This is the second of a three-part series on Computerized Maintenance Management Systems (CMMS).
Basically, CMMS helps to:
- Improve the reliability and availability of equipment
- Increase the life of all assets through efficient maintenance
- Set up efficient Preventive and/or Predictive Maintenance programs
- Reduce the percentage of corrective maintenance work orders
- Improve maintenance productivity and labor utilization
- Create better control and understanding of costs
- Create better control over short-term and long-term maintenance schedules
- Predict and manage the maintenance budget accurately
- Create and maintain a work history for the purpose of isolating problematic equipment and activities
- Increase the percentage of preventive maintenance work orders
- Improve the accuracy and availability of spare parts and materials
Sounds good, but, with so many options available, how do you find the right system for your organization? It is an important decision because you will enjoy the fruits of a good choice or pay the penalties of a bad choice for years to come. Well, let’s look at a logical sequence of six steps to make the selection.
1: CHARTER THE TEAM
Establish your project Lead. This person should be a go-getter, be respected across the organization, and have time to devote to the project. It could be an IT project manager or the maintenance manager. We also recommend a high-level sponsor to provide support and to help remove barriers. They don’t need to participate in the meetings, but need to provide senior management clout. All affected departments should have a representative on the team. Essential team members will be pulled from daily operations for a substantial commitment of time (not just an occasional meeting).
2 DEFINE USER REQUIREMENTS AND OBJECTIVES
One of the first tasks is to identify the functions or user requirements that will be involved. These will be rank ordered by their importance. Establish goals as to what the system needs to deliver or correct. These will serve as specs to examine when comparing programs. This should be prioritized and rank ordered based on wants and needs. Create a list of problems with your current system (focus on your maintenance department or equipment division); create a list of objectives (what you want to accomplish); and create a list of user requirements or functions you need the program to provide.
The following is a comprehensive list of requirements for a solid CMMS that you can use to create a list tailored to your company’s needs:
- Interface with the enterprise system without double-entry
- Export and import various file formats, such as Excel, PDF
- Modify different screens for various users
- Make certain fields visible or hidden
- Require select fields to be mandatory
- Retain history of changes made by user
- Not slow down as the amount of data or usage increases
- Insert company logo on work orders and reports
- Painlessly backup system on scheduled basis
- Generate stock and ad hoc/customizable reports with data from any module
- Display dashboard to view and track Key Performance Indicators
- Provide training and implementation assistance
- Use a reference manual in addition to a help option
- Provide a graphic user interface with drop downs, menu driven
- Import or migrate all history from current CMMS or enterprise system to new CMMS
- Search fields effortlessly
- Provide a working demonstration model of the program
- Run on remote devices such as smartphones, pads, etc.
- Provide 24/7 technical support through phone, email, and instant messaging
- Have tech support responding to emails or voice mails within 24 hours
- Provide online training
- Establish work order priorities based on equipment importance classification
- Track equipment uptime and/or downtime
- Track emergency breakdowns
- Calculate Mean Time Between Failures (MTBF) from operational hours and number of failures
- Calculate Mean Time to Repair (MTTR) using date and time stamps of repair stages (request, response, etc.)
- Track failure and cause codes
- Create work orders for outsourced or vendor work
- Add custom fields
- Change fields and add to drop down lists
- Have mechanics/technicians view work orders assigned to them only
- Track travel time (windshield time) on work orders
- Handle multiple personnel on one work order
- Create multiple work orders from a master work order
- Track estimated costs and hours compared with actual costs and hours
- Schedule work orders based on priority system
- Track work orders by type (CM, PM, EM)
- Track work orders by cause and failure codes
- Track and record labor cost, parts and material costs to a work order
- Attach photo/drawings/word documents to a work order and print documents with work order
- Provide ability to email work orders
- Provide ability to track backlog (work identified but not yet completed)
- Include task library of common maintenance work instructions or job plans
- Easily generate a work notification or work request
- Customize work requests to contain very basic information
- Include a level of approval for the work request before transforming to work order
- Easily cancel work requests if equipment manager or planner feels work is unnecessary
- Receive email notification when work request is submitted
- Notify or inform requester when work request is approved or disapproved
- Examine preventive maintenance schedule
- Have an auto schedule function (days, cycles, holidays, shutdowns)
- Utilize numerous PM trigger points (hour meter, tonnage, fuel burn, calendar)
- Establish PMs from fixed-interval or float based upon last completion date
- Forecast labor, parts and tool requirements
- Track tires as inventory
- Identify costs and hours for corrective maintenance versus preventive maintenance versus predictive maintenance
- Include bar-coding input for inventory control
- Construct PM tasks, procedures and checklists
- Easily print and email PM schedule
- Track and schedule predictive maintenance schedule
- Track and trend oil analysis
- Track and trend vibration analysis
- Import miles/hours/tonnage from various other information systems
- Track PM schedule compliance KPI
- Track corrective maintenance from preventive or predictive maintenance inspection
- Track company tools (common tools)
- Track and notify warranty work
- Track inventory
- Identify critical or insurance spares
- Track inventory accuracy and turn rates
- Generate daily cycle count for inventory control based on ABC sorting analysis
- Track RCFA and Corrective Action Plan
- Provide flexible calendar options for planners, schedulers, and mechanics/technicians
- Email calendar schedules
- Provide means for mechanics/technicians to view their calendar
- Move work orders around on a calendar and automatically change date on work order
3: DEVELOP RFP
The next step in the process is to develop a Request for Proposal (RFP). This proposal, including all user requirements, is sent to vendors requesting information on what they can do for you, including pricing and servicing descriptions. The RFP should provide enough detail so the vendor knows what is needed.
4: IDENTIFY THE VENDORS
You will have to do research to find a source of potential vendors. Consider consulting with trade publications, which usually have a list of top CMMS vendors; ask others in the industry what product they use; approach any industry trade groups for suggestions; look at vendors with tenure; and look at companies similar to yours (size and industry)—what are they using? Do not include more than 12 potential vendors because evaluating excessive choices becomes too complicated.
5: EVALUATE VENDOR PROPOSALS
Based on the user requirements, create a short list for a comparison of the products. After receiving the proposals from vendors, match the proposals to the specifications and rank the results. Create an Excel spreadsheet that evaluates three vendor products against original specifications. Select two or three vendors with the closest matches to the specs. Each of the final vendors will be asked to make a half-day demonstration of the product. If a demonstration is not possible, the vendor will be asked to provide a fully functional copy for evaluation. The project team should rate the demonstrations.
6: EVALUATE PRODUCT PACKAGES
Develop an agenda for the demonstrations. Communicate this agenda to the vendors and insist the companies use it. If you don’t, the salesman may demonstrate only those functions he knows his system does a good job on. You want to see all the functions demonstrated—not just the strengths of the program. Have a list of questions about the functions to be demonstrated. Set up a selection matrix for each member of project team to use in evaluating the vendors’ demonstrations. References provided by each vendor should be formally checked, and a preliminary selection made. An on-site visit to a reference customer should be conducted. If the results of the on-site visit are acceptable, the team can provide the thumbs up for approval. The purchase will be negotiated and completed.
Now the easy part is done—implementation is next. ■
The conclusion to this article will be in the next issue.
About The Author:
Preston Ingalls is president and CEO of TBR Strategies, LLC, a Raleigh, North Carolina-based maintenance and reliability firm specializing in the construction and oil and gas industries. Preston can be reached at pingalls@tbr-strategies.com, or visit www.tbr-strategies.com.
_________________________________________________________________________
Modern Contractor Solutions, February 2014
Did you enjoy this article?
Subscribe to the FREE Digital Edition of Modern Contractor Solutions magazine.
