What is a computerized maintenance management system (CMMS)?

Pen and Paper is for Cavemen, the CMMS System is for Modern Man

What is a computerized maintenance management system (CMMS)? Historically, commercial utilities and project developers spent long hours correlating asset data, manually transcribing paper forms into digital platforms, undertaking painstaking reviews of maintenance records, and preparing elaborate maintenance schedules to communicate across field crews and contractors.  Reliance on pen and paper or software like Excel and WhatsApp meant that maintenance was often time-consuming, inefficient and costly.

What is a CMMS System? 

Simply put, a CMMS system is essential to maintenance operations, keeping information about the availability and utilization of equipment in one place. For example, a CMMS can monitor the number of available hospital beds.  In 1965, developers launched the first CMMS system, although it wasn’t readily available or affordable until the 1990s. The 2000s saw rapid adoption of intranets and web-based connectivity. This allowed CMMS to be adapted for mobile devices and tablets for use on remote field operations. CMMS is continually developed to support cloud functionality and greater data security for users. What is CMMS Software? “One can only shudder in despair at the thought of using manual maintenance processes…in this age and time where information represents the pinnacle of our very existence. Even using Excel spreadsheets seems antiquated.” – Senseware.

What is a CMMS Program? The Database is the Heartbeat of Maintenance Operations

A CMMS acts as a communication tool to facilitate the processes of maintenance from a centralized platform. The software connects maintenance teams, electric utility asset management, sites, machinery, vehicles and plant infrastructure from a single location.

What is CMMS Software?

A database is at the core of any CMMS. This intelligent algorithm recognizes, collates and organizes critical maintenance data, presenting to field teams and managers an assets condition, lifecycle and maintenance tasks. It also lists the equipment, materials and resources required to undertake such maintenance tasks. A CMMS is so much more than a field data capture tool.

What is a CMMS Administrator?

A CMMS administrator oversees the day-to-day functioning of the CMMS, taking care of the daily operations of software databases and vendor onboarding. Administrators are also essential to managing the supply chain and inventory control. 

What is CMMS in Manufacturing?

 A CMMS system is essential to manufacturing workflow: It reduces downtime and troubleshoots from the root by aggregating data on assets and maintenance. For example, a CMMS allows a user to pull up information on a failure point, including service hours. The CMMS is also essential for creating reports and KPIs.
Manage Business Operations More Effectively with the Help of a CMMS

CMMS systems make key information easy to access.

Learn More

How Does a CMMS System Work?

CMMS systems are excellent for monitoring the status of a lot of information at once, such as labor, which includes information on what employees are available, crew assemblage, and determining shifts. With a CMMS, you can also register assets and related information, including location, costs, and manufacturer and model. You’re also easily able to manage work orders, monitoring numbers, types, causes and fixes, and what personnel have been assigned to the task. CMMSes are also helpful for managing inventory, preventative maintenance, and generating reports.

The Benefits of a CMMS

CMMS System “Efficient systems offer averages of 60% reduction in paperwork and administration, 53% improvement in maintenance response times, and 200% increase in logged maintenance requests and actions.  “Once you realise the true cost of not having a CMMS or simply having a poorly performing system in place, investing in a market-leading maintenance management system becomes an easy decision – and you will quickly see a real return on your investment”. SSG Insight computerized maintenance management system (CMMS)Source Many companies rely on Excel spreadsheets and Whatsapp for maintenance tracking and communication. However, a CMMS can provide indisputable benefits to your business and workforce.

Predict Problems Before They Arise

Dynamic data trends allow for maintenance operators and inspectors to review an asset’s life cycle, anticipate an inspection or replacement and generate a preventative maintenance schedule ahead of time.  These capabilities of vegetation management software utilities save costs in unnecessary reconnaissance trips and improves field crew productivity by optimizing time spent in the field. For example, a vegetation inspector fulfilling a powerline safety inspection could check an assets’ condition and carry out only necessary inspections on “at-risk” utility poles.  This data can avoid a potential blackout, ensure optimal substation health and safety protocol and increase asset uptime for reliable electricity generation.

Automate Maintenance Tasks

Paper-based systems require consistent collection, management and organization of records from multiple locations, staff members and communication devices. Such devices include fax, text and face-to-face conversations in the field.
CMMS systems help businesses run far more smoothly. Learn how with these blogs:
A CMMS allows supervisors to automatically assign work orders and send trained technicians tasks to field crews, avoiding the risks of potentially lost information and forgotten requests. For example, a substation owner could create a ticket to initiate a breaker repair immediately upon being alerted on his CMMS.  The system will store that ticket and send a notification once submitted.

Take the Headache Out of Audits

Do you know how many hours of equipment downtime you have had this year? Could you calculate the total labor hours and costs associated with each asset? With a CMMS, field data, images and messages can be collated on-site for archival or review from any device at any time.  This critical data is stored in generated reports and dashboards, where the information can be pulled directly from the platform in a downloadable format, ready to present during an audit.  These custom-built reports can also assist in making repair/replace decisions even while you are in the field in a remote location. These custom-built reports can also assist in making repair/replace decisions even while you are in the field in a remote location.
CMMS System
Source
Respond to Actionable Tasks in Real Time Excel spreadsheets don’t allow for field crews or technicians to review an asset status on the go. Critical information and maintenance tasks are not communicated to the workforce promptly.  This lag in communication can lead to technicians being unaware that an asset has been down for some time, resulting in potentially hundreds of dollars of lost revenue. A CMMS allows secure access to information required to properly service equipment in real-time.  Technicians can pull up tasks, images and updates on any device or tablet from even the most remote locations.

What to Consider When Investing in a CMMS System

Selecting and implementing a CMMS as an integral centralized maintenance tool requires functional evaluation. It could mean the difference between optimizing your maintenance strategy or wasting a great deal of time and money.   When looking for a Computerized Maintenance Management Software Company, it is imperative to consider; identifying and analysing your existing operations plan, updating standard operating procedures, consulting your health and safety department to see how a CMMS can support your safety culture.  It is also important to identify the top 5 metrics by which the operations team will evaluate the efficiency of a CMMS, how vendors will use your CMMS, the cost involved to include them and the role of your mobile field technicians. After analysing whether a CMMS is a great fit for your business, make sure you get the best deal by:
  1. Booking a demo – A no-obligation demonstration of a CMMS platform could demonstrate real-life situations.
  2. Downloading the mobile app – Allow your technicians to test the water and how simple it is to build and check-off customized forms and work orders.
  3. Comparing costs – Find out what maintenance is costing you and compare the market for the most suitable CMMS platform for your needs. 60Hertz’s flexible pricing plan allows you to pick a bespoke service that fits your budget and scale.
A CMMS vastly improves business operations by making many moving parts easy to monitor. Book a consultation today to learn more.

Join the 200+ Customers who Saved Approximately $60,000 Using CMMS Software

Maintenance technology is ever-evolving – don’t get left behind. To find out more information about whether the 60Hertz CMMS platform is the best money-saving investment for your business, download our free eBook.

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Search