Jul 21

Choosing the Best Maintenance Management Software

Maintenance Management is a critical component of asset protection.  Managed correctly, it can be used as a tool to save money and actually play an active role in profitability.  Technology, in the form of Maintenance Management Software (CMMS) has stepped up to the plate by providing solutions that are effective and can be used to increase the efficiency of any maintenance department.

Before making the decision to purchase Maintenance Management Software, it is vital to determine the most efficient work processes you currently use.  It may be helpful to create a list of all of the normal processes that are done by the maintenance group, and evaluate how effectively they have controlled costs and repairs.

Maintenance Management Software Checklist:

  1. Set Realistic Performance Goals.  Make a list of the maintenance goals within your business.  Far too often, the maintenance group is excluded from goal setting and planning.  Goal setting will be able to define maintenance roles in terms of saving the company money while protecting assets and providing service to tenants.  Although labor and budgets for repairs are not easy to plan, it is helpful to look at the history of repair costs to get a range of expected repair needs within the facility.
  2. Assessment and Asset Management.  It is important to create a list of all of the assets that will need to be maintained.  It is somewhat rare to find that all assets are being tracked adequately, but tracking the critical components of your facility is a must.  Your maintenance management team can’t create effective work orders unless they have a clear view of everything that is considered an asset by the business.  Making this list will allow Maintenance Management Software providers to understand the unique challenges of your facility and help you implement a solution that will optimize performance.  Once your Maintenance Management Software is installed, it will be able to track and compare performance for all equipment within your facility, ensuring you have an effective way to manage costs in the future.
  3. Optimize Work Processes.  One of the largest challenges faced by a maintenance group is listing all of the work processes performed by their team if they haven’t implemented a Maintenance Management Software system in the past.  These work processes will provide consistency of performance if staffing changes, minimizing issues that can cost big money.  Your work processes also should be reviewed to ensure they meet the current guidelines provided by equipment manufactures and industry standards to ensure they are optimized for cost control.  The best path is to evaluate each critical work process first, then as time permits, evaluate regular work processes, including specific safety considerations that need to be taken into account.
  4. Review Your Preventive Maintenance Schedule.  PM Schedules are often put together over time, with many on the spot revisions.  To minimize routine changes to the PM Schedule, review your asset list versus your PM Schedule to group the timeline by Building and similar equipment.  This helps transition smoothly into your new Maintenance Management Software and minimizes the effects of changing systems.

Implementing a good maintenance management system need not be expensive, but for an effective implementation it is best to prepare all of the information in advance of a decision so you can clearly assess your needs and requirements.

Jul 12

Get Immediate ROI with Building Maintenance Software

As the economy struggles to regain its footing, optimizing facility services remains a key way to minimize costs. The ability to review past maintenance history to avoid costly repairs is one of the key ways Building Maintenance Software can deliver a strong ROI.

Over the last few years, a growing number of building maintenance projects have been cut or slowed to a crawl. Although this is a big lever to save money in the short term, prolonged cuts will have a very negative cost impact in just a few short years. Making the correct choices for cost cutting has become the new long term business strategy.

Preventive maintenance is an investment in protecting your most important assets. It makes sense then that maintaining your buildings should be one of the core functions of your business. This does not only mean the cosmetic maintenance of a building, although this will enhance the value and rental potential of any property greatly.

Using Building Maintenance Software allows your company to concentrate on core tasks without spending excessive time or taking unnecessary risks. In larger facilities, work is done every day to ensure tenant satisfaction, maintain health and safety standards, and ensure your investments will maintain their value. Investing in web based Building Maintenance Software gives you increased control over all aspects of facility services within your buildings.

Increased visibility of issues and their resolution leads to higher accountability and performance of maintenance staff. Even if you are outsourcing the maintenance of your facility, knowing that work was performed properly is a big advantage to everyone involved.

Tracking performance can streamline building maintenance operations and ensure that there is no wasted labor or materials. Web based Building Maintenance Software improves communication between all interested parties, which leads to higher levels of cooperation that lowers costs further. Less wasted time discussing project performance would make everyone involved happier, and they can focus on making money with their newfound time.

There are a number of choices when considering the best Building Maintenance Software for your organization. The primary focus should be on how to improve visibility, accountability, communication, and performance. This combination will allow you to maximize your Return on Investment in every level of Facility Management.

Oct 25

5 Key Roles of CMMS Software

Today’s CMMS (Computerized Maintenance Management Software) is capable of scheduling much more than preventive maintenance.  CMMS Software has become an integral part of daily operations for many facility service providers.

Here are 5 key roles of CMMS:

1. Instant Communication – Modern CMMS Software is 100% Web Based.  This allows you to create and access your maintenance schedules, inventory, employee profiles, training performed, timekeeping, and on-demand work orders from anywhere at any time.

2. Raise Employee Accountability.  Since maintenance work schedules and work instructions are easy to share and updates on work reporting is instant, it is much easier today to keep track of work performance.

3. Increase Client Visibility.  Clients wonder if the work they have paid for has been performed and was the work done well.  With instant reporting and possibly even limited Client access to your web based CMMS Software, they can be part of the action and feel more empowered.

4. Improve Corporate Control.  Your management team will gain most of the benefits of being on-site without the wasted travel time, since they can see work performace as it happens.  When issues arise, they can instantly see if they are being addressed and can assist if needed.  They will be better informed when discussing performance with clients and can respond quicker to serious issues.

5. Save time.  The goal of all CMMS Software systems is to save your team time.  From scheduling, to tracking, to reporting, to analysis of performance and cost, your team will have the tools they need to achieve profitable results.  Since work staff has been stretched thin in most facilities, if your on-site managers attempted to perform all of these functions manually, you would find that work doesn’t get done on time, or not done well, or both.

CMMS Software improves your ability to take effective control of facilities, assets, equipment, and maintenance.  A company’s main challenge is to do more with less.  Efficient maintenance processes with instant work performance feedback will help you prevent issues, perform better, improve costs, and prove performance to your clients.

Oct 19

The Value of Building Maintenance Software in Commercial Real Estate

Investing in maintenance for real estate property enhances the value of your property to your company, your tenants, and their clients.  Having a properly maintained property not only adds financial value to your investment, but also livens up the neighborhood, makes people feel welcome, and improves morale for workers in the property.

Commercial properties are in competition for tenants, and the way a property looks not only affects the rent you can charge, but the success of your tenants.  If you have a mid sized to large commercial property, you likely have a maintenance and janitorial staff on hand or use the services of a qualified vendor.

Communication about work that needs to be done should be visible to all invested parties, which is why many companies rely on web based Building Maintenance Software.  There are multiple functions that can be managed with this type Maintenance Software, such as Preventive Maintenance, Work Requests, Periodic Work, Janitorial Services, Landscaping Services, Security, and Snow Removal.

The best part of using web based Building Maintenance Software is the visibility gained.  For example, you will be able to see if all of your janitorial work is completed properly, the trash was picked up, the floors in the restrooms are clean, grounds policing has been done to ensure no debris or trash in laying around outside, etc.

The current  economic climate has forced many companies to cut back on spending, but there comes a point where it will cost you more money to cut any further.  You have to be certain that your support team is keeping up with the maintenance of your building so you provide value to your tenants and ensure your investment remains sound.

Your janitorial and maintenance staff play an important role in the success of a property.  Think about all the tasks performed by these support staff, and if they are not performed well or often enough, what would happen to your investment?

• Would your tenants be able make a positive impression to prospective clients?
• Would vital equipment be able to function without proper cleaning and preventative care?
• What safety hazards would arise from working in that environment?
• Would the overall morale of employees suffer?

The goal of successful commercial properties is to minimize costs while achieving exceptional value.  For many property managers, the best way to experience exceptional value is through optimization of necessary work and communication on optional work to ensure that you don’t waste precious resources.

Your choice of Building Maintenance Software can have a large impact on the value you receive for your investment by improving communication, planning, and execution of your necessary expenses.

Oct 18

Maximize Resources with CMMS Software

Every day poses new challenges to minimize waste for facility management companies in today’s economy.  Maximizing the resources that you already have is critical to your success.

One of the “tools” you may already have is CMMS Software.  You may have had your current CMMS Software for a decade or more, but ask yourself – is your team using it properly?  The biggest challenge facilities face is keeping up with service demand on a tight budget.  If your team was coordinated in a way that was visible to you and your client, they were accountable for their work, and you could prove it – what could your business achieve?

As we all know, we live in a constantly evolving world where business has to be able to turn on a dime.  To keep pace with little to no extra resources is nearly impossible.  So how can you do it?

Companies who have successfully answered that question have started with the easiest way to minimize wasted effort.  They didn’t start out with big ideas, they started with small improvements.  They have worked a little every week to carve out time that allows them to invest that time to carve out even more time the next week.  They worked on Preventive Action to avoid wasted effort and needless “emergencies”.

It hasn’t been easy for companies to make that transition, but it has been worthwhile.  Because they began making the most of their current systems, they were then in a position to evaluate how they needed their CMMS Software system to work.  They clearly defined what objective had to be met, spent the time they have carved out to implement their optimized solution, and made the extra effort in management to ensure they were successful.

So ask yourself again, “How can you do it?”  You will probably have to embrace an element of “bootstrapping” that start up companies use to survive and thrive.  Once you have identified your bootstrapping opportunities, your choice of CMMS Software can be a critical component of the solution.  We have found that the most flexible systems give you a better chance of success, since they can adapt to course corrections that are needed to achieve your management goals.

Web based CMMS Software gives you the visibility needed to raise accountability, improve client understanding of your value, and provide the management oversight you need to succeed.  By maintaining a database of the information needed to get the job done, this tool works hand in hand with everyone who is critical to your success.

Getting the most from your CMMS Software investment is a logical next step towards managing your company’s future.