As the pressure to deliver more value to stakeholders mount and decreasing margins is a reality, ‘Do more with less” is fast becoming the business mantra of many organisations. This change in thinking is shining a new light on asset management, the pursuit to optimally and sustainably manage the performance, risk and expenditure of assets and asset systems over their life cycles as part of the organisational strategic plan.
As part of this journey, ISO 55 000 is fast becoming a mandatory requirement from boards who are responsible for delivering more value to investors. As the organisational strategy rolls out from the top and is interpreted by various divisions, the responsibility to implement the requirements to comply with this standard lies with the engineering team.
In itself, no EAM system is the silver bullet to increased asset performance, contained risk and keeping costs down. SAP® EAM, or PM as commonly referred to, is often blamed for poor asset management. In a recent survey by ReliabilityWeb.com, the following reasons for failure were given:
- The majority of the respondents indicated that the implementation of SAP® EAM or PM was done to improve integration across business lines and did not include maintenance as a decision maker in the process
- Failure of allowable time for the system and the work process into which it was being embedded to mature
- Failure to track all work orders and spare parts within the application
- Failure to acquire adequate training in the use of the software, not just at implementation but on a continuous basis
- Failure to abandon previously used (and “loved”) tools.
“The point is that the myth surrounding SAP® EAM or PM’s inability to support maintenance is caused by other issues. It is easier to blame the software, than to institute a set of change and business management processes to support its implementation and optimum use,” says Pragma Managing Director Andries van Heerden.
“To care for and derive real value from assets via a platform such as SAP® EAM, you and your strategic partner have to understand that asset management is a fundamental requirement. Irrespective of the tools, the knowledge and experience in the implementation of asset management business processes, key performance areas, associated best practices and key performance indicators are all part of the asset management puzzle,” says Andries.
Diagnose. Stabilise. Improve. Once you know how your operations compare to industry standards, you’re able to plan ahead. You have to walk before you can run towards to sustainable asset management. The Pragma road map outlines the journey in three phases, namely Maintenance Management Enablement, Zero Unplanned Stops and Sustainable Enterprise Asset Management.
“In addition to Pragma’s Asset Management Improvement Planning (AMIP) assessment, we have developed the SAP® EAM Health Assessment. While the AMIP gives an overview of the maturity and performance of your asset management, the SAP® EAM Health Assessment delivers critical answers that will enable you to determine the actual state of your SAP® EAM system and business processes, and in turn will isolate and identify opportunities for improvement. It looks at how the platform is set up, its configuration, how it is used and populated and if your system is truly a vehicle which can deliver and support your Asset Management goals. ” explains Andries.
To learn more about the SAP® EAM Health Assessment, contact Tyrone van Heerden.
