Asset Performance Management (APM)

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Asset performance management (APM) is an approach to managing assets that involves data collection and analytics to achieve asset reliability, availability, and business goals. Modern APM takes traditional asset management strategies and combines them with digital technology to improve asset reliability and maintenance. You will often hear this term when referencing asset performance management systems. APM systems provide tools to limit risk and cost while still improving asset availability and reliability.

How Do APM Systems Compare to Other Software?

There are a few different types of software for asset and maintenance management, so here’s a quick comparison:

  • Computerized Maintenance Management System (CMMS) – software that manages all aspects of maintenance, including service requests, work orders, inventory, maintenance activities, and inspections. The goal of a CMMS is typically to extend asset lifespan.
  • Enterprise Asset Management (EAM) – software that does everything a CMMS does but with additional features to measure and control asset performance. An EAM handles the bigger picture beyond just managing maintenance, including accounting, compliance, production, and more.
  • Asset Performance Management (APM) – software that tracks, manages, and analyzes the performance of operational assets to reduce risk and increase availability, reliability, and productivity.

Benefits of Asset Performance Management

Implementing APM in your business brings more benefits than just increasing asset reliability and reducing costs. An APM system helps you optimize your maintenance plan by eliminating ineffective preventive maintenance. In turn, this improves equipment efficiency and productivity. This carries through to all of your company’s processes, as your APM helps you identify inefficiencies and bottlenecks in workflows. Any time that you improve your asset management you will also create a safer work environment. An APM will aid in detecting problems before equipment failure or an accident happens. All of these benefits combine to result in improvements to reliability, productivity, and expenses.

How to Implement APM in Your Business

How you implement APM in your business will depend on your business objectives. An APM with the goal of optimizing your preventive maintenance plan will be different from APM systems with other goals. These are some of the various ways to implement APM in your business:

  • Total System Analysis – Your APM pulls data from sensors and individual assets as well as work orders, inventory counts, and how your assets work together as a whole. If you have performed root cause analysis on your equipment failures, then you know that it’s rarely an isolated issue.
  • Predictive Maintenance Planning – Predictive maintenance is more cost-effective than reactive or preventive maintenance because it is driven by condition monitoring and real asset performance data. Your APM system could analyze this data, detect anomalies, and alert you of issues before a failure occurs. This enables you to perform as-needed maintenance.
  • Compliance and Safety Regulation – To reduce accidents, decrease liability, and improve workplace safety, you can set APM data filters according to compliance regulations and safety requirements.
  • Asset and Component Prioritization – Some components or assets are best ran to failure. Others have a greater downtime impact and are worth failure prevention efforts. An APM helps categorize your assets and components and prioritize their maintenance for the best results.

Create a Data-Driven Business

When implemented properly, asset performance management ensures that your maintenance culture is fueled by data. It saves you and your team time by digitizing data collection, analysis, and automating important notifications. However, an APM is best utilized when it integrates with software that automates your entire work order and maintenance process. The first step is to get clear on your business and maintenance goals, then you can add APM technology to your process. Finally, you simply have to make sure you use the APM system to reap the benefits and return on your investment. A study by Harvard Business Review found that less than 50% of a company’s data is used in making decisions. If you’re investing in data collection, reporting, and analysis, you should make sure the data reaches the decision-makers in your organization because it offers incredibly valuable insight. Book an EAM software demo today!

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