Increase in Operational Availability in Agricultural Fertilizer Production: A TPM Approach with Internet of Things (IoT)

In this research, we aim to enhance production availability in an agricultural company specializing in fertilizers, including products like boric acid, 85% phosphoric acid, potassium chloride, and ammonium nitrate. The focus is on optimizing the production line of the top-selling fertilizer, potassium chloride. The project addresses equipment availability issues within the production process, with the main goal of reducing downtime and improving efficiency. To achieve this, we employ Total Productive Maintenance (TPM) methodology combined with Internet of Things (IoT) technology. TPM aims to maximize operational efficiency through preventive maintenance, employee involvement, and continuous improvement, while IoT enables real-time monitoring of equipment conditions, gathering data on critical factors like vibration, lubrication, wear, and temperature. By integrating these approaches, we aim to significantly enhance equipment availability, reduce downtime, and optimize operational efficiency in fertilizer production. The study results, validated through simulation, show a 2.55% increase in overall process availability, a monthly productivity boost of about 20.48 tons, and a reduction in economic losses per year. Additionally, there was a 7.26% and 5.41% increase in the availability of critical equipment, demonstrating the effectiveness of these methods and their potential application to other production lines, leading to improved sustainability and profitability for the company.