Syngenta Receives Fulltime I-care Support Before and During Production Shutdown

Managing High-Stakes Production Shutdowns

The challenges of Syngenta Saint-Pierre-la-Garenne were multiple. First, the maintenance had to be prepared, planned and executed during the production shutdown scheduled for last summer. Pierre-Alain Saurin, site manager: “Our production lines are 120% loaded, because the farmers we supply need to protect their crops all year round.

We also have to make production stops for machine maintenance, within the time limits we define.” Syngenta’s first challenge was therefore to carry out this production stop properly, with the help of I-care. The second challenge was related to the maintenance team on the site, which needed reinforcement.

For five months, from April to August 2020, I-care therefore made 8 people available to Syngenta: four technicians (two mechanics, one electromechanic, one instrumentalist) and three preparers-planners, all under the direction of an I-care Project Manager, Michael Raiglot.

The third challenge was to harmoniously integrate these 8 people from outside with the 165 people who work on the Syngenta site, all in a context linked to Covid-19 and the resulting drastic safety and hygiene constraints.

A Data-Driven Approach to Prevent Breakdowns

Syngenta had already worked with I-care, particularly at their Seneffe site. Pierre-Alain Saurin: “Syngenta had involved I-care on other reliability assignments. We were very happy with the support. We already had a relationship of trust with I-care, which managed to provide us with 8 people in a single operation and in a very short period of time”.

And if the company was able to respond so quickly to Syngenta’s request, it is thanks to its “I-care talent” approach (a company faces a shortage of staff and needs resources adapted to its needs very quickly. I-care is able to find and provide the right people at short notice).

As soon as the I-care team arrived on site, the technicians and the Project Manager got to work: “Basically, we arrived to support the team with our 4 technicians to reinforce the technical team and our 3 preparers-planners whose role was to take over the work orders that had to be carried out during the shutdown and to list all the sequences that had to be put in place”.

This arrival went extremely well, according to Pierre-Alain Saurin: “The arrival of external collaborators could have been misunderstood. The I-care employees were really subtle and benevolent in their approach. They managed to integrate very well, while scrupulously respecting the rules relating to Covid-19”.

A production stoppage at a site like Saint-Pierre-la-Garenne is far from easy: the site has three buildings, each dedicated to the manufacture of a product (the TVT building for fungicides, the PA for seed protection and the PC for packaging). Michael Raiglot of I-care: “Our preparers-planners took care of 65% of the operations dedicated to the maintenance shutdown and
were responsible for all the preventive maintenance operations.

In concrete terms, they use CMMS (Computerized Maintenance Management System) and an internally-made preparation and planning tool. As the mission progressed, Syngenta relied on our knowledge and technical expertise to advise them on how to improve their maintenance”.

For example, the I-care team intervened on lubrication problems (first by proposing a spot analysis, then a lubrication audit) and on equipment that vibrated too much, thanks to a camera that amplifies movement. They also intervened on the installation of Wi-care wireless sensors at different locations on the site and they have brought their own methodology in the RCA execution (Root Cause Analysis).

Enhanced Reliability and Optimized Maintenance

Although the client had originally used I-care to support the preparation and planning of its maintenance stop, the assignment was expanded to include advice on vibration and lubrication issues, as well as the modification of maintenance planning and the management of unforeseen events during the stop.

Pierre-Alain Saurin: “I can really speak of support beyond support, because I-care brought competence and methodology. They also gave us a better level of responsiveness and technical performance. They stayed for five months and I have not had the slightest criticism of them. It is really rare for an external team to arrive at a production site with the desire to improve processes. Personally, I have always been reluctant to rely on subcontracting. This experience with I-care has changed my point of view”.

And the results are there: the maintenance shutdowns went smoothly, even though there was a risk of losing several days of production if they failed.

Additionally, I-care sharing their knowledge and methods allowed Syngenta to improve their maintenance. Michael Raiglot: “It’s always satisfying to see that our three I-care values are met: performance (we make sure that our clients get the best possible service), durability (we go above and beyond our clients’ expectations) and the respect of others.” Wishing to go further in the prevention of its assets, Syngenta does not want to stop there and will definitely continue to call on I-care for other missions in Saint-Pierre-la-Garenne and at other sites of the group.