Expanding the use of maintenance software

Since I started writing this column a couple of years ago, we’ve always looked at ways to use the CMMS to track maintenance. Over the past few months some of our more advanced readers have looked for more ways to expand the use of the program.

In this article we’re going to explore some of the ways our customers have found to help address non-maintenance related issues. Other departments have adopted a CMMS program to suit their needs while not interfering with the maintenance department’s activities and their use of the software.

The industries we encounter have other internal programs, corporate initiatives and external agencies that all require scheduled activities, inspections, data records and various reports. Let’s look at how these companies have used their CMMS programs to help streamline their workflow processes.

The food industry is required to do sanitation on processing equipment on a very strict cleaning and sanitizing schedule. The procedures to do the sanitation must be continually updated and the sanitation crew must follow them to the ‘T’.

They use checklists to record their work and record abnormalities. Many companies have been using spreadsheets to manage the sanitation program. They manually schedule and print off the sanitation worksheets on a weekly basis. In a large food processing facility with hundreds of pieces of equipment, this scheduling process becomes overwhelming. So what is the answer to this dilemma? The CMMS, of course.

The maintenance department is already using the CMMS to record maintenance. The very same CMMS equipment list can be used for the sanitation program. The sanitation schedule is nothing more than a PM program.

Using CMMS to manage the sanitation activities is relatively simple. Sanitation procedures and frequencies are created in the software and sanitation work orders are generated on an assigned frequency — the same as maintenance activities. Sanitation reports can be easily created using the CMMS reports module. Managing the sanitation program becomes easy. Updating procedures, creating checklists, recording abnormalities and requests for follow-up work all fit nicely into the functionality of the CMMS.

Using the capabilities of the CMMS to separate the maintenance and sanitation PMs and work orders keeps everyone from getting confused.

Another area that the CMMS can be used is with the company’s safety program. Safety is always a top priority at any workplace. Being able to record safety issues and follow their progress to their resolution is important to the safety committee and to management.

Using the CMMS to record safety concerns and issue work orders to track safety activities makes the management of the safety program more effective. Anyone with access to the CMMS can enter safety work requests, review current safety requests and view the scheduled completion dates, including the person responsible to get the work done.

Safety reports can easily be created and printed for safety meetings. Monthly and yearly safety compliance reports and graphs can be posted on safety bulletin boards. If needed, records can be produced to satisfy provincial OH&S officers.

Next, let’s look at improvement programs or special designations that give the company an accreditation of some sort. It can be a level of ISO validation and in the food processing it may be a HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points) accreditation.

These types of improvement programs require practices and procedures to be followed, and the results documented and audited.

Changes and improvements to the manufacturing process, equipment, building and the processing environment need to be recorded. Once again the CMMS can play a key role in managing these activities. Improvement work orders can track where and when the work was done, as well as the costs, related parts and materials used for the job. The work orders create a record of events that can be easily audited by internal and external audits. We tell our clients to stop and look at all of their company-wide improvement initiatives and to consider using their CMMS to record and monitor their progress.

By far the need for accurate and accessible documentation comes from the need to satisfy external watchdog agencies.

Our own CFIA (Canadian Federal Inspection Agency) regulates most anything that will affect public safety. It routinely inspects and audits food processors and looks for accurate records to validate food safety compliance. Equipment maintenance and sanitation records as well as HACCP inspection reports are key reports the agency often requests. These records and reports can easily be pulled from your CMMS.

Other agencies such as the ABI (American Baking Institute) and the many customer audits all require similar documentation.

Although these agencies still require you to produce paper records and inspection reports, a move towards accepting electronic data is well underway. Electronic signatures offered by some CMMS developers have opened the door to eliminating the need to keep paper records.

Employee training records are yet another opportunity to use the CMMS software. Employee training records with completion and expiry dates can be entered into the software. Records needed to plan training activities are easily accessible to the person responsible for company training.

Many companies use separate databases and spreadsheets to keep track of all of these programs. Check the capability of your CMMS. Can it handle more than just maintenance activities? Does it have the functionality to filter out or somehow segregate the different uses of the program, as discussed in this article? Just think all your data in one place. One software to learn. One database to maintain. It makes for simple and easy one-stop shopping.MRO

Machinery & Equipment MRO software editor Peter Phillips of Trailwalk Holdings, a CMMS consulting and training company based in Nova Scotia, can be reached at 902-798-3601 or by e-mail at peter@trailwalk.ca, or visit www.trailwalk.ca. Special thanks go to Peter’s colleague, Sherrill Spicer, for her input into this article. Sherrill has been working with quality and sanitation departments for several years and has been a key player in helping companies integrate special activities with their CMMS software. If you have questions, Sherrill can be reached by e-mail at sherrill@trailwalk.ca.

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