The week leading up to the Super Bowl is always busy and distracting. We hope everyone had a great time watching the game and/or their favorite commercials. Just in case you did not have the opportunity to see our blogs and voter links as they were published, we have summarized them for you here. Please enjoy them and be sure to check back for new articles during the week. You can find a complete listing on the Mintek Blog.
Posts from last week centered on the reasons you are probably seeing less than a 20 percent utilization of your CMMS/EAMcapabilities. Explanations vary from an unwillingness to accept continual training, a lack of integration of handheld technology and a corporate resistance to accepting maintenance is not a function but a business that can have substantial impact on profitability. The most popular article of the week was Six Factors For Why Your CMMS/EAM Doesn't Do What You Had Hoped For which set the stage for weeks remaining articles by reviewing six major factors influencing the utilization of CMMS/EAM systems.
1. Six Factors For Why Your CMMS/EAM Doesn't Do What You Had Hoped For
Author: Stuart Smith
Inadequate training, no tinkering allowed, missing performance measurements, lack of integration into the daily routine, communication opportunities and a failure to understand the role of a tool are major influences as to why you only getting a fraction of the benefits of your CMMS/EAM.
Key Point: Change starts at the top and everyone is accountable.
2. Replacing Hand Holding with Handhelds For Your EAM
Author: Stuart Smith
The article discusses the use of handheld devices to get back control of your day if you are spending more than 25 percent of your time on getting your staff organized for the day, following up on work requests, handling work orders, and other tasks.
Key point: If you are not using handheld devices you are facing a losing battle to control your time.
3. Cleaning Out The Cobwebs Of Your CMMS/EAM System
Author: Stuart Smith
The article covers the role of senior management when choosing to implement a CMMS/EAM system and how important it is to know what the pain is that you are trying to relieve.
Key Point: The future will see asset management/facilities management viewed as a business and not as a function.
Read Relevant Articles That We Found Last Week
But wait there is more. We have found several more articles that you might find to be interesting and even put them on our website for you to vote on. The 5 best this week are:
1. How to get the most out of your CMMS/EAM system
Authors: Dave Loesch, Stephen Slade
The authors explore the current trends taking place within CMMS/EAM with a look at both the present and future trends emerging. Focus is given to the development and importance of EAM systems.
Key Point: The role of EAM systems is currently undervalued and underutilized. Changes in technology and attitudes will bring EAM systems into proper focus.
2. Pursuing Maintenance and Reliability Improvements – Part 2 – Asset Prioritization
Authors: Dale Reiter
Dale takes a look at determining asset priority by involving multiple departments and approaching the problem as a team with proper change management practices.
Key Point: Too many assets with priorities set higher than needed will raise maintenance costs.
3.Applying CMMS Software
Author: Budda Oliver
Article presents a modest look at how a CMMS is woven into the fabric of an organization and uses for preventive maintenance, work order scheduling as well as inventory/purchasing.
Key Point: Preventative maintenance is the key to operating an efficient facility
4. The growing value of a CMMS
Author: David Berger, P.Eng.
Mr. Berger explores how to build the business case for better asset management. The article is a good starting point for facility managers seeking methods of justification for a CMMS upgrade or purchase. There is a nice chart of potential savings for a variety of categories.
Key Point: CMMS systems are needed to help with newer technology
5. Green industrial roofing
Author: Robert C. Lichy
The article discusses a brief history of green roofs, the reasons people use them, types of green roofs and their components.
Key Point: "The typical green roof both reduces the amount of water run-off and spreads it out over a longer period of time"
Too read more visit our Vote on Links page.
 |
Leave a Comment, We'll Plant a Tree!
Mintek believes that proper asset management & maintenance will help the environment. We are dedicated to helping the world be a better place. If you leave a comment we will plant a tree with PlantaBillion |
I recently ran across an excellent article on ReliablePlant.com that discussed the development of Enterprise Asset Management and the need to understand how management must adopt new perspectives in order to better utilize CMMS/EAM systems to fuller capabilities. What quickly became obvious is that past generations of management have failed to look forward at the bigger picture when implementing a CMMS/EAM system. With this in mind, here are a few additional thoughts to help current and future generations of facilities managers make good choices for selecting an EAM.
Know what your pain is - the past
In the past, many decisions to implement a CMMS/EAM were centered around reducing expenses and getting a handle on the demand for maintenance. Reactive maintenance often resulted in overtime and machine reliability was not exceptionally high especially if preventive maintenance was not being performed. CMMS/EAM systems were designed with increasing complexity and capability. Preventive maintenance and inspections were utilized as expense saving features.
Underutilization of CMMS/EAM capabilities occurred because maintenance was treated as a non-core function of the business. As a result, once the immediate pain was relieved the incentive and urgency for improvement disappeared. Technological advances such as mobile handheld devices and diagnostic tools for monitoring equipment (predictive technology) showed very slow adoption rates.
Know what your pain is - the current day
Jumping ahead to the current day, companies are only just beginning to understand the role of an EAM as compared to that of a maintenance system. Professional associations and software consultants such as The Aberdeen Group, ARC Advisory Group, and Technology Evaluation Centers are now able to collect enough historical information to determine what seems to be working best and publish best practices for facility and property management. Key to their finding are the most effective companies no longer treat maintenance as the poor stepchild and in fact the best:
- Have official corporate strategies
- Standardize facilities management procedures and policies throughout organization.
- Create a formal group for real estate and facility management at the enterprise level, formally recognizing the activities importance.
- Make use of technology such as online computer maintenance management systems, handheld technology and work order management solutions.
- Measure performance, including the time it takes to fulfill a work order or resolve issues
On the down side:
- Companies are only just beginning to understand the value of consistent system training and other influences that inhibit greater utilization of the capabilities of their CMMS/EAM.
- The recognition of the importance of a CMMS/EAM has seen a proliferation of cheap or free off the shelf software packages which once tried often poison facility managers to trying another alternative.
- There are numerous specific applications sporting a wide variety of acronyms such as CAFM, FMIS, CIFM, IWMS, ERP etc. Each application has value in a particular speciality and some such as IWMS cross multiple disciplines but in a less detailed scope.
- Technology is only just now progressing where a company is able to connect most of the dots within its organization. It may be years before vendor packages are assimilated with ease.
What will your pain be in the future
One can only make an educated guess as to what the future holds but it is pretty clear that it will be technology oriented. To be competitive, facility managers and corporate executives need to be at the top of their game. Some predictions are:
- Predictive technologies will increase in quality perhaps to the level of six sigma quality. They will continue to augment EAM systems but not replace the need for people to perform preventive maintenance, inspections and work orders.
- The facility manager of the future will be a cross between a techno-geek and engineer. Tool belts will carry fewer tools and more handheld devices. More and more repairs will be outsourced as technology sophistication requires specially trained personnel or has proprietary components.
- Vendor management (which an EAM tracks) takes on a primary role.
And what about EAM utilization? EAM systems include the entire asset life-cycle from planning to purchase to maintenance and ultimately the assets retirement. In addition, other components of an EAM include contracts, documents, work management as well as capital asset planning. Utilization will increase as the need (pain) for all its functionality is addressed.
How is your company planning for the future?
Read the
ReliablePlant.com article
If you likes this article you may like
|
Leave a Comment, We'll Plant a Tree!
Mintek believes that proper asset management & maintenance will help the environment. We are dedicated to helping the world be a better place. If you leave a comment we will plant a tree with PlantaBillion |
Facility managers barely have the time to breath during day with some days seeming like one giant interruption. When no time is available then you have to create more time. One of the first things a facility manager should do is figure out what they are spending their time on. If you determine that more than 25 percent of your time is spent on getting your staff organized for the day, continually following up to make sure work requests are done, handling work orders or manually keying in information into you CMMS then you are spending too much time hand holding your employees.
The great part about handheld technology is that devices are very user friendly, easy to learn and highly portable. Integrating handheld devices with your EAM or CMMS empowers facility managers to take back control of their time by:
- Organizing the daily routine using the dashboard to.
- Set a work schedule for making rounds. This will tell your staff exactly where they are to go and what to do when they get there.
- Set up inspections, a key to exceptional preventive maintenance programs. Inspection routines should include a set of questions for facility staff to answer for each asset. Response to questions are as simple as pushing a button.
- Schedule everything in efficient walking order so that time is not wasted going to remote locations and then coming back over and over.
- Standardizing the workflow processes by providing uniform tools for
- Recording unscheduled maintenance activity on the spot, using the handheld device as a logbook
- Writing work order tickets as a result of inspections
- Having repair and maintenance history online at the touch of a button
- Automating manual tasks by using a menu driven system for
- Report generation of activity, results and planned events
- Identifying who is on schedule and who may need assistance or additional training
Just as important as taking back control of the your time, handheld devices establish accountability, measure results, reduce paper flow, increase adoption rates of your CMMS/EAMand create a set of transferable skills. Isn't it time you stopped hand holding your employees and make them more efficient and accountable?
If you liked this article you may also like
Six Factors For Why Your CMMS/EAM Doesn't Do What You Had Hoped For
How Mobile Devices Increase Adoption Rates of CMMS
Ten Mistakes to Avoid When Getting Buy-In for CMMS/EAM
|
Leave a Comment, We'll Plant a Tree!
Mintek believes that proper asset management & maintenance will help the environment. We are dedicated to helping the world be a better place. If you leave a comment we will plant a tree with PlantaBillion |
Your CMMS/EAM arrived with great expectations. Management was convinced they would soon see results in the form of cost savings, productivity gains and have a better handle on asset management. The unfortunate reality is the results, senior management was expecting, are not occurring because the system is under utilized. Some analysts studies have indicated that most companies use less than 40% of their current CMMS/EAM capabilities and in many cases less than 10 percent.
What went wrong and how can you ascertain the expected results? Every company is managed a little differently, therefore the specific reasons under-utilization occurs will vary. However, the reasons for under-achieving are rarely limited to one factor. There are 6 major reasons why your company is not utilizing your CMMS/EAM properly.
- Training is limited or has ceased
- Training was front loaded (done at implementation) and by request afterward usually for turnover or new hire purposes. Most people will be lucky to remember 10% of what they have been taught at any given point in time. Hence training must be continual. The extra money spent on training is a drop in the bucket compared to the potential of better utilization.
- Not enough people have been trained. The result is not enough people know how the system really works. This has two effects, 1) the people with knowledge develop a sense of job security and may be unwilling to share, 2) the knowledge pool is too limited to bring forth ideas and changes. Both effects can significantly hinder better utilization of the CMMS/EAM.
- There is no tinkering or system exploration occurring. Tinkering and exploration includes trying out unused features, creating new reports, finding solutions instead of claiming that the system does not work. For tinkering and exploration to occur staff must not be afraid to make mistakes for fear that management will frown upon them. The freedom to explore represents an environment of innovation.
- The value of the tool has been lost. Management and facilities staff are not perceiving your CMMS/EAM system as the tool it was intended to be. It is more likely the perception is the CMMS/EAM will replace people and change the traditional method of operations. Re-valuing your CMMS/EAM as a tool must come from the top. To clarify:
- A CMMS/EAM does not hear strange noises nor does it do a visual check for corrosion or wear and tear and does not do the physical work.
- A CMMS/EAM is a tool to assist you in organizing and tracking assets, reducing reactive maintenance, scheduling work orders, inspections and preventive maintenance.
- A CMMS/EAM can make operations run smoother and more efficiently giving everyone the feeling of a job well done.
- A CMMS/EAM is only a tool and is part of the solution to achieve corporate objectives.
- Performance benchmarks were not adequately set up resulting in an inability to measure success and make adjustments or changes. Any new system, project, or initiative must establish how success is to be measured. Benchmarks provide direction and goals. Without these there is little incentive to do better, learn more or make operations run smoother. Measuring success is one of the functions of change management and is part of all good planning.
One of the key elements in setting up performance benchmarks includes keeping open lines of communication for feedback. Feedback allows to hear issues, adjust plans, make changes and listen for attitudes that may need adjusting. For example, when there is an issue, does staff blame the system, the training or themselves? Feedback enables you to identify the dragons and nudge them back into the fold.
- Lack of integration of CMMS/EAM into the daily routine. Your CMMS/EAM is best utilized when handheld mobile devices are used to drive the daily routine. Advantages of handheld technology include but are not limited to:
- Changing the paradigm from a paper based system into an automated wireless system capable of being as mobile as your staff.
- Organizing daily activity by standardizing the use of dashboards to incorporate their review at the beginning of each day.
- Standardization of workflow to make sure everyone is on the same page.
With mobile handheld technology your CMMS/EAM will see an increase in adoption rates and greater efficiencies.
- Communication has been inhibited or shut down. Communication issues occur both internally and externally. Both are critical to a successful implementation and achieving a higher utilization rate.
- External communication includes ensuring quality support, issue resolution, knowledge of system capabilities, updates, training, tinkering and a more complete understanding of system capabilities.
- Internal communication reinforces the value of the tool, challenges staff to explore, encourages innovation, training, feedback and measures success.
Poor communication leads to issues like not knowing ahead of time if the CMMS/EAM will work well with other software and other unplanned obstacles. Lastly but most importantly, poor communication will prevent the buy-in necessary to successfully implement and utilize your CMMS/EAM. Without buy-in at all levels the odds on achieving the desired results are very difficult.
What percentage of utilization do you have for you CMMS/EAM?
|
Leave a Comment, We'll Plant a Tree!
Mintek believes that proper asset management & maintenance will help the environment. We are dedicated to helping the world be a better place. If you leave a comment we will plant a tree with PlantaBillion |
It is a brand new week and here at Mintek we hope you all have had a great weekend. The Top EAM and CMMS Stories will now be published on Mondays for the previous weeks articles. Just in case you did not have the opportunity to see our blogs and voter links as they were published, we have summarized them for you here. Please enjoy them and be sure to check back for new articles next week. You can find a complete listing on the Mintek Blog.
The main focus this week was on renewable energy and energy efficiency. The national push toward green buildings has opened doors for many facilities to take a new look at reducing energy cost. The most popular article of the week was 5 Energy Saving Ideas That You May Not Have Of which took a look some non-obvious methods of reducing energy cost.
1. 5 Energy Savings Ideas You May Not Have Thought Of
Author: Stuart Smith
Adjusting the workweek, installing lighting sensors, unplugging computers and office equipment, partnering with an innovator, and slow conversion of older buildings to become green buildings are 5 underutilized methods of reducing energy costs. Read the full article to learn more.
Key Point: Although the ideas are mostly common sense, achieving the full impact takes a little planning.
2. Is Breakdown Maintenance Management Smart For Closing Facilities?
Author: Stuart Smith
Is a break down maintenance strategy ever a good idea? This article lists 6 reasons senior management should not sacrifice preventive maintenance even if a plant/facility may shut down or is getting ready to shut down.
Key point: Preventive maintenance is still the heart of condition based and predictive maintenance solutions. The smart decision is not to go to a breakdown maintenance option.
3. Renewable Energy Stepping Up To The Plate
Author: Stuart Smith
The article briefly discusses the stimulus package signed into law in 2009 and the opportunity to convert facilities to green buildings.
Key Point: The monies have provided an exceptional opportunity for innovators, entrepreneur's and established businesses to develop new products, strategies and markets in order achieve the stimulus package goals.
Read Relevant Articles That We Found Last Week
But wait there is more. We have found several more articles that you might find to be interesting and even put them on our website for you to vote on. The 5 best this week are:
1. Be proactive, not reactive, with hydraulic hoses
Author: Gary Kleiner
Gary writes about the dangers of failing hydraulic hoses, their proper care and the impacts of failing to do preventive maintenance on them.
Key Point: Identifying and replacing worn hydraulic hose assemblies before they fail saves money and potentially saves lives.
2. Maintenance in the Power Industry: Ensuring Reliability
Authors: Dr. Ken Ferguson and Sandra DiMatteo
Interesting article discussing the aging of the maintenance workforce and the implications of a knowledge shortage for various industries. The article also discusses possible solutions.
Key Point: Replacing the knowledge loss requires change
3.Preventive Maintenance Programs
Author: Jim
I liked this very short article because it looks at a CMMS at its core functions with regard to home preventive maintenance. The concept is easily expanded into facilities and other industries.
Key Point: CMMS is an organizer for a preventive maintenance to-do list.
4. Condition-based Maintenance With CMMS Programs
Author: Aaron Baunee
Aaron provides a discussion on the value of condition based maintenance in reducing expenses when used with a CMMS.
Key Point: CBM can reduce the need for traditional maintenance and free up resources for priority work
5. Phase 3 - Budgeting and Schedules sect. 2 of 3
Author: Posted by Hotel Engineering Mgmt
Article presents an engineering perspective once a budget has been approved which is the process of monitoring and making adjustments. : -
Key Point: Setting an action plan consisting of monitoring methods, procurement and action planning and logistics
Too read more visit our Vote on Links page.
|
Leave a Comment, We'll Plant a Tree!
Mintek believes that proper asset management & maintenance will help the environment. We are dedicated to helping the world be a better place. If you leave a comment we will plant a tree with PlantaBillion |
Most of the energy saving tips you can find on the internet are about the same. Change light bulbs, turn off the lights, adjust thermostat settings, use energy star products, change air filters etc. There are some other ideas that may have significant impact the energy cost of facilities such as plants, hospitals, hotels, government buildings and even amusement parks. Five such ideas are listed below:
- Shut down or open 1 hour later each day or switch to 4 day 10 hour day work week., adjust operating hours to maximize natural daylight time.
" After 12 months, Utah's experiment has been deemed so successful that a new acronym could catch on: TGIT (thank God it's Thursday). The state found that its compressed workweek resulted in a 13% reduction in energy use and estimated that employees saved as much as $6 million in gasoline costs."
Source: Time Magazine The Four-Day Workweek Is Winning Fans
- Install lighting occupancy sensors to automatically turn off lights when leaving a room - cost $29-$300. There are two types of occupancy sensors: ultrasonic and infrared. Ultrasonic sensors detect sound, while infrared sensors detect heat and motion. Other options include maximizing natural daylight and installing daylighting sensors and digital timers.
- Unplug or turn off at power strip all computers and office equipment.
- Almost any product with an external power supply, continuous display (including LED), or battery charger will continuously draw power upwards of 15 watts per device. This is commonly called a ghost or vampire charge. Standby modes or energy saver modes help during operational hours but powering off saves during non-operational hours. This includes copiers, printers, speakers, electronic displays and signage, microwaves and any other non-critical electronic device. left plugged in draws a ghost or vampire charge that can consume 15-30 watts per device.
- Second advantage - personal computers were not built to run 24/7. A complete power down also clear caches and memory buffers enabling the computer to run better upon restart.
"The lifetime of your hard disk is typically limited by head-disk mechanical interactions and wear, rather than by electrical surges and thermal cycling during start-up."
Source: Frequently Asked Questions Answered by State University of New York at Albany
If your company needs to transmit data in the middle of the night to a home office ask about rescheduling. Advances in technology have made transmissions in the middle of a night a non-issue.
- Partner with an Innovator. The stimulus package signed into law in 2009 allocated approximately $37 billion for renewable energy, energy efficiency and transportation development. It is not difficult to identify companies doing research, building prototypes and looking for a testing ground for their innovation. Do not underestimate the value of being a test site for a new innovation. If it is a good product the image of your company also takes a good boost and you receive lots of free press.
- Convert your older building or facility to a green building. Conversion can save up to 30% on energy costs and up to 50% on water bills. Full conversion does not need to occur at one time. All assets have a useful lifecycle. Identify assets near the end of their useful lifecycle such as 15-20 year old HVAC units or older plumbing and lighting fixtures. Convert these assets according to the asset management and capital analysis tools developed from your Enterprise Asset Management (EAM) system.
Although all of the ideas are based upon a little common sense, however, implementing them requires a well planned and executed change. All of the above ideas can be implemented more easily if incorporating an EAM to help track assets, handle preventive maintenance and schedule inspections for compliance or effectiveness (measurement of energy saving goals).
Please leave us a comment share with us other ideas you have run across.
|
Leave a Comment, We'll Plant a Tree!
Mintek believes that proper asset management & maintenance will help the environment. We are dedicated to helping the world be a better place. If you leave a comment we will plant a tree with PlantaBillion |
A tough decision has been made and an underperforming facility/plant has been targeted for shutdown within the next 12-24 months. In an effort to save additional dollars senior management is looking to slash their preventive maintenance costs and perform repairs only when equipment or assets breakdown. This is called breakdown maintenance.
A breakdown maintenance solution means that preventive maintenance programs are essentially suspended and only equipment or assets that breakdown and impact production are repaired. While it may seem like a smart idea at the beginning, this type of maintenance solution will have the opposite impact on costs from what senior management intended. Below are 6 reasons senior management should not sacrifice preventive maintenance even if a facility/plant may shut down or is getting ready to shut down.
- Repair maintenance only is like playing Russian Roulette with numbers, the cost of one repair may be more than keeping an extra person on staff. The full time equivalent (FTE) cost for a $60k a year position is about $90-100k/year (benefits, payroll taxes, overhead etc.) Replacement of one or more large pieces of equipment as a result of missing the early identification of a problem through inspection or preventive maintenance can easily exceed this cost.
- Labor costs per employee will likely increase as reactive repair maintenance is largely unplanned and may require overtime. Preventive maintenance is much more than a random check for potential problems. It is a method for scheduling maintenance to be efficient and cost effective. All this is lost if preventive maintenance is abandoned.
- Employee morale takes a nosedive, reducing productivity, increasing turnover, decreasing skill sets available. Facilities professionals take pride in their work, not giving someone the proper tools to do their job is likely to lead to poor repair work and therefore additional costs.
- Liability exposure is increased should an accident occur. Maintenance cutbacks and cost concerns have resulted in a number of public and expensive tragedies. American Airlines Flight 191 comes to mind.
- Operating expenses are likely to increase over the short term as equipment becomes less energy efficient
- Loss of liquidation or resale value occurs if a shut down is unavoidable as unmaintained assets have a substantially decreased lifecycle. It is a lot easier to sell a used piece of equipment with a great maintenance history than a leaking piece of junk.
Breakdown maintenance should not be confused with condition based maintenance where there is still an inspection or monitoring process occurring. Preventive maintenance is still the heart of condition based maintenance and predictive maintenance solutions. When closing a facility or plant, the smart financial decision is too continue preventive maintenance programs until the actual closing of the facility.
|
Leave a Comment, We'll Plant a Tree!
Mintek believes that proper asset management & maintenance will help the environment. We are dedicated to helping the world be a better place. If you leave a comment we will plant a tree with PlantaBillion |
On February 17, 2009, President Obama signed The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act) into law. With this action $32.7 billion was given to the Department of Energy to modernize our nation's infrastructure, enhance energy independence and expand educational opportunities. An additional $3.4 billion was granted to 100 private companies, utilities, manufacturers and municipalities on October 27, 2009. The $32.7 billion the DOE received can be broken down as follows:
- $16.7 billion for Energy Efficiency, renewable energy and transportation
- $6 billion for nuclear waste cleanup
- $4.5 billion to lower electricity costs and increase customer choice through electric grid modernization
- $3.4 for demonstration that Carbon Capture and Sequestration can compete economically. Carbon Capture and Sequestration is essentially the lowering of the impact of fossil fuels on global warming on an economically feasible basis.
- $2 for scientific innovation in advanced energy technology research
The monies have provided an exceptional opportunity for innovators, entrepreneur's and established businesses to develop new products, strategies and markets in order achieve the stimulus package goals.
One of those studies by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), reported that buildings in the United States are responsible for nearly 40 percent of CO2 emissions, 40 percent of energy consumption and 13 percent of the nation’s water consumption. From a green perspective, buildings have a huge potential for CO2 reduction.
Steven Hanks Guest Blog for Mintek How To Integrate Green Strategies With Your IWMS
To help facilitate the development of renewable energy resources and programs the a number of websites have now provide links to valuable information and resources. Two exceptional sources are:
- Department of Energy The Department of Energy gives you the latest in energy stimulus packages and development direction.
- Database of State Incentives for Renewables and Efficiency (DSIRE) is a comprehensive source of information on state, local, utility, and federal incentives and policies that promote renewable energy and energy efficiency. The links section provides links to all federal, state incentive programs. DSIRE also organizes incentives and policies that promote renewable energy and energy efficiency into two general categories -- (1) Financial Incentives and (2) Rules, Regulations & Policies -- and roughly 30 specific types of incentives and policies. This glossary provides a description of each specific incentive and policy type.
This is information is being provided as a public service to help our nation and our clients meet the challenges of a changing energy world. Tell us what you are doing to lower your energy costs and we will plant a tree for you.
|
Leave a Comment, We'll Plant a Tree!
Mintek believes that proper asset management & maintenance will help the environment. We are dedicated to helping the world be a better place. If you leave a comment we will plant a tree with PlantaBillion |
A warm welcome to everyone. Football season is winding down and college basketball is heating up. Just in case you were too busy watching sports or 24 and did not have the opportunity to see our blogs and voter links as they were published, we have summarized them for you here. Please enjoy them over the weekend and be sure to check back for new articles next week. You can find a complete listing on the Mintek Blog.
This weeks articles featured a guest blog by IWMS Steve Hanks, a tribute to the victims of the Haiti earthquake and a look at property management cash flow. The most popular article of the week was Increasing Property Management Cash Flow which took a look at the relationship between tenant satisfaction and preventive maintenance.
1. Increasing Property Management Cash Flow
Author: Stuart Smith
A significant impact on cash flows for property management is tenant turnover. Many of the reasons tenants leave or decide not to become tenants are maintenance related. Establishing a good preventive maintenance program will help reduce costs, lower tenant turnover and increase the value of the property.
Key Point: Tenants have a choice where they live and the cost of replacing a good tenant is well worth the cost of preventive maintenance.
2. How to Integrate Green Strategies With Your IWMS
Author: Steven Hanks
Integrated Workplace Management Systems (IWMS) address many of the same issues as an Enterprise Asset Management (EAM) software products. Guest author Steve Hanks takes a look at the potential savings an IWMS or EAM can generate with a Green Strategy.
Key point: Buildings in the United States are responsible for nearly 40% of CO2 emissions, 40% of energy consumption and 13% of the nations water use. IWMS and EAM software products can help lower usage and costs.
3. Lessons Learned From The Earthquake Tragedy In Haiti
Author: Stuart Smith
The article first tips our hat to the wonderful volunteers at the Red Cross and then takes a look at the causes of earthquakes, their frequency, the type of damage done and how to minimize the impact of future earthquake damage.
Key Point: Earthquake preparedness is a question of planning for both the initial quake and aftershocks. Failure to take immediate action directly after an earthquake will have tragic results.
Read Relevant Articles That We Found Last Week
But wait there is more. Even though the earthquake in Haiti is on our minds, we have found several more articles that you might find to be interesting and even put them on our website for you to vote on. The 4 best this week are:
1. January 20th, 2010 Stimulus Funds For LED Lighting Research
Author: Anne
The article outline where $37 million in funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) to support high efficiency, solid-state lighting projects is going to.
Key Point: The importance of solid-state lighting, (LEDs) and OLEDs) instead of incandescent bulbs to replace the traditional incandescent lighting.
2. Operational Excellence, However you define it, the foundation is reliability.
Author: Andy Ginder, Vice President, ABB Reliability Consulting
Andy does a great job of explaining a model for operational excellence that includes five foundational elements of people, processes, systems, technology and equipment. With the foundation elements there are a matching set of 5 pillars including organizational alignment, asset reliability, compliance, manufacturing and energy
Key Point: "Automation can do great things, but it’s people that design, install, program, and operate the equipment and systems."
3.Implementing A Preventive Maintenance Program
Author: Douglas D. Chasick
An older article but relevant to this day. Douglas examines the need for property management to make sure they budget preventive maintenance into their budgets.
Key Point: Preventive is not a cost, it is a money saving practice that all property managers should be doing.
4. Historic Buildings Energy Efficiency Guide
Author: Anne
Our second article of the week posted by Anne of Facility Blog. The short article takes a quick look at new guide, “Energy Efficiency, Renewable Energy and Historic Preservation: A Guide for Historic District Commissions”, produced by Clean Air-Cool Planet.
Key Point: It is very possible to make older building more energy efficient.
Too read more visit our Vote on Links page.
|
Leave a Comment, We'll Plant a Tree!
Mintek believes that proper asset management & maintenance will help the environment. We are dedicated to helping the world be a better place. If you leave a comment we will plant a tree with PlantaBillion |
Integrated Workplace Management Systems (IWMS) address many of the same issues as Enterprise Asset Management (EAM) software products. In addition, IWMS adds functionality for space occupancy and CRE/Leasing. However, IWMS products are more generic and may not have the Best of Breed feature sets for each functionality. Our product, Transcendent, is an EAM with best-in-class mobility technology. This article by our very special guest author Steve Hanks helps illustrate the potential savings that an IWMS or EAM can generate while helping your organization achieve its goals of going green.
The following article is a guest post from Steven Hanks of IWMSNEWS.
The Green Building movement is gaining momentum. In fact, it is top priority for many Facility and Real Estate Managers. Although a green image is something honorable for most managers, the vast majority are interested in cost reductions as these directly impact the bottom-line.
Green Strategies have existed for more than three decades now, however, until recently being green was pretty much the domain of intellectuals and ideologists. Some even disputed and neglected the human impact on global warming.
The End of Denial
Although most of us knew we were squandering our blue planet, we did nothing. In 2006 the denial came to an end.
An Inconvenient Truth by Al Gore was the sledgehammer that demolished and tore down the wall of denial. We can no longer deny our immense impact on our planet.
“After a century of isolating the product or service from its resulting impact, the tide is turning. We are making consequence visible. We will witness the first generation who can truly know the impact of everything they do on the ecological support systems that surround them.”
Source: Saul Griffith
Huge Potential
As the number of “green studies” exponentially increase, more valuable information will become available to Facility and Real Estate Managers. One of those studies by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), reported that buildings in the United States are responsible for nearly 40 percent of CO2 emissions, 40 percent of energy consumption and 13 percent of the nation’s water consumption.
From a green perspective, buildings have a huge potential for CO2 reduction. However having a huge potential for CO2 reduction does not implicate that the CO2 reduction will be actually realized.
The reason for this is quite simple. Innovation projects, including green initiatives will be sacrificed first when organizations hit a financial storm. If the innovation can’t produce positive a Return On Investment (ROI) figures, most CFO’s pull the plug rather sooner than later.
Integration with IWMS
The only way to successfully integrate sustainable strategies in any organization is to link it to the primary process of an organization. If you succeed in connecting sustainability with bottom-line result, your strategies will be sustainable themselves.
As stated above, sustainable strategies have existed for over thirty years now. However, until some clever minds figured out how to make money from it, being green was pretty much the domain of intellectuals and ideologists.
And this is exactly where IWMS can play an important role. IWMS’s can indicate cost saving potential throughout the entire Real Estate Portfolio. By means of Management Dashboards IWMS’s can provide valuable insights that empower Facility and Real Estate Managers to materialize their cost reduction potential which also has a very positive impact on corporate sustainability.
For example, suppose that your organization can reduce the number of underutilized sq. ft by 15%. Imagine the positive impact on:
- Cleaning Costs
- Chemical Cleaning Materials
- Energy Consumption
- CO2 Emission (Gas usage)
The possibilities are endless as long as you link your sustainable strategy to your primary process, which is making money. Without this link, sustainable strategies are not sustainable themselves, and considered to be nothing more than a hype.
To read more of Steve Hanks articles please visit iwmsnews.
For a better understanding of the relationship between EAM and IWMS read How Acronyms Can Be Confusing.
|
Leave a Comment, We'll Plant a Tree!
Mintek believes that proper asset management & maintenance will help the environment. We are dedicated to helping the world be a better place. If you leave a comment we will plant a tree with PlantaBillion |