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EAM - Enterprise Asset Management

EAM - Enterprise Asset Management

EAM (Enterprise asset management) involves the management of the maintenance of physical assets of an organization throughout each asset's lifecycle. EAM management system is used to plan, optimize, execute, and track the needed maintenance activities with the associated priorities, skills, materials, tools, and information. This covers the design, construction, commissioning, operations, maintenance and decommissioning or replacement of plant, equipment and facilities.

"Enterprise" refers to the scope of the assets in an Enterprise across departments, locations, facilities and, potentially, supporting business functions eg; Finance & GL, Human Resources and Payroll.

Enterprise asset management software is a computer software that handles every aspect of running a public works or asset-intensive organization. Maintenance management software collects and analyzes data for physical assets during all phases of the asset lifecycle, including the acquisition, maintenance, and disposal phase.  EAM software is used by large organizations that have outgrown basic CMMS software. These organizations have hundreds of physical assets (machinery, equipment, etc) and employees that are responsible for managing the asset lifecycle. These employees, referred to as asset managers, are also responsible for making decisions that require them to track warranties, depreciation, and downtime.

In terms of features, the lines are becoming blurred between CMMS and EAM solutions as some CMMS products allow asset managers to track these items. But true EAM program gives asset managers the ability to track every phase of an asset’s lifecycle and provide full transparency about its historical and present state to other departments.

Enterprise asset management system includes elements of design perspectives centered on the idea that by creating digital models, companies can optimize how they utilize each asset that they invest money in according to its build and the greater context around its use. This helps companies better predict asset depreciation and never be surprised by unexpected asset failure.

EAM asset management tools also include insurance and warranty information. They look at things like the environmental performance of an asset or piece of machinery to assist with audit trails and environmental impact reports. They also integrate with inventory and supply chain software to reduce menial data entry tasks and perform inventory management tasks. Another way to describe the key use of EAM solutions is they ensure change never affects the total cost of ownership (TCO) of an asset.

The most popular products in category EAM - Enterprise Asset Management All category products

IBM Maximo
IBM
18
8
SAP Work Manager
SAP
14
14

F.A.Q. about EAM - Enterprise Asset Management

What is EAM?

EAM (Enterprise Asset Management) system is the management of the assets of an enterprise across departments, facilities, business units and geographical locations. Enterprise asset management  market integrates techniques for holistic control and optimization throughout asset life cycles, including design, commissioning, operations and replacement:

EAM definition allows to categorize it as follows:

  • Physical asset and infrastructure management
  • IT service management
  • Digital asset (electronic media and content) management
  • Fixed asset management and accounting
  • Emerging asset management

The EAM framework optimizes and extends asset life cycles and reduces Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) while maximizing Overall Asset Productivity (OAP) and Return on Assets (ROA), which is key for manufacturing and similar industries with high-value equipment.  EAM arose as an extension of the computerized maintenance management system (CMMS) which is usually defined as a system for the computerisation of the maintenance of physical assets.

Asset Management is geared toward the following results:

  • Asset lifecycle management. Keep all asset data and documentation at your fingertips, so it’s there when you need it — regardless of where you are in the asset’s lifecycle.
  • Work order management. Diagnose a problem, and quickly assign specific technicians to the job. Schedule and organize work orders for employees and contractors, and keep track of upcoming work.
  • MRO materials management. Control costs with full oversight into inventory procurement and management. Understand the demand for materials at your facility and manage parts accordingly.
  • Labor management. Manage assessment, training, and certification for employees and contractors responsible for asset management in your organization.
  • Service contract management. Control compliance and spending at every step of the contract lifecycle. Create and manage contracts and service agreements with customers, vendors, partners, and employees.
  • Financial management. Gather data on work order costs, and integrate with finance software to manage accounting and project spending.
  • Reporting and analytics. Analyze asset performance to spot issues before they become bigger problems. Collect key performance indicators for your entire facility to make better business decisions. 

Some of popular EAM software features include:

Downtime tracking and asset tracking system. When equipment breaks down, asset managers can manually log downtime in the EAM software based on the timestamps on fault codes or work requests. Also, when equipment is marked as non-operational by technicians during repairs and PMs, downtime is automatically tracked by the software.

Lockout-tagout. This is a safety feature that documents and enforces the physical lockout-tagout devices that are used during maintenance on dangerous machinery. By tracking lockout-tagout and check in/out procedures in the EAM software, everyone in a facility knows when an asset is unavailable.

Maintenance reports. Data that’s logged in maintenance software solutions shows the performance of assets in terms of reliability rather than production output. Seeing how reliable a machine is over time informs asset managers and procurement whether that machine model should be purchased again.

Financial audits. Asset managers can connect their software to financial software to align their efforts with the organization’s financial department. This data-sync streamlines financial audits and helps organizations manage the complete asset lifecycle without requiring financial departments to learn how to navigate the EAM software.

What’s the difference between EAM and CMMS software? EAM vs CMMS comparison

At first glance, the differences between EAM and CMMS software are minimal—both help organizations move from a reactive to a preventive maintenance strategy by automating maintenance activities, inventory management, and work orders.

But as the name indicates, a computerized maintenance management system (CMMS) is used primarily to manage maintenance during the operational part of an asset’s life—the time when it’s up and running and working as a productive part of a facility.

EAM asset management software, on the other hand, manages the entire lifecycle of an asset, from creation or procurement through to disposal. It is often used by organizations with a larger number of users across multiple sites and includes capabilities like lifecycle planning.

Basically, EAM lets you see a much bigger picture. It gives you an overview of priorities and lets you see what tools—including finances, skills, materials, and information—are at your disposal to meet those priorities.