Implementing TPM

1Introduction

What Is Total Productive Maintenance?

The term “total productive maintenance” was first used in the late 1960s by Nippondenso, a supplier of electrical parts to Toyota. At that time it was a slogan for their plant improvement theme, “productive maintenance with total employee participation.” In 1971, Nippondenso received the Distinguished Plant Award (the PM Prize) from the Japan Institute of Plant Maintenance (JIPM). Nippondenso was the first plant to receive the award as a result of implementing TPM, and this marked the beginning of JIPM’s association with the improvement methodology. Eventually Seiichi Nakajima, a vice chairman of JIPM, became known as the father of TPM, since he provided implementation support to hundreds ...