4. Global approaches

The need to improve productivity has led to the development of global approaches that apply to the company's various "processes". Maintenance, which generates availability by calling on a variety of tools and skills, is one of the processes to which these approaches can be applied. See for a description of several of these approaches (Six Sigma, re-engineering, Supply Chain Management, etc.). They are based on common general ideas, including the following two in particular:

• the company's activities must be driven by customer needs and by the strategic objectives set by management. Those that add value must be identified and improved,...