Optimize your Manufacturing with CMMS

CMMS for preventative maintenance

Trusting a CMMS for preventative maintenance is a wise move for manufacturers. Automating routine maintenance, managing inventory, creating work orders and including all necessary employees improves efficiency to an impressive level. 

Production line shutdowns can be very costly in the manufacturing world. Once it happens everyone is surprised it broke or that the backup parts aren’t in stock. Maintianly solves these problems by allowing maintenance tracking, service history and associated parts and equipment. 

The days of shoulder shrugging when someone asks when the last time the equipment was serviced are gone. Now you can say, when, who did the servicing and when it’s due next. 

What is a CMMS?

CMMS is an acronym for ‘Computerized Maintenance Management System (CMMS)’. This software can help streamline and optimize your maintenance operations.

It can also help manage work orders, track assets and inventory, and generate insightful reports. CMMS can be tailored to meet the needs of specific industries, including manufacturing.

Facility Management

This can improve the way that manufacturers manage equipment, schedule service and hold inventory. It helps ID problems before they get worse. 

A CMMS can deliver excellent cost savings and boost overall efficiency. Efficient maintenance management helps manufacturers protect their assets' reliability, safety, and longevity. Let’s examine how a CMMS can be so effective in preventative maintenance. 

Having properly serviced equipment and inventory of replacement parts creates a sense of calm amongst your team. The crew feels safe operating the equipment, which can be dangerous, even in the best of scenarios. It also lets them know the worst won’t happen even if something does break, because they know where the spare parts are and they are in stock. 

Why do you need a CMMS?

A CMMS can drastically improve your production line as well as your bottom line. Here are some of the main benefits of using a CMMS. 

Save a substantial amount of time

One of the reasons CMMS solutions have become so popular is the substantial time savings they offer. They digitize and automate maintenance processes and can deliver much faster response times. A CMMS can greatly reduce the amount of time spent on administrative tasks. This means your team can spend more time focusing on actual maintenance work. 

Better maintenance efficiency

CMMS software can digitize and automate maintenance processes, eliminating manual paperwork and streamlining workflows. It can also enhance task prioritization, making it easier for maintenance teams to access work orders, assign tasks, track progress, and generate notifications. Using a CMMS can also result in faster response times and reduced downtime. 

Greater asset reliability

A CMMS supports proactive maintenance practices via preventative maintenance software. It allows you to set up automated schedules for servicing, calibration and routine inspections. This means we can identify and address problems before they worsen and become expensive to overcome. Benefits of using a CMMS include longer equipment lifespan, greater asset reliability and fewer costly repairs. 

Compliance and documentation benefits

A CMMS can simplify the process of complying with regulatory standards. You can easily access all maintenance records, inspection reports, and compliance documentation in one central repository. The system will facilitate regulatory audits and certifications. 

Improved resource planning and utilization

Your CMMS can give you better visibility into maintenance operations, labor, parts, and inventory. This helps you improve resource planning and utilization. It helps you track the availability of spare parts, manage stock levels and reorder supplies when needed.

It also helps you allocate labor more effectively. This is because it allows you to assign tasks based on skill sets and availability. 

Make better decisions with data

These systems collect valuable data on your equipment's performance, maintenance history, and costs. The built-in reporting and analytics tools give you valuable insights, including asset health, maintenance trends, and cost-analyzing information. This makes it easier for you to make the right decisions and identify areas that require improvement. 

Access information remotely

A CMMS also provides remote accessibility. The system can be accessed from any location, whether your maintenance technicians are on the premises or elsewhere. Mobile CMMS apps support real-time updates, work order management, and asset tracking, boosting efficiency and making collaboration more effective. 

Major cost savings

Another benefit of using a CMMS is that it can deliver big cost savings. This is because it can help prevent unexpected breakdowns and optimize inventory levels. Other ways it can help you save money include boosting labor efficiency and reducing downtime. Many manufacturing companies have seen a substantial and swift return on investment after purchasing a CMMS. 

Preventive maintenance for manufacturers – why is it so important?

Preventative maintenance is crucial in the manufacturing industry. Manufacturing processes are very demanding and intense. Equipment is subjected to continuous stress, and frequent breakdowns can occur if improperly maintained. A CMMS can predict when equipment will likely fail and ensure that critical spare parts are always available, preventing costly downtime. 

A CMMS can also track the health and performance of each piece of equipment. This makes planning and budgeting for replacements and upgrades easier. It can also improve the standard of communication between maintenance teams, production staff, and management, ensuring everyone stays in the loop with the latest developments. 

Is a CMMS secure?

If you are considering using a CMMS, you may have concerns about how secure these systems are. The best CMMS systems come with data encryption, which means data can’t be read by unauthorized users. Protocols such as AES-256 can be used to protect sensitive information.

This software also has intricate access controls, which you can use to decide who can view and modify data. You can also use features like multi-factor authentication (MFA) to create an extra layer of security. 

Only verified users can access the system when this is in place. A CMMS's security features can save you time and money by helping you avoid the downtime and expense that can come with a data breach. It’s also wise to look for a CMMS that complies with recognized security standards like SOC 2 and ISO 27001. 

Other key benefits of a CMMS

A quality CMMS will not take hours, days, or weeks to learn. You can get things up and running with just one single preventative maintenance schedule.

There are systems designed for teams of between 1 and 1000+ users or pieces of equipment. Other features you should look out for include in-app support chat. It’s also best to only pay for features that you will actually use.

If you spend time seeking the best solution for your specific needs, the right CMMS can have a very low total cost of ownership. Great options are available today that are much more streamlined than the bloated CMMS solutions of the past. 

Will my CMMS be updated once it’s implemented?

Yes. CMMS receives updates occasionally to ensure it can still meet your needs. Updates occur so new features can be introduced, and security vulnerabilities can be addressed. These updates can also mean integration with third-party tools.

Updates can keep your activities running smoothly. This means your team can stay on top of their workflows. 

Updates to CMMS systems have also enhanced mobile efficiency. This means teams can access vital information whilst they are on the move. Updates can play a pivotal role in ensuring preventative maintenance for manufacturers remains at the highest standard. 

Prevent costly downtime and boost efficiency with CMMS

Production line shutdowns are costly and can cause severe financial losses, it can also degrade trust amongst your customers waiting on those products. A CMMS can transform how you manage your equipment and help you overcome potentially costly issues before they worsen. 

It is essential to monitor equipment health and performance. Minimal spare parts availability and slow delivery times can cause breakdowns. With today’s shrinking supply routes this will only become more problematic until North American production capabilities close the gap. A CMMS can support proactive management, allowing you to intervene quickly when problems arise. 

Implementing a CMMS can deliver high cost and time savings. It can reduce manual errors and operational expenses whilst making you more compliant.

The compliance benefits can also save you much time and money. What’s more, the updates that come with the software help you keep sensitive information protected. If you haven’t considered adding a CMMS to your manufacturing operations, it’s certainly worth doing so. To learn more, check out Maintainly's CMMS features.