Assessment of information utilisation : a maintenance and operational view, SASOL Infragas as case study

Abstract

Sasol Infragas uses various maintenance information systems that support operational and maintenance personnel in their everyday environment. These systems have been in operation for more than two years. Currently, there are four maintenance information systems in use at Infragas, these are; alarm management, deviation management, overall efficiency management, and rotating equipment management. The information from these systems is stored on intranet portals which are accessible to all Infragas employees. This paper aimed to analyse the extent to which these portals are being utilised by Infragas employees, if at all. This paper also investigated the employees’ mind-set towards the maintenance information systems. This will assist in understanding which systems enhancements can be made to further improve employee engagement. These objectives were achieved by means of two methods. The first method was an actual usage measurement. This identified which employees were using the portals, as well as the usage frequency. This investigation method gave a real indication of the system usage and highlighted any shortfalls in employees’ interaction with the portals. The second method was a questionnaire, given to Infragas employees. The first section analysed whether the Infragas maintenance information systems are an accepted technology by investigating whether systems are being used by portal users. This was done by means of a technology acceptance model. The questionnaire also aimed to gather information on portal quality characteristics. This would indicate which quality characteristics are important to Infragas employees. Maintenance information system quality needs will differ from employee to employee. This information could improve the quality of interaction between the employees and the portals. The questionnaire also aimed to examine employees’ attitudes towards maintenance information systems. This section investigated whether employees felt that maintenance information systems improved plant performance and were beneficial to the Infragas environment. These investigations revealed valuable information for the improvement of these systems. The connection between the results of the two methods also indicated if both methods were valid. The information gathered from this study was communicated back to the Sasol Infragas management team. Recommendations for possible system improvements, which would increase employee system interaction, were also made.