Goin’ Mobile

As budgets and manpower shrink, maintenance managers are working to find ways to become more efficient. If your workers do not become more efficient the work cannot get done. The first casualty will be Preventive Maintenance (PM). There is no immediate impact to stopping the PM program, however, in 3 – 5 years you will have added an additional 20% burden to your budget and work load. This cycle will continue to build upon itself. The alternative is to find ways to help the workers become more effective.

Allowing the tradesmen to manage their workload while they are at the jobsite is a great way to build efficiency, accountability and accuracy of the data in your work order process. I'm convinced that a mobile work order solution can help manage the work load and help maintenance stay ahead of the game. The prevalence of Smart Phones, iPads® and other mobile devices combined with the ease of connectivity to the internet has put this technology in the reach of maintenance departments of almost any size and budget.

When you decide to move to a mobile work order processing system there are few rules you may want to follow.

1. Identify the requirements of your mobile solution.
   
2. Establish a budget.
   
3. The final step should be to select your hardware and software.
   

I believe it is important to select the software and hardware last. Many of our customers come to us with a device in mind and tell us what they want the device to do. Fortunately, the TeamWORKS QuickApp is a device independent solution. In most cases, however, selecting the hardware first eliminates many options that you may want to consider. Selecting the software and hardware simultaneously will allow you the most flexibility.

Once the mobile solution is in place it is imperative that you require your tradesmen to use the new technology. Change can be hard but management must enforce this new policy. After six weeks of use new processes will be "business as usual" and the tradesmen will not fight the change any longer.

Evolving to Maintenance Resource Planning (MRP)

For the past 15 years I have been part of Computerized Maintenance Management System (CMMS) software and service companies. The last 9 years have been with TeamWORKS, a company I started to fill the vacuum of inexpensive, world class CMMS. During this time I was involved with every aspect of a CMMS company; building software, managing projects, installation and training and the other duties surrounding software.

About 10 years ago, (I was working with my previous employer), there was a shift in needs. Open technology started to creep into the marketplace. Databases could talk to each other more easily and networks reached deep into the infrastructure of practically every enterprise in need of a CMMS. As a result our clients saw some advantages of the access offered through networking and open protocols. There was a need for integration. It makes sense, why enter data twice if an application or database routine can do the work for you. As I started TeamWORKS I focused on the CMMS needs of our clients. I am a firm believer in "you can't be all things to all people" so I narrowed the beam and kept my focus. In the mean time I missed opportunities to integrate, consult and prepare maintenance management organizations for areas beyond TeamWORKS CMMS.

Then the U.S. economy hit the brakes and nobody had enough money. Maintenance departments are being forced to do more for less, front offices are looking for areas to reduce cost and employees are being cut. At the same time maintenance needs are rising as equipment is extended beyond its typical lifecycle.

As a result, budget managers are utilizing the Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software to look for areas to cut back. Maintenance and Operations do not typically care for ERP software. ERP software builds budget projections by looking at the past. That is great for budgeting but does not help the maintenance manager. Budgeting is a small part of the job. Controlling the budget requires work planning, preventive maintenance, asset lifecycle forecasting and many other forward looking processes. The requests for integrations have grown to incredible numbers as maintenance looks for a way to satisfy the business needs of the enterprise while continuing to have a forward looking CMMS.

As we get more of these requests, TeamWORKS decided to embrace the need. It simply makes sense to shift the focus from CMMS provider to MRP provider. We are the best available to do this work and I have always seen the value.

Working with an MRP company rather than a CMMS company has huge benefits. CMMS is designed to manage work flow, preventive maintenance and the typical aspects of maintenance and operations. You buy the software, buy the service and, for the most part, you're done. An MRP company takes a broader and deeper look at your resources and infrastructures. The goals are simple. Increase efficiency and accountability, reduce costs through the use of technology and increase the knowledge base for making future decision.

Before you know, you have saved a huge percentage of your budget, your operations are running smoother and you're the hero!

The bottom line is that MRP is a new way of looking at old problems. ERP versus CMMS, budget versus manpower, preventive maintenance versus corrective maintenance are some of the many areas that are cleared up as you move toward viewing your maintenance and operations through the eyes of a MRP professional.

Technology helps Maintenance Work!

I have traveled all over the country working with maintenance departments of different sizes, complexities and responsibilities. I've seen great maintenance shops and "not so great" maintenance shops. I've noticed a striking relationship between the use of technology and the overall wellbeing and professionalism of an organization. In short, great maintenance shops take advantage of technology.

Let me set a scene. I walk into a maintenance shop and see a group of tradesmen that are appropriately dressed, well equipped to do their job and have generally good attitudes. This scene is always coupled with a clean shop, a comprehensive Preventive Maintenance (PM) program and great use of technology. Not just a presence of technology, but a use of technology. The relationship is proportional. The more that technology is utilized the better the shop.

Just spending money to purchase technology does not make it successful. After the purchase, policies and processes must be put in place to take advantage of the technology. If this is done properly the technology will pay for itself in savings of money and manpower. Use these savings to implement new technology and the processes to go with it. In turn, you will get more savings. This cycle will repeat over and over again.

For example….

1. A computerized maintenance management system (CMMS) is purchased. Procedures and policies are put in place to take advantage of the Work Order management benefits of the system. A 10% savings is discovered in labor and expenses. That equals 1 man year saved per 10 tradesmen and $10,000 for every $100,000 in expenses.
   
2. The savings are used to implement a PM and Asset program in the CMMS. Another 10% increase in savings is discovered.
   
3. The PM system is expanded. Another 10% savings.
   
4. The warehouse portion of the CMMS system is put into action. More savings are discovered.
   
5. The money saved by properly tracking the inventory allows the purchase of a mobile work order system.
   

Before you know it, 95% of your maintenance is planned work, the tradesmen take great pride in keeping their systems and work ahead of schedule, management can justify every laborer and expense and maintenance is seen as an asset and leader in the enterprise rather than just a necessary expense.

Simple technology started it all and grew into a complex system of interwoven technologies that exchange data, work together and help maintenance avoid obstacles and pitfalls. The resulting technology allows budgets to be created easily and accurately, expansion to be justified and capital expenditures to be seen long before they are needed.

Benefits of Networking

Networking can be an important resource to maintenance professionals. It allows them to share ideas, find solutions, ask questions and collaborate to discover the best ways to work through the toughest problems. These days, travel budgets have been slashed to almost nothing. The need for collaboration has been pushed aside in the pursuit of savings. The savings discovered during the conferences are intangible and often undervalued by upper management. There are no reports to justify the expense and therefore, the trips are canceled. In the spirit of collaboration, TeamWORKS has created an online community forum specific to maintenance management. The TeamWORKS Forum is a free service designed to allow maintenance professionals to get the benefits of networking without the expense of traveling to a conference.

If you are struggling with a maintenance issue, chances are one of your peers has solved this issue and would love to share their success story. Find ways to connect and share. You will find efficiencies and money saving strategies that you have not considered while browsing for answers to your questions.

Wise Investment

Someone forgot to tell your equipment that the budget's been cut. It keeps running like it always did. No cutbacks, no planned furloughs. It doesn't seem fair. You have to continue catering to its every need with less money and less manpower but the equipment isn't willing to make any sacrifices. So how do you cope with this situation? You have two possible solutions.

1. Whine, cry and plead with your equipment to not break and to extend the life of all its parts. This can escalate to threats of power removal if the equipment is not responsive.
   
2. Implement or increase use of a Computerized Maintenance Management System (CMMS).
   

   Yep, I just suggested that you spend money when your budget is cut.
   

Here's how I justify my proposition to spend.

Work Orders
If you don't have a CMMS in place, implementing the work order management portion of the CMMS will translate into a 10% - 20% gain in productivity. If you save 1 hour a day (12.5%) for crewmembers with an annual salary of $35,000, you would save $4,375 per year per employee. For a crew of 5 that translates to $21,875 a year or over 162 hours per year. And that's only work orders. If you purchased this from TeamWORKS, you could do it for less than $5,000.

Preventive Maintenance
According to the U.S. Department of Energy, Preventive Maintenance will lead to a savings of 12% - 18%. This is a savings of your total operations cost. This savings includes labor, materials, asset replacement and energy usage. If your maintenance and operations budget is $2.5 million then the average savings would be $375,000 each year.

There are plenty of other savings to be found in a well implemented CMMS. Tracking your warehouse inventory allows you to only buy what you need at the quantities you need. Asset tracking helps in the decision making when you are purchasing new assets and maintaining your existing assets.

Spending a few thousand dollars now can save you tens of thousands next year. The return on your investment starts immediately and will increase over time.

 

Managing the Migration – Preventive Maintenance

We've put our work process in place and have collected our assets. Your next step is Preventive Maintenance (PM).

Computerized Maintenance Management Systems (CMMS) handle this task in different ways but the basic principle is the same. You will want to create two types of PMs, routine maintenance and preventive maintenance. Routine maintenance refers to tasks that happen on a normal routine that are not completed on a specific piece of equipment. Examples of routine maintenance are Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) tests, safety inspections, grass cutting, filter changes, etc. These are all important tasks but are not completed on a specific piece of equipment. Please don't underestimate the importance of tracking inspections in your CMMS system. Inspections are usually completed to reduce liability. For example, IAQ tests may be done annually. The reason is to ensure safe locations for employees, students and/or staff. The IAQ testing alone is not enough. In the event of a lawsuit you will need to have documentation of due diligence. Adding the IAQ test as an annual inspection in your PM system will ensure you are meeting compliance and that the work and results are documented.

The second type of PM is asset specific. Examples are boiler, vehicle and roof PMs. Each of these items should be entered in your CMMS as an asset and you will need to schedule your PMs for each frequency. These PMs keep your valuable building and mechanical assets in good condition. It has been proven over and over again that a good PM system can save 30% of your annual budget in saved materials and manpower. What is not so obvious is the improved moral that comes along with a day well planned instead of a day spent reacting to emergencies.

 

Managing the Migration – Collecting Assets

So now you have your work orders in place and everyone is comfortable with the new system. The next step will most likely be to enter your assets into the system so you can start a comprehensive preventive maintenance (PM) system. There are several ways to get the data collected. You may need to employ several of these methods depending on your situation. For our purposes we will be collecting mechanical assets and the discussion will be methods for gathering this data.

It is important to develop a numbering standard for your asset numbers. I typically suggest using a 3 digit building code followed by a 3 digit asset type code followed by an asset number code. For example the first Air Handling Unit collected at George Washington Building may have the code GWB-AHU-001. This code not only means something to a barcode scanner and software program but also has meaning to the tradesmen about to work on this equipment.

The first thing you should look for is asset data already available in an electronic format. Newer buildings may have a list of mechanical assets that were submitted by the architect or HVAC contractor. This list may be included in your CAD drawings. Other buildings may have a building control system with each major piece of equipment identified. See if that data can be exported. If you do not have the data electronically then you must choose a method of data collection. If time is short and money is not, you may want to contract someone to collect your asset data. The contractor will most likely use an electronic collection method to ensure accuracy and to easily import the data into your system. If money is short and manpower is not then you will need to send your tradesmen out to collect the data. Purchase or lease a data collection package or collect using a pencil and paper. If man power and money are short, make sure your tradesmen collect asset data as they work on the assets. It may take a long time but eventually you'll have all your data.

It really doesn't matter what method(s) you choose as long as you start collecting your data. Your team needs to understand that this is not a task that might be done but a task that will be done and collecting and maintaining this data is now part of their daily routine and must be completed.

Managing the Migration – Work Order Processes

Implementing a Computerized Maintenance Management System (CMMS) can be an overwhelming task. I will be discussing this implementation in my upcoming blogs.

The first step is to settle on a process for managing work orders. When consulting new clients, I like to start by looking at their existing process. It doesn't matter if it's electronic or paper, there are reasons for the process. Here are my top 10 questions to ask…

1. Who submits the work orders?
   
2. Who approves the work orders before they are viewed by maintenance?
   
3. Who, within maintenance, approves the work orders?
   
4. Who assigns the work orders?
   
5. Who prints the works?
   
6. How are the work orders distributed?
   
7. What data is collected by the tradesmen?
   
8. How are the work orders returned by tradesmen?
   
9. How are the returned work orders reviewed?
   
10. Who enters/files the tradesmen completed work order data?
    

Once these steps are established, you will need to review each step. Ask yourself "why do we do this?" If the answer is "because we've always done it that way" then seriously consider what, if any, value is there in that step. If there is no value, alter or eliminate the step.

Once you've reviewed and narrowed down the steps, you will need to consider how to transition from you current process. For example, currently the administrator of the building submits a paper work order via courier mail. We are replacing that step with an internet work order request form with the same data.

You simply need to replace each step of the old system with each step of the new system and account for the changes you determined necessary earlier in this process.

There is a reason why you have your current processes in place. It is probably a good, tried and true process. Use what you have to build your new process then simply migrate the new technology into the existing process.

Don’t delete that record!

As I look through records in databases, usually TeamWORKS CMMS database, I can't help but notice missing records. When cycling through work orders or other data missing data jumps out at you. For example: while "thumbing" through a set of work orders I see work order number 2133, 2134, 2135, 2137. Hey, where's number 2136? It was deleted. The problem with deleting the record is that I don't know what happened to it. Perhaps it was a bogus request. You've seen them before. Something like "please lower the window six inches so the sun won't get in my eyes on spring mornings". Yeah, it's a crazy request and won't get approved but if I delete it I have no record of the request and more importantly I have a hole in my numbers that will never again be filled.

Here's the problem with deleting. Let's say we are audited as part of an inspection or law suit. The inspector is looking at work orders for Indoor Air Quality. The work order following the PM to complete the inspection has been deleted. We suspect that this work order was the request to "lower the window six inches" but the inspector assumes it is a follow up to the Air Quality test that we want to hide. Perhaps this assumption fits the inspector's needs in an attempt to incriminate you.

Bottom line, you don't know how the data may be used in the future. The data is certainly used for accountability on many levels. If the data is incomplete then the accuracy can be questioned and accountability is no longer an option.

So void, reject, or make notes as to why the data is invalid or does not belong but don't delete it.