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Top CMMS Integrations to Consider

Top CMMS Integrations to Consider

The buzzword, “continual improvement,” is a hard one to miss. No matter how it’s worded, the notion of making changes that positively affect your business isn’t new. If you’re exploring ways to continually improve your maintenance operations, consider the benefits of integrating your computerized maintenance management software (CMMS) with other business applications. Software integrations can vastly increase the efficiency of your everyday operations and processes. Read on to learn our top CMMS integrations for your business.

Combining CMMS software with other relevant components of your organization helps eliminate duplicate or redundant processes. For example, critical information that is typically only found in a CMMS can be utilized by additional departments to improve the accuracy of their operations. The likelihood of errors decreases dramatically when systems communicate directly with one another. [Read more…]

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5 Tips on Getting Great Sleep

5 Tips on Getting Great Sleep

Lately, I’ve been struggling with poor quality sleep.  Sleep has a huge impact on my mood and the insomnia has contributed to increased suicidal ideation and depression.  Ironically, the reason why my sleep quality has decreased is due to the new medication I am taking for depression (when I’m through this, I will talk about this more.  Right now, it’s too raw of a subject). [Read more…]

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The Risk Matrix as a Communication Tool

The Risk Matrix as a Communication Tool

Not all risks the same. Some are minor with little consequence, while others are not. Every organization or reliability program facings a plethora of risks and being able to communicate the range of identified risks is helped by using a risk matrix.

The risk matrix is a simple two-dimensional grid that lays out on one access the expected consequence of risk, from minor to catastrophic. The other axis has the likelihood or occurrence of the risk becoming realized, ranging from rare too certain.

The boxes within the grid then contain classifications ranging from low to extreme, which provide a prioritization to address the risk in some fashion. Low-risk items are those with rare occurrences and insignificant consequences. The other end of the spectrum are extreme risks that are almost certain to occur and have catastrophic results. [Read more…]

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(Thermal) Accelerated testing – how do I do it?

(Thermal) Accelerated testing – how do I do it?

As we make things to be more and more reliable, it gets harder and harder to make them fail in reliability tests. On the one hand – that’s great. On the other hand – that sucks if we want to use testing to help measure reliability. So if we are focused on measuring reliability through testing, we need to make our product or system fail in test conditions (without making it less reliable) but make sure these test conditions can somehow be translated back to how customers are going to use it. This is where accelerated testing comes in. [Read more…]

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Risk & Reliability of Transformers

Risk & Reliability of Transformers

by Alan Ross

Getting experts to agree on most things is challenging at best, and often,downright impossible. Getting transformer experts to agree might be even more challenging. Despite the fact that transformers have been around for nearly a century—and with varying opinions on transformer design and maintenance—most experts agree that not all transformer failures are alike. Also widely recognized is that the life of the insulation or paper is the primary limiting factor towards the life of the transformer. [Read more…]

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MRO Technology — 1

MRO Technology — 1

Here are a couple of curious observations:

  1. End users and providers of ERPs (enterprise management systems) are often technologically very backward in this specialty of managing MRO supplies.
  2. There are but a handful of specialists (experts) in this field who have developed any sort of advanced technological solutions, yet they remain somewhat obscure.

Whilst there is considerable knowledge and expertise available it does not seem to get far beyond those specialists. [Read more…]

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Artificial Intelligence: The Next Undiscovered Country

Artificial Intelligence: The Next Undiscovered Country

Guest Post by Joseph Paris (first posted on CERM ® RISK INSIGHTS – reposted here with permission)

In William Shakespeare’s “The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark” (usually referred to simply as “Hamlet”), the main character, Hamlet, uses the phrase “undiscovered country” to refer to what lies beyond the grave – the afterlife – and our lack of knowledge of it, and our fear of it.  As it is with death, so is it with “Artificial Intelligence”, or “AI”.

Simply put, AI are the sciences involved in having computers gather and evaluate information (data in context) – whether that information is stored, or is gathered in real-time, or combinations thereof – and to make decisions based on that information towards some pre-determined outcome or objective.  Each decision made leads to an experience which is archived and added to the information that is stored to help make better decisions in the future. [Read more…]

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Importance of Maintenance Planning and Scheduling

Importance of Maintenance Planning and Scheduling

The relationship between maintenance planning and scheduling is similar to that of love and marriage, peanut butter and jelly, or bacon and eggs. It’s difficult to have one without the other. Each of these vital disciplines influences the other. But each is a distinct and separate process and, when performed properly, not really a feat of engineering but more an art form due to the vast number of activities required.

The disciplines for maintenance planning and scheduling are among the premises leading to the utilization of CMMS programs. It is helpful to have a solid, proven manual system in place for planning and scheduling before embarking upon utilization of a CMMS program for planning and scheduling. If a well-defined and functioning manual system exists, it makes the transition to the computerized system easier and more understandable. [Read more…]