It's a challenge to ensure that maintenance is done on time, that budgets are adhered to and management is streamlined. This is without taking into account the fact that cost constraints can impact employment and this often results in less staff working shorter hours on increasing volumes equipment. On the flip side, of course, is the demand on the business to work harder and faster and to remain highly competitive in a busy market.
This trend of 'do more with less' is showing no sign of abating and so the organisation needs to change the mantra to one that reads - do more, with less, intelligently. Use maintenance budgets and relevant personnel more efficiently to ensure systems are maintained effectively and performance improved. It's a simplistic view and one that doesn't take the myriad of factors impacting this industry into account, and yet the solution that can address all these qualities is just as simple.
Technology. This has the potential to play a pivotal role. Solutions that are scalable and flexible and that allow the organisation the freedom to adjust costs and implementations to suit specific site needs and requirements are essential. Keystone Electronics recently released their Remote Maintenance Management System (RMM), a remote unit that can be installed into plants and onto equipment and is capable of enhancing the management and control of a site through remote management and data interpretation.
It ticks the boxes when it comes to elegance and cost-effectiveness. It's easy to install and has been designed to be as user-friendly as possible, mitigating issues around downtime post installation for training. The web-based user interface is simple, customisable and extendable, and it ensures that the organisation doesn't have to expend extra costs to roll out the solution as applications are available across the corporate LAN. RMM also integrates into any environment, utilising legacy systems and connecting easily with existing ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) systems.
The management platform is completely free of charge. There is no cost of ownership and no hidden license fees. Which is always rather nice. It's also scalable and customisable and provides the organisation with significant control over the data pulled from site and equipment.
The typical plant has to manage a number of data points in each cycle and these cover the % RAV (Replacement Asset Value), the span of control and so much more. It's a complicated business and further impacted by inefficient maintenance strategies that cause reactive repairs as opposed to a more structured proactive system that's capable of assessing systems and determining why performance is being impacted in specific areas and then ensuring more focused maintenance and repair. It is in this arena that solutions such as Keystone's RMM really shine as they provide rich data seams that can be quickly interpreted and used to improve existing processes or monitor certain sites.
The Keystone RMM is simple and yet it masters a highly complex situation. Its design ensures that maintenance schedules are adhered to, that the right people receive emails at the right times and that any delayed activities are escalated to avoid mistakes or down time. It also helps reduce the impact of the challenges presented by the modern economies of scale and provides the organisation with greater control within intelligent parameters. Exactly what the doctor ordered.
