks don’t just handle water. They may be used to handle jet fuel, diesel, or gasoline. The different varieties of water and liquid storage tanks also depend on their use. Onion tanks store water in case of emergencies, while bladder tanks are typically used for quick use and release of water. Poly tanks are domestically utilized, such as rainwater collection.

These are just some of the different types of industrial storage tanks. Other tanks may be for more specialized or sophisticated uses. Understanding these tanks enables you to determine what your plant needs.

KC Supply Co doesn’t just understand industrial storage tanks—we have the equipment needed to maintain them too. Visit us to learn more about industrial equipment.