There is a small plaque inside our home that reads “Live Simply.” As we’re strived to adapt our work and our lives to the profound changes of this extraordinary year, that one phrase keeps echoing in my head. In a complicated, conflicted world, the notion that simplifying things will make it all better might seem either naïve or, if you’ll pardon a turn of phrase, too simple.
But because complexity isn’t going away any time soon, how do we deal with change in a way that helps us not just confront it, but conquer it? I think it starts with fundamentals.
Look at the technology advances we embrace each day. There are new ways to measure and manage systems, new sensors to deploy in new ways, new software to turn that sensor data into action. Yet at their core, these “new” systems are simply upgrades to past technologies and techniques that have been part of our operations for decades.
Temperature is a good example. We’ve learned over time that excessive heat is the enemy of hydraulic systems. What is excessive? Over time, we measured and examined our systems and narrowed down the definitions. We’ve used increasingly sophisticated systems to hone in on current-state temperature with accuracy, and we’ve been able to trend that data to better predict when systems needed lubrication, repair or overhaul.
The goal of all of this is not to add more technology, but to determine the temperature. Viewed in this light, the technology itself isn’t the end, but the means to answer the fundamental question.
In the classic Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy series, a supercomputer was developed to determine the answer to “the ultimate question of life, the universe and everything.” After 7 million years of calculations, the computer determined answer was “42.” When complaints were raised as to the meaning of the answer, the supercomputer noted that the answer was right, but the problem was that no one knew what the question actually was. Another computer had to be developed to figure out the actual question. I won’t spoil the outcome of that effort; you’ll have to read all five parts of the series.
Too often we expect the technology itself to be the solution. If we stop to ask ourselves what question we are trying to answer, our tools become more valuable. Our technology becomes a way to find greater simplicity.
I mention that as we start a two-part series on buffer seals this month. It’s hardly a sexy technology and, as we’ve discovered, a little challenging to illustrate. As you’ll learn during this series, what buffer seals do is fundamental to the proper performance of hydraulic cylinders.
It’s as simple as that.
