What comes into your mind when you hear the term Computerized Maintenance Management System? Also identified by its acronyms, most people refer to it as CMMS. In layman’s language, it is software that centralizes information and processes to improve efficiency.
This system can be described as a software system centralizing maintenance information, facilitating processes, and automating various tasks to enhance efficiency. Computerized Maintenance Management System helps minimize equipment downtime, improve work order processes, such as scheduling, as well as plan, track and analyze maintenance activities. Here is what you should understand about the following operations:
Computerized
With the intense technological advancements, most things are digitalized; people no longer use clipboards and pens to do office work and other management activities. You need to find the best CMMS suppliers to help you integrate your paperwork and hard copies into your computer. This process ensures that you will not lose any information while moving your data, or in case of anything, you can always have a backup of your data.
Maintenance
It has been confirmed that no computer can function and complete maintenance quickly, precisely, and efficiently like skilled or experienced human labor. Therefore, the maintenance and protective tasks performed to ensure that computers are performing at their best remain the work of the maintenance team. The CMMS enables the team to easily schedule work orders, check the part and inventories, and make better maintenance decisions through the information they collect.
Management
The CMMS enables the front-line employees to complete work orders quickly. It’s easier for the management to plan, schedule and document the work in progress. Helps leaders to forecast the future then report back once it is completed, complied to, audited, among other maintenance KPIs.
System
It doesn’t matter how perfect the Computerized Maintenance Management System seems to be, it can’t completely replace employees. But it facilitates their working environment by improving the efficiency of most essential activities in an organization or office.
Therefore, this software enables various teams in a work environment to manage their daily activities.
How the CMMS software works
The CMMS contains information needed to support various teams and functions at work. Every section at work will benefit in one way or another from this database; for instance, finance and operations benefit from supply contracting, inventory status, and costs, among other maintenance benefits or functions.
CMMS has been helping organizations in the following:
- Materials and inventory
- Corrective and preventive maintenance
- Audits and compliance tracking
- Reporting and dashboarding
- Specific training and support
- Mobile maintenance functionality
- Prioritizing work order and scheduling
The benefits of using CMMS
If you implement and start using the CMMS software at your workplace, it will come with many benefits. Generally, it enables your teams to put across their maintenance activities or practices incorporating them with other departments with the same goals as theirs. Having a system that makes it easy for departments to share information makes every worker’s job more efficient.
The following are some of the top benefits of using the CMMS software:
Safe and healthy working environment
CMMS improves work safety as it’s lien with the global, national, and state regulations; you can rest assured knowing your workers are in a healthy and safer environment. There might be no dangers associated with work tools endangering workers’ lives where company assets are well maintained and where safety and health procedures are centralized and properly documented.
Workflow visibility with proper work order management
Work order software makes it easy for various teams to visualize their actions using the dashboards and reports enabling the workers to access the updated status and improving the work order rates of completion. In addition, the maintenance team will quickly know where various assets are, the parts needed, and the people to perform specific tasks at a particular time.
Mobile workforce
Imagine a situation where you need to keep all your field workers moving from one area to another; this might be challenging, tiresome and even consume a lot of time. Fortunately, the CMMS software helps you to deploy all your teams remotely without physical movements advanced mobility connectivity for users who rarely need to come back to the office.
Process automation
Here are processes that can be easily automated using the CMMS software:
- inventory reordering
- shifts scheduling
- work order dispatching
Automating these processes, among others in an organization, will save on time, increase efficiency and prevent human errors.
Regulatory Compliance
There are many compliance regulations starting from local to global levels; this might make it challenging to maintain proper audits. However, the CMMS makes it easy to determine the way the company keeps up its standards.
How to choose the best CMMS solution
When choosing a CMMS software, it is crucial to focus more on the support it will bring to your organization. It should meet most of your functional needs within the required period. Moreover, the CMMS should be made with an expandable technology, including various maintenance functions.
The particular solution providers must offer extensive training and other support services before and after deploying the software. As the team works with the software, they understand it better, and the efficiency improves drastically. Integrate your legacy systems into the new software as you support and move historical data, the database’s integrity increases.
Which option is better? SaaS or On-Prem?
SaaS stands for Software as a Service, where here you are interested in experimenting and deploying. It is easy to upgrade features in this software with no data compromising or functionality. On the other hand, on-premises software won’t work on its own, they will need to collaborate with IT and information security professionals to protect information.
The difference between CMMS, FM, and EAM
As mentioned earlier, the CMMS is responsible for optimizing daily maintenance and management activities, including assignment and completion of work orders, requests, maintenance, inspections, and managing extra inventory or spare parts and other; labor resources to ensure equipment availability is maximized.
Facility Management, abbreviated as FM software, encloses the CMMS functions. It is responsible for automating other factors in facility management, such as budgeting, contract management, and tracking capital expenses.
Enterprise Asset Management, commonly known as the EAM, is responsible for the assets’ entire lifecycle from the first design stage to the last installation process.
Frequently Asked Questions about CMMS
How do you know the best CMMS Software?
The best CMMS Software should support training and software deployment giving way for customization and mobility.
What difference exists between CMMS and EAM?
The CMMS is a specific computer software meant for supporting maintenance functions. At the same time, EAM is a strategy that incorporates the CMMS Software or other software in its system to enable it to plan, manage and implement efficiently.
Who can use CMMS?
Maintenance teams need to use this software; therefore, they can be used by entry-level technicians, senior leaders, or even corporate owners.
How can one learn about CMMS?
It starts from having basic formal conversations with your sales experts or managers concerning the type of software you might need. They will help you choose software with features and functionalities to meet your needs.
What form of CMMS training is available?
The providers offer continuing education and training; this is where you should consider going for the CMMS training. It displays a good image as it shows that they walk with you through the maintenance journey.
Is it possible to get CMMS certified?
Yes, one can get CMMS certified; providers also have certification courses apart from providing the training. With this, there will be an increment in adoption and use. Certification shows you are qualified maintenance professional.