PSIwebware Blog

It is a current reality that many companies have been forced to cut back on maintenance spending, with an emphasis on shorter term profitability.  Since most new contracts have less margin, and retaining long term contracts has become more competitive, budgets aren’t what they used to be.

It has become more critical to “get it right the first time” to avoid costly issues, but faced with reduced resources, many managers have actually done less planning and more reacting, which is counter productive to increasing profits.  This dynamic has greatly increased risk, without providing adequate savings to cover the bet.

Unfortunately, there is no magic bullet to stop the current economic decline, but there are a few things that will help keep your company moving forward.  Ideally, you would want to bring in more money to help ease the crunch, but more business at a lower margin might actually hurt your profitability.

One of the best moves is to re-evaluate your current management tools, including communications.  You may have already paid for productivity enhancing tools that are under utilized by management which can immediately bring improved efficiencies while reducing risk.  If the management tools have become outdated, or don’t really fit your work process, it is time to seek a better return on your investment.

Maintenance Management Software is one of the key tools your staff can optimize to improve planning, communications, accountability, and profitability.  By keeping the right resources on the right projects to avoid costly mistakes, you can readiliy increase resource utilization and profitability.

The right work processes provided by a well implemented Maintenance Management Software system can provide your team with live information on resource availability while ensuring that resources match facility and financial realities. 

When times get tough, the goal of your service delivery systems is to organize your work flow and communications to increase cashflow and profitability.  Without spending much manager time, the proper actions can be scheduled and tracked much more efficiently, freeing managers to pursue other profit generating opportunities.

Today’s Maintenance Management Software takes advantage of technical tools you already have, such as Blackberries and Smart Phones to increase efficiency and deliver live communications that can prevent costly issues.  The end result is better use of your manager’s time and field resources to increase profits without taking on too much risk.

Every year companies spend thousands of dollars on new CMMS Software, but months after implementation, they end up using less than twenty percent of the software capabilities.  In most cases, this is an avoidable situation, but everyone on the CMMS Software Implementation Team will have to work closely together to achieve success.

The most common challenge for the team is performing a thorough review of the company’s business practices before implementation, including how it could fully utilize the desired software work processes and features.  Another common challenge is collecting the right implementation information, since in many cases, it needs to be created or significantly corrected.

CMMS Software is a user driven process and how the software is fully utilized in the field depends on operation managers.  If the managers are not fully educated on the fundamental functions of the CMMS Software, it makes it harder for the organization to capture the benefits they paid to achieve.

In order to ensure the right CMMS Software for your business process, it is important to have a complete review of how work is currently performed and any special client requirements.  All critical policies and procedures need to be implemented into the CMMS Software to take advantage of the system capabilities.

The project manager needs to work with the entire user group to determine what goals they have and to ensure the final result meets expectations.  If pre-implementation planning is done properly, the CMMS Software Implementation process can take a few days to a few weeks. 

The best implementation process relies on assembling the right team members who understand the needs of the facility, pre-implementation planning that sets readily achievable goals, data collection that is matched to those goals, and a flexible CMMS Software system that can achieve the desired results.

Budgets are tighter than ever, and facilities have been “stretching” the frequencies on Preventive Maintenance (PM) in order to cope.  Some facilities have stopped most PM and are going back to a break/fix maintenance plan.

When times are tough, is it reasonable to stop Preventive Maintenance until the equipment actually fails?  In some cases these measures are required due to cash flow and profitability concerns.  However, the past has proven that the facility will have higher maintenance costs due to reduced equipment life and wasted energy.  Many estimates have demonstrated about a 30% increase in maintenance costs over just a few years.

If “stretching” is required, a good place to start is with a thorough inventory of the facility, which includes information on the condition of the systems, equipment and components.  This provides a starting point for decisions about revised PM frequencies.

This process can be streamlined through a CMMS or Computerized Maintenance Management System.  CMMS software is built for organizing PM programs.  When doing your planning for PM frequencies, if you are unsure of how often to check a piece of equipment or system, the manufacturer’s manuals and recommendations are always good to use as a reference. The best maintenance programs are customized to fit the specific needs of your building, climatic conditions, and tenants.

Even if Preventive Maintenance frequencies are “stretched”, using a PM program in your facility is still the best way to keep your building and your budget in tip top shape.

Facility Managers know that regularly scheduled HVAC maintenance using preventive maintenance tools such as Building Maintenance Software is a proven way to control cost, but many small and mid sized facilities will change filters on a regular basis, but continue to wait until their HVAC equipment breaks before they fix it.

Approaching HVAC system maintenance this way is troubling due to the important role that HVAC systems have in modern facilities today.  HVAC systems in commercial buildings are accountable for more than 40 percent of total energy use.  When you keep the HVAC systems running at peak efficiency, money is saved automatically.

HVAC system maintenance is much more than controlling energy use and Tenants depend on properly operating systems for more than comfort.  The proper HVAC system maintenance can help a building remain “healthy” but preventing mold build up and maintaining adequate indoor air quality.

Most small to mid sized facilities underfund maintenance and reactive maintenance remains the norm.  In many cases the reason for not performing routine preventive maintenance is lack of resources.  However, when you look at the potential cost savings that can reduce total maintenance costs by up to 30%, along with the benefits of improved energy efficiency and maintaining a “healthy” building, it becomes much easier to justify HVAC preventive maintenance.

Tracking and maintaining equipment within commercial facilities helps building owners manage all types of equipment and produce alerts when service is needed.  A CMMS System ensures equipment is properly maintained and saves time by tracking required maintenance activities.

The benefits of a CMMS system provide quick and easy access to records, service history, and product provider information.  Using a paper based system has limits as far as managing activities in real time and for managers to be reviewing the system quickly and effectively.

Automatic alerts via email and text messaging are provided for maintenance activities with a web and wireless based system.  Supervisors can quickly track deficiencies and information with all employees responsible for the various equipment.

A proper tracking  system allows managers to simply enter the equipment information once into the system and access the maintenance schedule.  The system will notify you of upcoming and past due events each time you open the web-based software.  With a web based system, multi users are able to track equipment process, costs and equipment lifetime all at once.

There are many different maintenance standards in our industry such as the GSA 5850, APPA, or RS Means.  Each has their pros and cons, but regardless of which one you choose to meet your facility’s needs, these standards can significantly improve your internal procedures.

Your choice in CMMS should help you utilize the standards and procedures that ensure each employee is following the same set of instructions.  This would include things like frequencies of your preventive maintenance, scheduling, tools, instructions and the type of equipment readings you expect.

When you receive a Preventive Maintenance service notification from your CMMS, you will have the ability to print out all of the information related to that service.  This saves you the time and effort of looking in a spreadsheet or manual for the service instructions, tools and other information.

As a Facility Manager, you can also rest easy knowing that your employees have everything they need to complete their task.   A good CMMS will assist your facility with the best return on investment for the equipment purchased.

Preventive Maintenance Software packages are designed to help you manage the maintenance of your facilities, buildings assets and equipment.  Using preventive maintenance software allows you to improve daily and long-term maintenance operations.

Optimal ROI is achieved when your assets are running properly.  Preventive Maintenance Software programs increase productivity through work scheduling and performance monitoring.  This reduces repair costs and production downtime, providing consistent performance of critical assets.

Preventive Maintenance Software can help reveal potential breakdowns before they happen so they can be prevented and also helps to record all essential information such as purchase dates, service contracts and dates for equipment replacement.  Inventory Control tracks all tools and assets necessary to achieve high performance levels.

Basic functionality will include automated work orders, scheduling preventive maintenance, tracking assets and creating purchase orders. Other features include using hand-held pda devices as well as barcode scanning.

Preventive Maintenance Software will improve customer satisfaction and increase production capabilities within your organization.

Many corporations are looking to their software provider or consultants to handle the implementation process of their facility maintenance software.  This is the fastest way to get their software up and running.

It is important to select CMMS Software that is customizable or one that offers enhancement modules for program expansion once you get the system running.  This will allow flexibility for users to adapt and learn the software before expanding to a more complex version.

Implementation requires a naming system to be set up for your equipment and preventive maintenance tasks.  When setting up your equipment naming system, remember to make it simple and meaningful so everyone in your facility will be able to recognize it.

The next step for implementation would include the entry of inventory data.  Facility Supervisors should take an active part while training users of their CMMS system and the maintenance department should understand the system well before switching entirely to the new system.

Everyone plays a vital role in making the system work.  To get the most from your new tool, it should be used on a daily basis and updated to increase efficiency and accountability.