While the topic of predictive maintenance (PdM) receives heightened recognition, because of new IIoT-enabled machine intelligence, it can be easy to get trapped in the belief that PdM and Asset Performance Management (APM) are the same.
It is understandable, because definitions around APM can be vastly different, depending upon who is supplying the definition. However, by most accounts, PdM focuses on the predictability of potential asset failure and equipment reliability, where APM looks at risk factors and performance interdependencies beyond the machines.
According to ARC's definition for APM, "Asset performance has many dimensions including financial, health & safety, environmental, and sustainability. Achieving these goals requires a collaborative effort by all groups involved in the use and care of the facility to manage the interdependencies that constrain performance. To do this, they need an asset information management system that can deliver complete, accurate, timely information to APM workflows and enable seamless sharing of information across all APM stakeholders, internal or external to the organization."
Consistent with ARC's approach for APM, Asset-intensive industries like Oil and Gas, have always focused on the much bigger operating picture, by incorporating people, process, and assets into a well-defined, highly efficient, and proactive holistic management approach known as Operational Integrity.
While it would be silly not to acknowledge that improved machine connectivity and intelligence does positively impact PdM operations, it would be equally naive to presume that improved machine intelligence alone, provides the greatest overall business value for Asset Performance Management.
Looking closer at ARC's definition of Asset Performance Management, let's focus on three of the areas they consider as critical success factors:
1) " manage the interdependencies that constrain performance."
2) " deliver complete, accurate, timely information to APM workflows."
3) "seamless sharing of information across all APM stakeholders, internal or external to the organization."
Manage Interdependencies that Constrain Performance
Until the day arrives, when machines operate other machines without people, Companies must manage the risk and performance dependencies, between how their people, processes, and equipment work together. While machine automation is eliminating many jobs, many of these machines still involve workers tied into other processes and performance dependencies beyond the machines Whether a machine stops from a mechanical failure or, due to a related employee or environmental safety incident, the result is the same for a company- lost productivity and added cost. The same applies, when that same equipment is subject to local operating permits for reporting air emissions or Wastewater. Failure to comply with operating permits can result in a company losing its license to operate, and if not managed efficiently, the permits process can be quite costly to administer for these businesses. Not fully capturing, analyzing and managing risk and performance dependencies, between machines, people, and processes, place a company's operations at risk and increases operating costs. When most catastrophic failures occur, it is when multiple and seemingly unrelated factors and processes fail together.
Moreover, as we move forward, a larger part of a company's future asset performance management strategy must be tied to the recruitment, training and retention of its workforce. Manufacturers face two significant challenges impacting its future operations- a knowledgeable workforce leaving the market and the need for a new generation of workers and skills sets required to run the digitize manufacturing operations of the future. How well a company is able to balance these two shifting market dynamics will ultimately impact the success of its future operations.
Deliver complete, accurate, timely information to APM workflows
While the term Integration often is overused, what separates genuinely integrated solutions from non-integrated reporting based solutions, is the ability to trigger a meaningful workflow.
In the prior example, let's suppose that an accident occurred, which resulted in damage to the equipment and an employee injury.
From a required workflow perspective, new actions need triggering to document and correct that occurrence.
- The incident and factors leading up to that incident need capturing.
- All the associated financial costs, involving the people and impacted equipment need to be captured, documented and updated.
- Based upon the severity of the incident, OSHA incident reports may need to be created and filed.
- New maintenance requests need to be generated to initiate and generate the required work orders.
- The maintenance work needs to be scheduled and include repair and safety instructions for the workers for fixing that specific piece of equipment.
- Spare parts may be required, and parts inventory needs checking and potentially updated.
- Companies might not have the right technician skills in-house to repair the equipment, so they may have to look outside the company for contract labor.
and etc., etc.
Supported by predefined business rules and integrated digitized systems, between maintenance, finance, HR, procurement and EH&S related processes, the system can automatically trigger any new required workflow. In the absence, of having this integration, APM related procedures would need to be separately managed, which increases operating costs and the risk of non-compliance with company operating policies and regulatory reporting requirements. Well-defined end to end processes, fully supported by digitized, integrated systems, reduces operating costs and improves APM joint business collaboration within and outside the company.
Seamless sharing of information across all APM stakeholders, internal or external to the organization
The part of the statement above, I will focus on, is related to sharing information "external to the organization." In the digital economy, companies must think and operate more broadly. Business processes, including APM, are increasingly becoming intertwined with an organization's business ecosystem. Companies must learn to manage their business as part of a larger network and APM is no different. Being able to operate successfully and leverage a company's entire business ecosystem is why having a digitized operating core is so critical. A digital operating core empowers companies to create the right kinds of connection points that seamlessly integrate internal and external stakeholders, supporting APM processes, across an enterprise's entire extended supply chain.
While improved machine intelligence, Big Data, and the IIoT are very positive developments for PdM operations, PdM by itself, can't sufficiently address the other non-machine related risk and performance interdependencies, required for overall APM success.
I invite you to learn more, by attending one of our upcoming conferences, where SAP customers will be sharing their best practices for holistically managing APM and EH&S related processes.
We look forward to meeting with you and helping you on your digital journey.