Organizations use a management system to achieve objectives. While these systems vary, they all include a set of policies, processes, and procedures for an organization’s operations like financial, production, quality, safety, regulatory compliance, human resources, etc.

CMMS software provides a tool that can be used in any management system. Sometimes you’ll hear vendors claim their CMMS software will guarantee compliance with a specific management system, but that’s not really true. Instead, CMMS complements the system.

However, the benefits of CMMS software can work for any management system. Some of the most common include…

• Lean Manufacturing
• Total Productive Maintenance
• Process Safety Management System
• Quality Management System
• Total Quality Management
• Six Sigma
• SAE Standard for Reliability Centered Maintenance
• Kanban
• Agile

For example, your company might use the Lean Manufacturing system, which incorporates management principles to eliminate waste, optimize processes, cut costs, boost innovation, and reduce time to market. Maintenance plays a role in all of these principles, and CMMS software supports your team with Lean policies, processes, and procedures. For example, CMMS works in conjunction with the philosophy of Lean Manufacturing as it pinpoints areas where productivity can be improved, thereby helping eliminate waste.

Why Use a CMMS Software Solution?

CMMS software excels at tracking the details of your increasingly complex maintenance operation. CMMS also helps promote and maintain policies, processes and procedures with the features your maintenance team needs, including…

• Tracking employee health and safety information
• Documenting work procedures to make sure they are being followed
• Keeping production equipment safe and reliable
• Ensuring all safety inspections and tests are done properly and on schedule
• Determining when it’s time to repair or replace malfunctioning equipment
• Documenting work orders and preventive maintenance on key assets
• Creating reports for audits and other regulatory compliance needs
• Archiving work and asset history
• Storing employee training and certifications
• Tracking incidents
• Enabling user-defined permissions, access, and login control
• Supporting electronic signatures with limited access to a specific signature field to enter approval

The advantages of using CMMS software benefit organizations in multiple ways that contribute to management objectives. For example, CMMS offers financial benefits by efficiently scheduling and tracking preventive maintenance tasks on your critical assets. Your CMMS system also notifies you in a timely manner when these services are due, so your team is on top of it. Additionally, staying current on your PM services helps your assets work better and more efficiently for longer—saving money and energy as well as reducing emissions along the way.

Waste reduction is another big area.  For example, you can reduce material waste by improving the tracking of purchase orders and inventory. Knowing exactly what you have on hand prevents over-ordering and stocking unneeded parts or materials. Not only do you prevent waste of inventory, but you also save the energy needed to transport and store unnecessary stock. Additionally, when you start using electronic records and mobile devices for work order management and inventory management, you reduce the use of office supplies like paper and ink.

Regulatory Compliance

Even if your organization doesn’t follow a specific management system, everyone must work with guidelines from regulatory agencies. CMMS also offers operations benefits that can help organizations maintain compliance with agencies such as …

• OSHA
• ISO
• FDA
• FAA
• USDA

CMMS software provides a reliable central repository for your maintenance and safety data. That’s why CMMS software is the right solution to help companies cope with complex guidelines from their industry’s regulatory agencies.

With CMMS, you’ll have a traceable history of completed maintenance tasks and documented policies. Then, you can prove that you’re acting in accordance with an agency’s guidelines.

Have questions? Contact us. We’re here to help.