CMMS – With Timly on the Way to Maintenance 4.0

CMMS: Meaning & How the Software Ensures Professional Maintenance Management

CMMS means computerised maintenance management system. CMMS systems are often equated with Enterprise Asset Management (EAM) software. In contrast to CMMS, however, EAM solutions also include other aspects, such as procurement or asset disposal, in addition to the overall asset lifecycle.

Truly effective maintenance management or facilities management with all its maintenance tasks can only be implemented with such specially designed CMMS solutions. Modern inventory solutions such as Timly follow the holistic approach. With consistent implementation, there is only one central storage location for all information concerning the inventory. A glance at the Timly app is enough and your employees have all the daily facts about upcoming appointments and instructions on how to handle a machine in front of them. The ineffective keeping of lists, unprofessional sticky notes with instructions and the management of different appointment calendars are a thing of the past with Timly.

This not only saves working time. Professional maintenance management increases work safety and contributes to the longevity and value retention of a company’s machinery. In this way, the asset life cycle is tracked and maintenance managers and other responsible persons can also obtain information about the assets in real time at any time. Therefore, the use of inventory software such as Timly pays off in several respects.

What Belongs to Maintenance Management: Definition and Terms

In practice, maintenance management is divided into two areas:

1. Mandatory appointments:
This includes all legal and other regulations, compliance with which is necessary in accordance with the compliance requirements of the respective company. This includes, for example, that electrical devices are periodically tested for operational safety. On the one hand, the deadlines must be kept in view. On the other hand, it is also necessary to keep an overview of locations and assignments to employees for the corresponding devices. Otherwise, a new search and listing of work equipment to be tested begins with each upcoming test date.

2. Optional dates:
This refers to those that should either be adhered to according to manufacturer specifications in order to maintain warranty claims or are carried out voluntarily to maintain functionality. Examples are visual and functional checks, inspections and dates for regular replacement of wear parts with spare parts.

Due to the variety of deadlines and the diversity of work equipment used, it quickly becomes clear that “isolated solutions” only provide limited relief and are therefore ultimately not efficient. Good inventory software such as Timly is characterised by the fact that all requirements for the management of inventory and work equipment can be mapped natively.

The software is, so to speak, able to answer all questions that arise at any time regarding technical details, upcoming deadlines and current locations. Due to the infrastructure used by Timly, the data is available at any desired location – in the administration, in the workshop, on the construction site and even in the home office.

How the Maintenance Planner of Our CMMS Works

With Timly it is possible to record inventory of any kind. This is ensured by categories with customisable fields. In addition to basic information, maintenance instructions, checklists and protocols of inspections and maintenance operations carried out can also be included in the digital file of an asset.

Easy identification in the system is ensured by a QR code that can be attached to the asset as a space-saving sticker. Links between assets, such as tools that can be assigned to a vehicle, are just as possible as the storage of locations and responsible employees.

The practical application is facilitated by the Timly app, which is optimised for smartphones and tablets. With this, every authorised employee can call up the QR code of an asset and – depending on personal authorisations – view, supplement and update information.

Since the data is stored on a secure cloud storage, an internet connection is sufficient for access. The provider guarantees conformity with the requirements of the GDPR. It is not necessary to open the company network for access from outside to enable employees to access the data on the road or from their home office.

Timly’s integrated maintenance planner sends timely notifications of upcoming appointments by email to maintenance teams or responsible departments. In addition, supervisors can see in the app whether all necessary deadlines have been met or whether an inspection or maintenance is currently pending when scheduling work equipment and employees when taking over machines or tools. To facilitate the coordination of appointments in the administration, clear calendar overviews are also available for maintenance management on the desktop PC.

Using Excel as a Maintenance Planner – An Idea With Weaknesses

Digitising maintenance is a sensible step, but one that is sometimes delayed for too long. In some cases, managers are reluctant to purchase expensive software for an application such as maintenance management when licences for supposedly suitable programmes are already available. Therefore, appointments and other information are managed with Excel in many companies. The spreadsheet programme is undoubtedly mature and well suited for many requirements.

However, this does not apply to maintenance management. Meaningful use is only possible in the office on appropriately large monitors. Access with mobile devices from workplaces such as construction sites and industrial halls is hardly reasonable and also difficult to implement in practice. For this reason, the required information about a work tool with Excel is not available where it has to be worked with. In order to find out important facts and maintenance activities, enquiries have to be made in the administration.

Updates, for example when maintenance has been carried out, have to pass through several stations and are only entered with a delay. The additional personnel effort alone makes the use of a spreadsheet programme as a maintenance planner ineffective. The lack of mechanisms for automating notifications also increases the risk that important deadlines will be overlooked.