Implementing TPM

9TPM and Benchmarking

One philosophy that has gained credence in recent years is benchmarking. Although this approach has been employed primarily at higher levels of management, it offers significant potential benefits to the autonomous groups used in TPM. In his book on the subject,¹ Robert Camp defines benchmarking as “the search for best practices.” Fifteen years ago such searches were virtually nonexistent in North America. A smug sense of self-satisfaction and complacency permeated companies because they had long dominated international and national markets. At the plant level, few companies had interest in how competitors managed their manufacturing operations. They tended to guard information on their own manufacturing processes, ...