Reliability‑Centric Sales: Driving Profitability and Reducing Risk

Veteran reliability professionals recognize the power of Reliability‑Centered Maintenance (RCM) and its extensions—equipment, process, and plant design (RCD) and operation (RCO). Yet the sales arena often overlooks this critical lens. I argue that embedding reliability into the sales cycle is not just beneficial—it is essential.

To illustrate, let’s walk through a typical sales‑to‑delivery loop. The sales team first consults the customer to understand product type, quantity, quality expectations, and delivery timelines. Negotiations then yield a price, terms, and a signed contract. Once the purchase order arrives, production schedules the run, manufactures the unit in line with safety and environmental policies, and readies it for shipment.

The customer’s demand is clear: product, price, quality, and transport. The sales department expects production to meet those terms, while production relies on reliable equipment, processes, plant design, and maintenance. When reliability is siloed, a costly disconnect emerges.

Contracts routinely contain negative covenants—financial penalties for missed delivery, quality shortfalls, or non‑conformance. An on‑time failure can wipe out margins; a quality breach can trigger rework, returns, or resale at a lower price, each adding hidden costs. Even absent explicit penalties, reputational damage can erode future business.

In practice, failure risk across a plant is dynamic: infant‑mortality failures dominate early post‑shutdown, then the rate stabilises and gradually climbs with time or production volume. Understanding this risk curve allows companies to anticipate and mitigate losses.

Leveraging reliability data in the sales process yields two powerful outcomes:

• Risk‑Adjusted Profitability: Sales deals that appear lucrative on paper may fall short once reliability risks and penalty exposure are factored in—akin to ignoring the time value of money in an investment appraisal.
• Targeted Reliability Investments: By mapping risk profiles, organisations can quantify the contribution margin per unit that reliability improvements unlock, turning vague benefits into concrete dollars that justify capital allocation.

The condition of the plant directly impacts transaction profitability, especially under strict delivery or quality clauses.

Using actuarial‑style tables to model risk over time, much like life insurers do with the “bathtub curve,” enables a data‑driven pricing of reliability. This perspective aligns plant reliability with revenue generation, ensuring that reliability projects receive the same scrutiny as any sales investment.

Ultimately, embedding reliability insights into sales and marketing strategies garners buy‑in from revenue‑directing teams. When the voice of the customer, sales, and marketing understand how reliability protects margins, securing cost‑justified improvement projects becomes a natural, value‑driven decision.

Drew Troyer, CRE and CMRP, co‑founder and senior vice president of global services operations at Noria Corporation, has devoted his career to enhancing machinery reliability. Formerly an instructor at Oklahoma State University, he has led product management at Entek/Rockwell Automation and directed technical applications at Diagnetics Inc. His client portfolio includes International Paper, Cargill, Goodyear, Texas Utilities, Reliant Energy, and Southern Companies.