Predictive maintenance is the difference between being prepared and being caught by surprise when it comes to breakdowns of critical systems. And by establishing a predictive maintenance program, you can better plan for and allocate the resources necessary to manage problems before they even appear.

How CMMS Helps

CMMS or computerized maintenance management software is a powerful tool that assists in predictive maintenance tasks. Sometimes called enterprise asset management, it allows for planning, execution, and analysis of important tasks that keep facilities and other systems up and running. The robust functionality includes the ability to track assets, calibrate management, control inventory, manage keys and locks, and provide mobile access. Managers can also document preventive maintenance tasks, record purchasing, schedule maintenance, review service histories, and technicians’ work.

Starting Your Own Predictive Maintenance Program

Adopting the right CMMS can go a long way in establishing a productive predictive maintenance program. Not only will it help your team react better to urgent needs, it will provide you with the tools and analysis to glean real insight from the data collected. That insight into trends is what makes proactive steps possible. So you can plan for downtime and stage the necessary resources in advance, minimizing the impact on the organization as a whole. 

Get Down to Work

The first thing to do is determine which assets you want covered by your CMMS. You may want to review previous maintenance records to determine which systems are most critical and which may be subject to the greatest disruptive downtime. Then, review the service history of these systems to figure out what data needs to be collected in order to give you the most insight and value. Take into account manufacturers information, manuals or requirements, and your own team’s experience – they know the equipment best because they work on it regularly. This groundwork helps ensure the installation of your CMMS can effectively support your goals and objectives. 

Train Your Team

A CMMS only works well when the person reviewing the data and analysis knows what they’re looking at. Once a CMMS is in place, everyone needs to be on board for it to work well. Ensure that all team members have the opportunity to review training modules and road test what they’ve learned. Ongoing training is critical to keeping up with changes in CMMS and in your own critical systems. As your needs change, don’t be shy about making corresponding changes to your CMMS so that you can continue to work hand-in-hand with your predictive maintenance tool, saving important resources while reducing down time. 

If you have mission critical systems that you’ve been counting on your own team to flag before a crisis occurs, perhaps it’s time to explore how a CMMS can help your organization.