Al Hartness

Senior Reliability and Asset Management Consultant

Background

Al Hartness is a maintenance, reliability, and engineering professional with more than 39 years of experience in the pulp and paper industry, boiler maintenance, and industrial manufacturing operations. Beginning his career in Instrumentation and Controls, Al developed expert-level knowledge of control systems, process instrumentation, troubleshooting, and process optimization, creating a strong technical foundation that has supported his success throughout his career.

Over the course of his career, Al has progressed through technical, supervisory, and management roles, most recently serving as a Maintenance and Engineering Manager. His experience includes reliability engineering, asset management, maintenance leadership, capital and maintenance budgeting, maintenance planning and scheduling, root cause failure analysis, predictive maintenance, and continuous improvement initiatives. He has successfully developed and led programs that improve equipment reliability, increase asset performance, reduce maintenance costs, and support long-term operational excellence.

Al combines extensive hands-on experience with strong analytical and business skills to help organizations maximize the value of their physical assets while creating sustainable maintenance and reliability strategies that deliver measurable results.

Specialization

At Pillar Engineering, Al specializes in, but is not limited to, the following pillars:

Reliability

  • Root Cause Failure Analysis (RCFA)

  • Reliability Centered Maintenance (RCM)

  • Failure Modes and Effects Analysis (FMEA)

  • Equipment Reliability Improvement

  • Asset Criticality Assessments

  • Preventive and Predictive Maintenance Program Development

  • Reliability KPI Development and Performance Analysis

Asset Management

  • Asset Management Strategy Development

  • Maintenance Program Assessments

  • Maintenance Planning and Scheduling Optimization

  • CMMS and SAP Process Improvement

  • Spare Parts and Storeroom Optimization

  • Asset Lifecycle Management

  • Maintenance Cost Reduction Strategies

Maintenance & Engineering Leadership

  • Maintenance and Engineering Organization Development

  • Capital and Maintenance Budget Development and Management

  • Maintenance Best Practices Implementation

  • Workforce Development and Mentoring

  • Operational Excellence Initiatives

  • Continuous Improvement Programs

  • Cross-Functional Team Leadership

Digital Solutions & Analytics

  • Advanced Microsoft Excel Development

  • Custom Excel-Based Reliability and Maintenance Tools

  • Asset Performance Analytics

  • Maintenance Dashboard Development

  • Data Analysis and Reporting

  • SAP Reporting and Data Management

  • Decision Support and Business Intelligence Tools

Training & Development

  • SAP User Training

  • Customized Microsoft Excel Training from beginning to advanced and can focus on macro, pivot table or multi sheet queries.

  • Maintenance Planning and Scheduling Training

  • Reliability Best Practices Training

  • Maintenance Work Management Processes

  • Maintenance KPI Development and Utilization

Technical Expertise

Al is recognized for his expert-level proficiency in both SAP and Microsoft Excel. He has developed numerous customized tools, dashboards, and reporting systems that provide organizations with actionable insights to improve maintenance performance, reliability, and asset management decision-making. His ability to bridge technical knowledge, operational experience, and business objectives allows him to deliver practical solutions that create lasting value for clients.

Professional Summary

With nearly four decades of industrial experience, Al Hartness brings a unique combination of maintenance leadership, reliability expertise, instrumentation and controls knowledge, and practical operational experience. His background in pulp and paper manufacturing, boiler maintenance, asset management, and maintenance leadership enables him to quickly identify opportunities for improvement and deliver sustainable results. Al is passionate about helping organizations strengthen reliability, optimize maintenance programs, develop maintenance teams, and maximize the value of their physical assets through proven, results-driven solutions.

Education

Al holds an Associate of Applied Science Degree in Instrumentation Technology from Midstate Technical College.