Natural vs accelerated wear poster

Every machine wears, but not all wear is natural. Natural wear is what happens with normal use when the machine is well cared for, and planned maintenance replaces those parts in time. Accelerated (forced) wear comes from neglect: dirt, missing lubrication, loose bolts, running past limits. It makes parts fail long before their time, and it is stopped by operators keeping basic conditions. This poster sets the two side by side.

Download the poster

The PNG is free to download now. The print-ready vector PDFs open after a short form, once.

Download PNG (300 dpi)2550 x 3300 px, prints at 8.5 x 11 in · 414 KB · no form

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The words on the poster

Natural vs accelerated wear

Some wear is normal. Early failures usually are not.

Natural Parts wear out with normal use, even when well cared for. Belts, bearings, seals and tools have a life Planned maintenance replaces them in time Owner: maintenance
Forced Accelerated wear: neglect makes parts fail early. Dirt, missing lubrication, loose bolts, overload One loose bolt: vibration, more loose bolts, a failed bearing Owner: operators, by keeping basic conditions

Stop accelerated wear first. Until you do, nobody knows how long a part should last.

On the floor

How to use it

Putting the Natural vs accelerated wear poster to work

1
Put it in the TPM room and use it to explain why operators and maintenance each own part of the machine.
2
When a part fails early, ask which kind of wear it was before deciding the fix.
3
Use the bottom band when someone wants to set PM intervals on a machine that is still dirty and loose.
4
Pair it with the CILR poster and the free autonomous maintenance checklist.

Where the poster goes and how to teach with it, in the order to try them.

Which size to print

24 x 36 in or A2: a main wall or team board, read from a few metres away.
18 x 24 in or A3: a station or notice board. The A3 file also fits 11 x 17 in paper.
Letter or A4: a clipboard, binder or handout, on any office printer.

Every PDF is vector, so it stays sharp at full size. Nothing runs to the edge of the page, so no bleed is needed.

Sources and notes

Seiichi Nakajima, Introduction to TPM: Total Productive Maintenance (Productivity Press, 1988).
Japan Institute of Plant Maintenance (ed.), Autonomous Maintenance for Operators (Productivity Press, 1997), and TPM for Every Operator (Productivity Press, 1996).