What is a CMMS?

Read on for a comprehensive overview of the following:

• CMMS meaning & definitions of key terms
• CMMS requirements for being a complete solution
• CMMS asset management
• CMMS information you need to know for successful maintenance management
• General maintenance management system definitions
• Computer based maintenance systems features and benefits

A CMMS is a software system that stores maintenance data for centralized access, automates tasks for improved efficiency, and helps manage maintenance processes. Computerized maintenance management system software provides many benefits to equipment, fleet, and machinery lifespans, and improves their use and availability across multiple locations and within the many complex business systems used within an organization. Ultimately, a computer-aided maintenance management system is an integral part of any maintenance management software toolset helping users manage & track work orders, track inventory, schedule maintenance operations, and more from one centralized platform in real-time.

• Increase efficiency and agility
• Integrate systems for big-picture insight
• Reduce equipment downtime
• Implement preventive & predictive maintenance procedures
• Prioritize work orders
• Budget effectively
• Work in a mobile, multi-site context
• Gain enterprise-wide visibility and control

Modern CMMS systems can also provide EAM-level functionalities and integrate with other integral tools like space planning, mobile surveying tools, an EAM system and IoT remote monitoring tools.

Review key features that have earned Maintenance Connection top acknowledgements in G2’s Winter 2021 Grid Report.

Key Features of CMMS Software:

Mobile-Responsive

A modern CMMS system should be easy-to-use and device agnostic on mobile so technicians and key personnel in the field can easily retrieve procedures and documentation, check part availability, initiate orders, evaluate maintenance history, maintain compliance and update work orders.

Easy to Integrate

Your CMMS must integrate with other mission-critical systems so your team can effectively capture, analyze and utilize critical data. This is straightforward using Accruent’s Maintenance Connection RESTful API, which can instantly connect key applications to your maintenance management software.

Intuitive Navigation

User adoption is essential to the success of a maintenance management software implementation. Easy-to-use, intuitive software is much more likely to be adopted, so look for a CMMS system that is suited to your employees’ processes and responsive to their needs.

System Security

Modern, top-tier CMMS systems come equipped with many features to keep your sensitive information safe, including single sign-on for secure authentication, secure cloud storage and refined access to controls, authorizations and restrictions.

Straightforward Migrations

CMMS implementation will require data migration from disparate, legacy systems. These migrations should be straightforward in your CMMS solution so you can facilitate collaboration and ensure that your data is comprehensive, up-to-date and actionable.

Vendor Support

While a vendor’s CMMS software itself is the most important factor in selection and buying process, the CMMS vendor organization should be equally important. The right CMMS provider will be your partner and offer help with implementation, training, and ongoing support.

Full Work Order Visibility

Effective facility maintenance work requires smooth work order management and execution. A robust CMMS facilitates this by allowing users to review, prioritize, assign, schedule and track both work orders and associated maintenance tasks. It will also provide full visibility into work orders, work order history, part history and more.

Automations

Many automations should be available in your CMMS, including the ability to schedule maintenance – by setting up time, usage or condition-based maintenance triggers – and automated alerts to technicians including details like repair histories, checklists, asset manuals and more.

Full-Feature Reporting

Using customized CMMS reports and analytics, you should be able to extract meaningful data that you can use to pinpoint preventive maintenance needs, manage KPIs and optimize processes and performance.

Records for Audit Preparedness

Your CMMS maintenance management software should help you maintain employee compliance, keep searchable work records and generate the automated audit logs you need to simplify compliance with regulatory, industry, geographic and other audits.

AI-Powered Capabilities

Many modern CMMS systems are using machine learning and AI developments to expand their predictive maintenance management capabilities. Ultimately, this kind of physical asset insight can help your business increase efficiency, connect systems, improve team management, budget effectively, prioritize work orders, reduce downtime and more – all from one centralized, easy-to-use system.

A Strong Vendor Relationship

A good CMMS provider will want to be your partner, and they will provide help with implementation, training and ongoing support. The right vendor will also help you customize your functionality and user experience so your CMMS fits the unique needs and preferences of your maintenance team.

Cloud-Based CMMS

A cloud-based, SaaS CMMS deployment offers many benefits over an on-premise deployment, including increased mobility, maximized scalability, full integration with other systems, increased security and decreased need for a robust in-house IT infrastructure.

Customized Capabilities

At minimum, a CMMS system should offer reporting, mobile CMMS maintenance capabilities, asset management and MRO inventory management. That said, you must strategically and proactively choose extended features of your implementation to develop a system that works best for your team.

• Replace Disparate Systems
• Simplify Team Management
• Decrease Maintenance Costs
• Increase Operational Efficiency
• Consolidate Data
• Maximize Safety
• Increase Inventory Accuracy
• Simplify Work Order Management
• Improve Asset Reliability

Replace Disparate Systems

A CMMS system can replace outdated disparate systems – like Excel sheets, Word documents and physical paperwork – to help users effectively manage assets, supplies, work orders and related information. This can ultimately increase efficiency and transparency.

Simplify Team Management

Key CMMS features – including key and lock management, mobile access, a browser and device-agnostic user interface, API access, and barcode-enabled workforce tracking – can allow businesses to better manage teams and employees.

Decrease Maintenance Costs

Emergency repairs, incomplete asset information, and reactive maintenance practices can skyrocket facility maintenance costs. A robust CMMS can significantly reduce these costs by streamlining key asset maintenance processes, including work order management, MRO (maintenance, repair, and operating supply) inventory management and more.

Increase Operational Efficiency

By reducing concerns like unavailable inventory, unexpected downtime or emergency breakdowns, a CMMS can ultimately help increase operational efficiency, maximize uptime and answer questions related to service history, vendor track record and more.

Consolidate Data

You can use a CMMS to get accurate historical and real-time data about work orders, billing and invoicing, reporting and analytics, inventory and asset management information and service history. This information can also be consolidated in customizable reports to facilitate informed decision-making.

Maximize Safety

A robust CMMS can maximize employee safety by simplifying audits, making safety procedures more accessible and allowing your maintenance manager to easily stay on top of safety training.

Increase Inventory Accuracy

MRO inventory involves the order, use, and tracking of thousands of spare parts. A computerized maintenance system simplifies MRO management and improves inventory accuracy by automating purchases, tracking part information and measuring big-picture metrics like inventory costs and usage statistics.

Simplify Work Order Management

Maintenance Connection CMMS work order system can help you submit, manage and track work orders so you can streamline your workflows, simplify your work order management, prepare for audits, decrease equipment downtime and ultimately increase your preventive maintenance practices.

Improve Asset Reliability

Low visibility into key asset information like usage, repair history, and performance can lead to inefficiency and costly reactive maintenance practices. CMMS software can solve these problems by providing all relevant asset data in one integrated, easy-to-access platform.

Legacy systems, duplicate work, missing paper information and disjointed insight simply don’t cut it as effective facility and asset maintenance tools. In a modern cmms maintenance management system, your team needs to be able to easily submit problems, access documentation, view work orders and more at their point of need. With MC Express, they can. The tool offers:

• Streamlined Work Order Management
• Simplified Inventory Management
• Transparent Asset Maintenance

Streamlined Work Order Management

• When a work request is submitted, it’s automatically synced across all mobile devices, tablets and computers.
• Work orders are automatically assigned to the right technician and they have streamlined access to related documentation and information, including tasks, parts and asset history.
• Technicians also have access to checklists to make sure that all parts of a work order task are completed.

Simplified Inventory Management

• Users can easily order parts from procurement to eliminate delays and downtime.
• Technicians can find the parts information they need easily with access to multi-stockroom availability, ordering information, images and other related documentation.
• Users can also access part usage history and see which assets utilize which parts.

Transparent Asset Maintenance

• Users have full visibility into asset-specific part information.
• Users can access asset documents, photos and engineering document artifacts.
• There is also complete access to work order and downtime history.

These features can reduce communication gaps in your business and increase accountability, transparency and productivity across your organization. In fact, in one survey, Maintenance Connection customers realized a 20-30% increase in labor efficiency.

An effective preventive maintenance plan – and the right tool to execute – can save time, money and efficiency. Maintenance Connection helps with:

• Automatic preventive maintenance (PM) scheduling that you can customize based on events or meter readings.
• Drag and drop capabilities to change dates and keep your team aligned.
• A simple, centralized calendar to help plan and prioritize work orders.
• Automatic email and push notification triggers.
• Robust reporting capabilities to quickly identify and resolve inefficiencies.

Most companies get CMMS implementation and maintenance practices wrong, using reactive maintenance strategies or choosing a CMMS product that isn’t suited to meet their unique needs. This can cost them big time:

The right CMMS can maximize your ROI by allowing your business to increase efficiency, connect systems, reduce downtime, make data-driven decisions, budget effectively, prioritize work orders and more – all from one customizable, centralized solution. This can ultimately help you save time, save money and get organized.

• Check your savings with our Cost Savings Calculator
• Read more about How to Determine Your CMMS ROI

CMMS and enterprise asset management (EAM) systems were once considered to be vastly different tools. Now, thanks in part to Wi-Fi, the fourth Industrial Revolution and rising IoT capabilities, many CMMS modern systems can offer enterprise-wide solutions and EAM-type functionality. What’s more, they can easily merge with other providers to strengthen their offerings.

That said, there can still be differentiation between the tools:

CMMS

Computerized maintenance management systems can be considered as dedicated tools created to facilitate asset maintenance management and extend equipment life. They are not made to provide extended functionality beyond that scope.

EAM

Enterprise asset management (EAM) software provides a wider range of features to track, manage, and analyze asset performance and costs through the whole asset lifecycle, from acquisition to disposal.

ACCRUENT’S MAINTENANCE CONNECTION SOLUTION CAN SERVE AS BOTH A CMMS SOFTWARE OR A FULL-FUNCTION EAM SYSTEM.

Additional reading: Blog Post: “Does your business need a CMMS or an EAM?”

Industries that can benefit from a computerized maintenance management system (CMMS) or enterprise asset management system (EAM) include: