An Integrated Approach to APM: Seamless Management of Asset Strategy and Health
The definition of traditional Asset Performance Management (APM) is broad and encompasses a number of different tools and processes to help organizations get the most out of their assets and improve reliability.
Three of the most critical aspects of APM include:
- Asset Strategy Management (ASM) which ensures the asset care plan is always in alignment with the current operating context, environment, and asset age and condition;
- Asset Health Management (AHM) which detects impending failure and early-stage degradation, triggering the need for appropriate corrective actions to prevent long-term, expensive asset repairs; and
- Work Execution Management supported by an Enterprise Asset Management (EAM) application.
The challenge with traditional APM is that these activities and the tools used to manage them are disconnected from one another, making it difficult for organizations to get a true, overarching visualization of asset health and risk. More specifically, organizations are missing out on insights which can help them decide where to focus their asset management resources.
While some modular APM software solutions exist, they fail to fully connect the key functions in a meaningful way. Modular solutions typically have loose connections at best, with high-level technical integrations to an EAM system, but fail to deliver value-adding, detailed data connections and practical integrations that drive insight and workflows.
What is an integrated approach to Asset Performance Management?
An integrated APM approach digitally connects the traditionally siloed functions of asset management, enabling organizations to demonstrate compliance, reduce risk, manage costs, and deliver predictable performance.
One of the key benefits of an integrated APM approach is that it provides a comprehensive view of asset health and risk, accounting for asset age, operating condition, maintenance plans, and strategy compliance. The insights gained provide a sound foundation for data-driven performance management, helping organizations prioritize activities to manage cost and risk.
An integrated approach to APM also supports continuous improvement of asset care and reliability. For example, any operating context or asset changes can be reflected in asset strategies and monitoring applications in real-time. Connection to the EAM application and work management process drives any changes through to work execution in the field.
The result is a dynamic and agile approach to equipment maintenance and reliability, in sync with operational goals.
The practical need for an integrated approach to APM
Every organization has finite resources dedicated to asset management and at any one time there are a number of problems competing for their attention. It can be very difficult to prioritize activities, so what often happens is that the squeaky wheel gets the oil.
Consider the challenges of managing risk in an environment where data is siloed across different applications. An organization using Asset Health Management may have lots of different alarms going off which suggest risk resulting from a degradation in asset condition. The same organization may have risk exposures resulting from suboptimal or poorly executed asset care plans.
An integrated APM approach connects all of the data required to understand and quantify the risks from the different asset management functions, helping organizations make better decisions about how they prioritize and allocate resources. Ultimately, it can also put organizations in a position to forward manage their risks and improve reliability.