Gary Wood with Fluke Reliability

Scott Mackenzie interviews Gary Wood, a passionate industry professional and Customer Success Manager at Fluke Reliability, at the Accelerate 2025 event in Austin, Texas. Gary shares his journey from a military background to a career in manufacturing, emphasizing the importance of personal connections and team buy-in in maintenance and reliability. He discusses the challenges of implementing and sustaining condition-based monitoring (CBM) systems, the role of technology in improving asset management, and the necessity of demonstrating return on investment (ROI) to executive leadership. Gary also highlights the evolving capabilities of CBM tools like Azima, Connect Assets in enhancing predictive maintenance and reducing downtime.

Action Items

• [ ] Reach out to Gary Wood on LinkedIn to connect and learn more about Fluke's solutions.
• [ ] Explore the use of condition-based monitoring and Azima technology to improve asset management and maintenance practices.
• [ ] Prepare financial data and "receipts" to demonstrate the return on investment of a reliable maintenance program when presenting to executives.

Outline

Introduction and Technical Issues

• Scott MacKenzie introduces the Industrial Talk podcast, emphasizing its focus on industry professionals and innovations.
• Scott mentions the current event, Accelerate 2025, and the technical issues faced during the broadcast.
• Scott humorously suggests using older versions of technology to resolve issues.
• Scott introduces Gary Wood, highlighting his passion and experience in the industry.

Gary Wood's Background

• Gary Wood shares his background, mentioning his military service and his father's influence in the manufacturing industry.
• Gary describes his career progression from a maintenance technician to a plant manager.
• He emphasizes the importance of learning and the relationships built throughout his career.
• Scott and Gary discuss the long-standing issues of maintenance, reliability, and asset management in the industry.

Challenges in Maintenance and Reliability

• Gary talks about the current state of the industry, noting that people are less focused on internal improvements.
• He stresses the importance of personal connections and care within maintenance teams.
• Gary shares his experience with a technician who was initially resistant to change but later became a dedicated team member.
• Scott and Gary discuss the necessity of creating a culture of pride and focus in maintenance and reliability.

Gary's Role at Fluke

• Gary explains his role as a Customer Success Manager at Fluke, focusing on implementing and nurturing CMS systems.
• He describes the importance of taking clients through the future and adapting CMS systems to their evolving needs.
• Gary discusses the challenges of preventing pencil whipping and the importance of internal strength and KPIs.
• He emphasizes the human factor in maintenance and the need for continuous improvement.

Creating a Reliability Culture

• Scott asks about creating a reliability culture within an organization.
• Gary shares an example of a successful transformation in a Michigan-based company.
• He explains the importance of explaining the benefits of new technologies and gaining team buy-in.
• Gary highlights the need for strong leadership and continuous improvement to sustain a reliability culture.

Overcoming Executive Challenges

• Scott discusses the challenge of maintaining a reliability culture when new executives want to cut costs.
• Gary suggests showing proof of return on investment (ROI) and profit margins to justify the importance of reliability.
• He emphasizes the need to be prepared with data and reports to demonstrate the value of reliability programs.
• Gary shares his experience with a press in Michigan, where condition-based monitoring helped reduce downtime and costs.

Future of Maintenance and Reliability

• Scott asks about future developments at Fluke.
• Gary expresses his interest in the Azima Connect Assets and its capabilities in data gathering and condition-based monitoring.
• He discusses the importance of using condition-based monitoring to determine preventive maintenance (PM) intervals.
• Gary highlights the benefits of reducing corrective downtime and unrecorded downtime through better monitoring.

Final Thoughts and Contact Information

• Scott and Gary discuss the importance of continuous improvement and the role of technology in maintenance.
• Gary shares an example of an operator who failed to report a machine issue, leading to significant downtime.
• Scott asks how listeners can contact Gary, and Gary provides his LinkedIn profile and contact information.
• Scott wraps up the conversation, encouraging listeners to reach out to Gary and emphasizing the importance of success in maintenance and reliability.