11/23/2015 MakingSenseOfPlantMaintenanceMaintenanceTechnology

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4464 2:19pm March13,2013

MakingSenseOfPlantMaintenance

Despitegrowingacceptance,SAPsPlantMaintenance(PM)functionremains
misunderstoodandunderused.Hereshowtochangethat.

ByDanielVanWyk,QuadroSolutions

SAPR/3(realtimedataprocessing,3tier),orECC(EnterpriseCentralComponent),isanEnterpriseResourcePlanningtoolthatprovides
facilitiesanintegratedsolutionformanagingbusinessoperationsandcustomerrelations.TheSAPPM(PlantMaintenance)moduleisasubset
ofSAPEAM(EnterpriseAssetManagement).SAPPMcontainsthekeyMaintenancePlanningandSchedulingfunctionalitiestosupport
successfulassetorequipmentmaintenance.TheultimatechallengeforamaintenancedepartmentishowtooptimizeandintegrateSAP
PM/EAMsystemfunctionalityfortheplanningandschedulingofrepairs,inspectionsandSTO(shutdown,turnaround,outage)activitiesthat
supporteffectiveassetmanagement.

WhenanindustrialorganizationrunsSAP,ittypicallyincludestheSAPEAMprogram,whichencompassestheSAPPMmodulethat
supportsMaintenanceandReliability.Basedonthisarrangement,userstypicallyexpectthattheywillbeabletoeffectivelymanagemaintenance
planningandschedulingtotrackandanalyzerepairsandinspections.

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Management,foritspart,usuallywillbeexpectingsomethingelse:Itdesirespowerfulreportingthatcanhelptocontrolandpossiblyreduce
theamountofreactivework,whileatthesametimemaximizeproactivework.Despitesuchhighexpectations,however,mostSAP
implementationsneverreachtheirhopedforbusinessobjectives.Consequently,SAPusersareoftenunhappytothepointthatmanyconsider
theirimplementationstobefailures.CommoncomplaintsinvolvetheimpropersetupofSAPfunctions,whichcanleadtosystemmisuseunder
utilizationofthesystemduetoitscomplexityandthebeliefthatthesystemcantsupporttheorganizationsneeds.

(Clicktoenlarge)

Fig.1.Manufacturingandmaintenanceorganizationstypicallygothroughmultiplephasesofimplementing,improvingand
maturingtheirSAPPM/EAMfunctionalitybeforetheyreachacceptableoradvancedbusinessbenefits.Typically,theinitial
corefunctionalitythatsimplementeddoesnotgivetheexpectedmaintenanceandreliabilitybenefitsbecauseofthefocus
onthesystemimplementation.Witheveryimplementationcomesincreasedworkloadsandsteeplearningcurvesdueto
SAPsextensivefunctionality.Thischallenge,alongwithhighcostandotherdistractingpriorities,meansabout70%of
organizationsimplementSAPscorefunctionalityonly,rollitout,thenleavetheuserstotheirowndevices.Around30%
areunhappywiththelimitedROItheyrealized,andstartpostgoliveimprovementeffortstocaptureadditionalbenefits.
About10%ofallimplementationsmaturetothepointwherefullbenefitsarerealized.

Isitthesystemorthepeople?
ThemanyyearsIvespentimplementingandoptimizingSAPPMfororganizationsaroundtheglobehaveledmetoconcludethatperceived
implementationfailuresandsuccessesneedtobecarefullyevaluated.Itsimportanttounderstandtheexactcircumstancesandcriteriausedto
makesuchevaluations.Forexample,isitpossiblethatmanysuccessfulimplementationsofSAPPM/EAMwereoncefailurestosomeextent?
Figure1offersanexplanation.(Note:TableIsupportsFig.1withadditionaldetailsonthefourtypicalimplementationandimprovementphases.)

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ManyfactorscanworkagainstanSAPimplementationfromtheverybeginning.Theseincludenotonlyeachorganizations
uniquehistoryandculture,butalsospecificexperienceswithvariousCMMS/EAMsystemspriortoSAP,theiruseofdifferent
maintenanceandreliabilityinitiativesandvaryingpreferencesinhowacompanyapproachesimprovementandoptimization.
Basedonmyownexperience,useofSAPPM/EAMpriortoanybusinessfocusedoptimizationeffortnormallyvariesbetween5
and60%,withanaverageof10to20%.SmallfacilitiestypicallyuseverylittleofSAPafteranimplementationlargersitestendto
usemoreofthesystemfunctionality.Ingeneral,70%ofimplementationsleavemaintenanceandreliabilityinpoorshape,and
withoutwelldefinedworkprocesses,systemsordocumentationinplace.

ExceptionstodoexistusuallywherebusinessdrivenorganizationslearnedhowtoimplementSAPPM/EAMcorrectlyfromthestart.SAPisa
verystructuredandrobustsystem,withenoughfunctionalitytoalloworganizationstosuccessfullymanagemaintenanceplanningand
schedulingandtherelatedworkprocesses.Buttooperatesuccessfullyrequirescreativethinking,anindepthknowledgeofSAPandagood
understandingofhowmaintenanceworks.ThefollowingcasestudyexplainshowacompanyrunningSAPPMlaunchedapostgolive
businessdriveninitiativetoimprovemaintenanceandreliability,and,intheprocess,alsooptimizeditsSAPPM/EAMsystem.

SAPPMonthejob
Thereferencedcompanyowns30+specialtychemicalmanufacturingsitesaroundtheworld.Itswellestablishedimprovementculture
encouragescontinuousimprovementeffortsbyindividualsandgroups.PriortoimplementingSAPPM/EAM,theorganizationsuccessfully
implementedandrolledoutacoupleofCMMSsystemsglobally.Inaddition,amaintenanceandreliabilityimprovementinitiativewasstarted,with
limitedresults.Thecompanywasnotnewtoimprovementinitiativesand,intime,establishedagoodinternalknowledgebaseandunderstanding
ofbestpracticesinmaintenanceandreliability.

ThecompanystrivedtoincreaseitsOEE(OverallEquipmentEffectiveness)andunderstoodthattheMaintenancePlanningandScheduling
workprocesswasthecoreofmaintenanceexecution.Withoutimprovingandestablishingaproficientmaintenanceexecutionvehicle,itwould
havebeenimpossibletorealizemeaningfulresults,andtheorganizationwouldhaveremainedreactivewithlimitedOEEandloweredproduct
quality.Managementknewitwasimportanttoformaninternalimprovementteamcomprisedofoperationsandmaintenancepersonnel,which
wouldleadtodevelopmentofbroadbased,practicalsolutions.Theyalsorecognizedtheimportanceofhavingteamchampionswhocouldhelp
promoteacceptance.

Still,thecompanylackedtheinhouseknowledgeofSAPPM/EAMtomaximizesystemintegrationinsupportofitswork
processes.Theyneededprofessionalsupporttooptimizeexistingdatastandardsandstructures,transactionalexecutionand
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processes.Theyneededprofessionalsupporttooptimizeexistingdatastandardsandstructures,transactionalexecutionand
reporting.MyconsultinggroupprovidedthemtheindepthSAPPM/EAMknowledge,andhelpeddesign,documentand
implementadrasticallyoptimizedSAPsystem.Subsequently,thecompanylaunchedapilotimplementationthatwasfollowedby
globalrolloutstomultiplesites.Theapproachwastofirstimplementmaintenanceimprovements,followedbyreliability
improvements.OptimizationofSAPPM/EAMformedaveryimportantandmajorpartofbothimprovementphases.

SpecificSAPPM/EAMgapsthatthecompanyexperiencedpriortotheimprovementeffortincluded:

Incompleteequipment/assetstructures
NotallmaintenanceworkwasprocessedthroughSAP
Poorcommunicationofequipment/systemproblems
LimiteduseofSAPbillsofmaterial
SAPTaskListsnotusedtooutlinerepetitiverepairwork
UnclearonsetupofMaintenancePlansforsingleequipment,complexequipment/systemorinspectionroutes
PMcomplianceandmanagementcouldntbeexecutedwithinSAP
Workloadsandbacklogswereexpressedintermsofopennotificationandordercounts,makingitimpossibletodetermineifworkcrew
numbersweresufficienttomaintainstableworkloads,whileminimizingdeferredbackloggedwork.

ThecompanysubsequentlyimplementedthefollowingworkprocessandSAPPM/EAMimprovements:

ThesiteverifieditsSAPFunctionalLocationandEquipmentStructures.This,inturn,resultedinapproximately4000
structuraladditionsandchangestocompleteandadjustitsassetstructures.
ImprovedoverallworkidentificationqualityusingSAPNotificationstocaptureallworkwithintheSystem,withwelldefinedstandardsthat
enabledclearcommunicationofequipmentproblems/symptoms.
Establishedadvancedjobplanningstandardsforworkordersandtasklists,outliningeveryplantoincludeallresourceneedswithhours,
alongwithfulltaskdescriptions,activities,safetyrequirementsandmore.Thishelpedtheplannersandengineersbuildcompleterepair
tasklistlibrariesandbillsofmaterial(sparepartslists)which,inturn,resultedinfasterworkturnaroundsandreducedplannerworkloads
by20%.
DefinedadvancedMaintenancePlanstandards,witheasytouseoverduepreventivemaintenancereports
EstablishedacomprehensiveschedulingmethodologytoworkseamlesslywiththeSAPschedulingtransactionstopublishschedules
weekly
Addedcustomreportsthatallowedforbetterworkloadmanagement,KPIreportingandtrending.

MostoftheaboveimprovementswereachievedbymaximizingthestandardSAPPM/EAMfunctionality,withtheexceptionoftheadvanced
reports.Priortotheimprovementeffort,overallworkprocesscomplianceandsystemuseatthepilotsitewasmeasuredat60%.Thisincreased
tomorethan80%overninemonths.Theseresultswereachievedthrougheffectivetrainingalongwithnumerouscoachingsessions.

Theoptimizationprocess
OptimizationofSAPPM/EAMcannotbeeffectivelyperformediftheprojectisexecutedinisolation.Itsnecessarytothoroughlyincorporateand
integrateallkeyaspectsrequiredtoimprovetheMaintenanceandReliabilityorganization.Manyorganizationsmakethemistakeofeither
skippingoverorrushingthroughtheprocessofsettingclearobjectives,andtheyfailtobenchmarkbestpractices.Conversely,othersmay
actuallydothiswork,butneverincorporatetheirfindingsintotheworkprocessdesignandsystemsetup.

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(Clicktoenlarge.)

Fig2.TheeffectiveandsustainableoptimizingofSAPPM/EAMcanonlybeaccomplishedifanorganizationworksthrough
andimplementsthekeyaspectsshownintheMaintenance&ReliabilityOptimizationWheel.

ToachieveawelltailoredsetofworkprocessesthatissupportedbytheSAPsystemandalignedwiththeorganization,itis
necessarytobethoroughineverystepalongtheway.Thiswillsetthestageforhighlevelsofcomplianceandsystemutilization,
whichwillyieldmuchhighermaintenanceandreliabilitybenefits(seeFig.2).

ThebestplacetostartSAPPMoptimizationistocomparethestatusofyourmaintenanceandreliabilitylandscapetoa
comprehensiveframework.Thiswillhelpyourorganizationunderstandwhichaspectsworkwell,workonlypartiallyordonot
workatall.Figure3showsasampleassessmentoverviewwithMaintenancePlanningandSchedulingatthecore.

(Clicktoenlarge.)

Fig.3.Thissampleassessmentisaresultofinterviewswithaplantsmaintenance,reliability,operationsandsupport
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Fig.3.Thissampleassessmentisaresultofinterviewswithaplantsmaintenance,reliability,operationsandsupport
organizationsandathoroughreviewofSAPPM/EAMfunctionality,standardsandutilization.

Theassessmentmustbeperformedwithinthecontextofbusinessobjectives,benchmarkedgoals,bestpracticesandtheoptimal
useofSAPPM/EAM.Itsimportanttoassembleasmallteamthatunderstandstheseareasandhowtheyworktogethertocreate
synergeticresults.Thismaymeangettingexperthelpfromcorporateorfromspecialtycompanies.

ThesuccessfuloptimizationofSAPPM/EAMisalwayspartofacomprehensiveMaintenanceandReliabilityinitiative.Itis
imperativetoestablishadedicatedinhouseteamwithstrongleadership,whosefocusistoreachbusinessobjectives.Itis
importantthatduringtheoptimizationproject,inhouseexpertiseisdevelopedandexpandedtoensurelonglastingresults.To
achievehighlevelsofsuccesswillmeansteppingoutsidethecomfortzone.Assembletheteamandtakethenecessarytimeto
crafthighquality,integrated,practical,yetsimplifiedsolutionsandengageyourorganizationbyeducating,trainingandcoaching
themonyourvisionandbusinessobjectives.MT

DanielVanWykisPresidentofQuadroSolutions,basedinHouston,TX.Hehasover17yearsofexperienceinSAPEAM(PM)
consulting,customsoftwaredevelopmentandtraining.Email:Daniel.VanWyk@ERPEAM.com.Website:www.Quadro
Solutions.com.

TipsForConfiguringAndUsingYourSAPPM/EAM
MostSAPPM/EAMsystemsareconfiguredwithamainfocusononlyafewkeytransactions.Theremainderofthesystemis
normallysetupincorrectlyorisoverlooked,makingitdifficultforuserstonavigatethesystemanduseitefficiently.To
successfullyconfigureanduseyourSAPPM/EAM,considerthefollowing:

Hideunusedtransactionalscreensandfields.
Setupstandardselectionvariantsforalllistreports.
Setupstandardlayoutsforalllistreports.
Activateandconfigureadvancedtransactionalfunctionstoextendcurrentworkprocesscapability.
UsetheInformationSystemreportsinSAP(standardanalysisofstatistics)
Developandmaximizeyourusersnavigationalcapabilities.
Establishcustomreportstoallowadvancedmanagementandtrendingcapabilitiesforenhancedvisibilityandcontrolofthe
organization.

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Jointhediscussion

SapPm 9monthsago
Itsveryusefulandinteresting.ThisisagoodchancetotakedecisssiontomotiviatebeforegoingtoPM
http://sappmtraining.com/
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Big2TexManagersdon'toverlookpsychology.
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makeadifference.Askyourself,howmany
TheBusinessCaseForAssetReliability
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Roland_Stilesifitjamsforceit,ifitbreaksit
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makesurethatyouareontherighttrackand
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bdhodgesThebestALM/EAMsolution(suite)
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