Rockland Physical Asset Management

11/21/2025

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I want to thank the hard-working folks over at Reliable ♾️ for the incredible work they do and the consistently high-quality content they share on , , and . I'm both excited and grateful for the opportunity to contribute to this growing body of knowledge t...

11/21/2025

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𝐌𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭 𝐚𝐭 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐲 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐭𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮....

11/02/2025

How Natural Psychological Responses Impair Decision-Making and Impede Improvement Introduction Why do so many asset management and reliability initiatives stall — even when the math seems to make sense? The answer lies not in spreadsheets, but in psychology. Organizations often justify these inves...

08/18/2025

Executive Summary “Effective asset management does not happen by chance—it happens by design.” This article presents a structured approach to developing effective maintenance programs that align technical ex*****on with business objectives.

07/09/2025

I once knew a man who could pound nails with his hand,
Then they invented the hammer.
The man grew sour when he lost all his power,
And the people helped nail the tower.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝗮𝗿𝗲𝘁𝗼 𝗣𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗮𝘁 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸: 𝗨𝗻𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗢𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝟴𝟬%

It’s often said that 20% of the people do 80% of the work. Why?
Not because the rest lack value, but because the effort and skill required haven’t been made accessible to everyone.

If we want broader participation, we need to lower the threshold to contribute—through better tools, clearer processes, and smarter systems.

𝗗𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗺𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝘂𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗼𝗲𝘀.
𝗕𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝘀𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗮 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗲𝗿.

Standards Stabilize Organizations (SSO)

06/30/2025

“Your system is perfectly designed to give you the results that you get.” - W. Edwards Deming

It’s important to remember: the systems and standards we operate within are often the result of someone’s best worst idea at the time of their creation.

This includes our maintenance strategies and preventive maintenance (PM) routines.

Standards are meant to be living—constantly evolving to ensure they’re delivering the outcomes we need.

Intended or not, your company’s current results are a direct reflection of those systems.

If you want better outcomes:
· Redesign the standards
· Monitor their impact
· Keep iterating

Otherwise, remember…

“The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.” - attributed to Albert Einstein.

06/21/2025

𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿𝗱𝘀 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘇𝗲 𝗢𝗿𝗴𝗮𝗻𝗶𝘇𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀

As the wise Ron Moore once said:

“If the change process takes longer than the organizational or executive attention span, it is doomed to failure.”

It’s not just about outlasting attention spans—we also have to 𝘀𝘂𝗿𝘃𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿.

With every new executive comes a fresh wave of ideas, priorities, and marching orders. For reliable employees, this can create a constant state of flux. In such an environment, change efforts can feel like the “flavour of the day”—just another initiative to wait out. That mindset builds the very culture that “eats strategy for breakfast.”

Change can be 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹, 𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗴𝗶𝘇𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗲𝗽𝗶𝗰—but only if it’s anchored to something 𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗳𝗮𝘀𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘂𝗻𝘄𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴.

During my time in the military, I was introduced to a simple but powerful tool: 𝗿𝘂𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 (𝗥𝗢𝗘).

Just a pocket-sized card, written instructions—clear, direct, shared by all.

These weren't just words on paper. They were our 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿𝗱.
Every single one of us, new or seasoned, was held to them.
No matter who was in charge, our ROE didn't change.
In chaos, they provided clarity. When S&%T hit the fan—we knew exactly what was expected.

As attention spans dwindle and turnover tests our course, we need to 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘇𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽.

I’ve shared this before, but it bears repeating:

“If you do not set it up for effective management, do not be surprised when it becomes unmanageable.”

𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿𝗱𝘀, when implemented correctly, are 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻.
They outlast the moment.
They guide leaders—no matter how new.
They are our organizational 𝗿𝘂𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁.

To be effective, they must be written.
In times of flux, you don’t rise to the level of your ambitions—you fall to the strength of your systems.

So remember, 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿𝗱𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘇𝗲 𝗼𝗿𝗴𝗮𝗻𝗶𝘇𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀.

06/17/2025

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/mike-arsenault-rse-cet-eit_%F0%9D%97%A2%F0%9D%97%BB-%F0%9D%97%A7%F0%9D%97%B6%F0%9D%97%BA%F0%9D%97%B2-%F0%9D%97%A2%F0%9D%97%BB-%F0%9D%97%A3%F0%9D%97%B9%F0%9D%97%AE%F0%9D%97%BB-%F0%9D%97%A2%F0%9D%97%BB-%F0%9D%97%95%F0%9D%98%82%F0%9D%97%B1-activity-7340541494002417664-6xv-?utm_source=social_share_send&utm_medium=member_desktop_web&rcm=ACoAABb4NQABdsFBprVVVrUCYWhLmUMqtVvIf0k

𝗢𝗻 𝗧𝗶𝗺𝗲, 𝗢𝗻 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗻, 𝗢𝗻 𝗕𝘂𝗱𝗴𝗲𝘁—𝗕𝘂𝘁 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁’𝘀 𝗠𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴? Every project manager knows the mantra: deliver the asset on time, within scope, and within budget. Success is measured by meeting these target...

06/08/2025

Effective maintenance management does not happen by chance - it happens by design.

Effective maintenance management does not happen by chance—it happens by design.

06/08/2025

Effective inventory management does not happen by chance - it happens by design.

“Effective asset management does not happen by chance—it happens by design.” In previous articles—A Guide to Creating Physical Asset Hierarchy: A Systems Approach and A Guide to Fully Documented Equipment: Supporting Efficient Lifecycle Management from the Onset—we examined how to systemat...

06/01/2025

𝗘𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 __________ 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗱𝗼𝗲𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗻 𝗯𝘆 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲—𝗶𝘁 𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗻𝘀 𝗯𝘆 𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻.

If you have not set up your assets to be properly managed, do not be surprised when they become unmanageable…

This extends beyond physical assets. It applies to entire departments and organizations.

Some quick indicators of whether things are manageable?

· management turnover,
· burnout,
· work-life balance,
· stress among supervisory levels.

Pulling insights from reliability, we might search for a root cause and conclude that these issues stem from:

· poor work culture,
· unrealistic expectations,
· staff shortages.

But in reality, these are 𝘀𝘆𝗺𝗽𝘁𝗼𝗺𝘀 of larger issues.

Often, organizations hire managers but provide them nothing to manage—on their first day, they are thrown immediately into the firefighting. Without proper standards, processes, and roles in place (the plan) everything takes longer. Borrowing from reliability principles: 𝘂𝗻𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗱 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝗰𝗼𝘀𝘁𝘀 𝘂𝗽 𝘁𝗼 𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲.

From the outside looking in, things may appear adequate. But at the front lines, inflated resource needs and unrealistic workloads create 𝗰𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝘁𝗼𝘅𝗶𝗰𝗶𝘁𝘆. Good people will try to stabilize the chaos, but false starts become the norm. Employees lose faith and interest, some become bitter, further compounding the issue.

Management in this environment holds up the roof while trying to build the foundation and walls—when they were originally hired to guide and optimize the building itself.

Firefighting is addictive—it creates a constant sense of being needed. Walking away isn’t easy. In the end, it’s like leaving a bad partner. And just like in romantic comedies, many will soften the exit by taking the blame themselves:

“It’s not you, It’s me.”

𝗜𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝘀𝗲𝘁 𝘂𝗽 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 __________ 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗹𝘆 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗱, 𝗱𝗼 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗯𝗲 𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗽𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗶𝘁 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝘂𝗻𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲.

06/01/2025

Effective asset management does not happen by chance—it happens by design.

“Effective asset management does not happen by chance—it happens by design.” In my previous article, “A Guide to Creating Physical Asset Hierarchy – A Systems Approach,” we explored how to identify assets in a logical, organized manner.