A Comprehensive CMMS Work Order Management System

• The requester’s name.
• Who is authorizing the work order.
• The name of the technician completing the work order.
• The details of the task, including relevant documentation or spare parts.
• The requested date of completion.

Today, work order requests are becoming digitized in computerized maintenance management systems or EAM software. This can help ensure that the work order is seen and completed in a timely manner. It can also help users be sure to include all important details.

Standard:

A standard work order is generally issued for non-critical, routine maintenance tasks. For example, setting up a new piece of equipment or hauling away an old asset would fall under the standard work order category.

Preventive maintenance:

Preventive maintenance work orders are forward-thinking work orders that focus on scheduled tasks and repairs. The ultimate goal with preventive work orders is to address maintenance needs before they become concerns, thereby extending asset life, reducing equipment downtime and decreasing expensive repairs over time.

Reactive:

A reactive work order, in the other hand, is generated when there is a breakdown or an emergency with a piece of equipment. The issue needs to be addressed ASAP when a reactive work order is issued.

Corrective maintenance:

A corrective maintenance work order aims to resolve flaws or asset issues that are not emergencies by nature.

Prepare for inspections:

A prepare for inspections work order is a work order that uses predetermined inspection parameters to help ensure that assets – and your facility as a whole – remain compliant with inspections.

• Increased technician efficiency
• Reduced equipment downtime
• Improved facility safety
• More connected systems
• Organization of assets across devices
• Better team management

Work orders are crucial to the operation of any asset-heavy business. They are used to initiate tasks, explain what needs to be done, establish start and end dates and ultimately keep an asset running. With an effective work order software, organizations can maximize uptime, control labor costs, remain compliant and make incremental improvements to their operations.

• Downtime tracking
• The processing and management of work order requests
• Data mining
• Inventory management
• Warranty tracking
• Compliance tracking

A computerized maintenance management system (CMMS) is an enterprise business system that helps companies automate, digitize and optimize their maintenance operations. More specifically, a robust CMMS software will allow your business to effectively budget, prioritize work orders, reduce downtime, increase efficiency and more – all from one centralized, customizable solution.

While both computerized maintenance management systems (CMMS) and enterprise asset management (EAM) systems work to help organizations move from reactive to preventive maintenance strategies, there are key differences between the tools. In general, a CMMS work order software can fit under the EAM system umbrella as CMMS systems tend to focus on asset and facility maintenance during the operational part of an asset’s lifecycle. An EAM, on the other hand, provides a broader range of capabilities that allow organizations to track, manage and analyze their asset performance throughout the entire asset lifecycle. That said, many modern and robust CMMS solutions like Maintenance Connection have EAM functionalities – and the system can be upgraded or downgraded as needed over time.

Corrective maintenance:

This type of maintenance is carried out when an anomaly or flaw is detected. The goal of this maintenance practice is to fix the flaw and maintain uptime. Corrective maintenance tasks may be more cost-effective than preventive maintenance in the short-term, but its short-sighted nature makes it an ineffective long-term strategy.

Preventive maintenance:

Preventive maintenance strategy involves scheduled, forward-thinking maintenance based on key metrics and data points. An effective preventive maintenance strategy can ultimately increase asset life, maximize revenue and decrease equipment downtime.

Condition-based maintenance:

Condition-based maintenance aims to prevent failure through regular asset-check-ups and performance monitoring. In other words, equipment is constantly assessed and maintained, which requires significantly more coordination and manpower than other strategies.

Predictive maintenance:

Predictive maintenance, as the name suggests, aims to preemptively predict asset failures before they arise using data, sensors and IoT technology. Because it relies so intrinsically on data and technology, predictive maintenance comes with a higher up-front cost, and it is not yet feasible for many organizations.

Routine maintenance should be conducted within specific timeframes and on a regular schedule to prevent the common pain points that come with reactive maintenance practices, including asset breakdowns, unplanned downtime, high instance of emergency repairs and equipment failure.