CAFM & IT: PRODUCT FOCUS TACKLING SHORTAGES
How can mobile asset management help FM businesses get through the dearth of skills and staff? Here, Alan Cambridge, Founder of Peacock Engineering, investigates the benefits of using contemporary EAM solutions.
With personnel shortages and supply chain issues affecting businesses in every industry, it’s becoming increasingly important for companies to use automation wherever possible, to ensure they get the most out of their skilled staff.
This applies particularly to businesses and organisations with widely distributed physical assets. It’s vital that facilities managers don’t waste time when they’re dealing with assets in the field – and that includes making sure that work is performed by the most suitable or closest technician, that jobs are scheduled in the right order, and that the availability of any spares or support that may be required can be checked in advance, to avoid wasted trips.
It’s also critical that information about the asset, and the work carried out, can be captured digitally when out in the field, so that staff don’t have to duplicate work and spend valuable time entering details later. The job details captured can be particularly helpful to facilities management businesses, as they provide immediate digital verification of the work, with the best quality data direct from staff in the field, enabling faster and easier invoicing.
Many larger businesses and organisations, including in the utilities, energy, FM and logistics sectors, have already adopted CAFM or Enterprise Asset Management (EAM) systems to maximise the effectiveness of their physical assets. These systems already enable businesses to automate many activities relating to assets, including scheduling of maintenance, and remote monitoring of assets.
The logical next step in the automation process is to extend the benefits of EAM to workers in the field. Mobile EAM solutions such as Peacock Engineering’s Fingertip, provide a real-time link with the main EAM system. This ensures that your data is always up to date, and that field staff have live and accurate information about the state of work completion, asset information, client feedback, inventory availability, and much more.
Mobile EAM solutions can utilise the GPS capabilities of the mobile device to enable staff to plot their routes, see the geographical location of available work, and get GIS data, enabling automated scheduling. They can also use the device to take and upload images, read barcodes, and store hard signatures for work completed.
Issue work orders in the field Mobile EAM solutions can enable field teams to raise and issue work orders from the work location, capturing client authorisations. This maximises productivity and revenue recovery, while keeping customer satisfaction high by avoiding delay.
48 | TOMORROW’S FM Scheduling and work
assignment Fully featured mobile EAM apps can enable scheduling solutions implemented on your main EAM system to dynamically change work scheduling for your field workers. The app will tell the field worker where his next job is, which can change dynamically depending on the progress of other jobs, and other factors. And the app can also enable a range of scheduling options from drip- feeding work, automatic assignment or available work (backlog). This will allow you to implement the appropriate scheduling processes for your teams.
Enforce your processes at any
location with mobile forms Some mobile EAM apps enable you to configure complex conditional-logic forms, to guide technicians through the process on site. This means you can model complex business processes for users in an intuitive way. You can include data collection as part of the work completion process and capture a digital or hard signature for any or every stage of the process, which gives you a full digital audit trail for all work carried out.
Make inventory changes or order
stock during site visits Field staff can view stocks at all locations and can make changes to stock inventories if required. This can enable you, for example, to operate local depots with security staff only, leaving field supervisors to handle the stock transactions at the depot directly with their mobile EAM app.
Works offline if required A modern mobile EAM solution must also enable your FM teams to work offline, which is critical for working in any environment where there is no mobile service. As soon as the device is back online, all data is synced with your main EAM system.
Other features of mobile EAM solutions include: the ability to calibrate equipment without returning to base; safety and incident reporting; and supply chain management, where purchase orders can be viewed and created.
Switching to mobile asset management technology and digitalising data capture will enable your field teams to instantly record asset data on their mobile devices, and to follow the exact procedures you have laid down in advance, while capturing sign-off on all elements of work carried out. This provides you with assurance that all assets and equipment on site are fully functioning, compliant and safe at all times. The full digital record
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