What would you do if you knew your world was about to end? By now you've most likely heard that Harold Camping is once again predicting the world is about to end and the rapture is upon us. Just like he did in 1994. What's the old saying about what to do if at first you don't succeed?

On Monday, Ali S. Khan's CDC Public Health Matters blog warned us to be prepared for the impending zombie apocalypse. "When it happens," wrote Kahn, "you'll be happy you read this."

The 1,320-MW Rovinari Power Plant in Romania is the second-largest power-generating facility in the country. Just this week, it announced it will implement Emerson Process Management's CSI 6500 Machinery Health Monitor for its critical machinery.

FIRST (for inspiration and recognition of science and technology, www.usfirst.org) has come a long, long way since its inception way back in 1992, when it hosted its inaugural FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) with 28 teams in a high school gymnasium in New Hampshire. Twenty years later, 2075 teams from 11 countries participated in the FRC.

Most assets depreciate over time. Sometimes, they fail. Often, at an inopportune time.

Then there is the asset whose value increases. Why, just this past weekend, a Wayne Gretzky rookie card, in mint condition, became the most valuable modern trading card in existence, when it sold at auction for more than $94,000. Certainly it is a testament to the impact a bit of preventive care can have.

Yesterday, I heard Hugh Blackwood, retired U.S. Navy admiral and a maintenance and reliability advisor for Alcoa, speak at the SMRP Chicago Chapter meeting during the MARTS Conference in Rosemont, Illinois.

He was there to talk about the North American Maintenance Excellence Award (www.nameaward.com), an honor that hasn't been bestowed upon a plant since 2007, when both the Alcoa Mount Holly Plant in Goose Creek, South Carolina, and the Baldor Marion Dodge Plant in Marion, North Carolina, were recognized.

I've been waiting for this for a couple of years now. It's finally happened. Siemens Industry (www.usa.siemens.com/industry) has launched Plantville (www.plantville.com), a new online gaming platform that simulates the experience of being a plant manager.

Things are looking up. Aren't they? Most senior-level executives agree the economy is improving. But as manufacturers rebound, their plants continue on journeys toward more-effective predictive maintenance programs. And thus, managers and directors struggle with the decision of whether to hire more maintenance workers or invest in automation and technology that improves reliability and often reduces the costs or recruiting and onboarding new employees.

The Grainger Customer Show is a beacon of promising times ahead, as the United States and the world emerge from global recession and hope oil prices stop climbing, or at least that military clashes in Libya come to an end so we can stop hearing about why $150/barrel would be bad and $200/barrel would be catastrophic.

It's cold in Illinois. Fortunately, I'm in Orlando, Florida, at the ARC Forum.

Not only is the weather warm, but the people here are smart, and the sessions are incredibly valuable.

For example, this afternoon I sat in a session on world-class reliability. Each session is a combination of speakers looking at the same topic from different angles. What an unexpected delight to hear Jeff Dudley, maintenance technology center director at Dow Chemical, talk about leadership and its role in creating a culture of reliability.