How eMaint CMMS and RCM drive maintenance excellence at Utah’s prison facilities
Customer Since: 2019 | Industry: Government
The Utah Department of Corrections maintains more than 18,200 assets and 2,110,000-square-feet building space throughout the state and is headquartered just south of Salt Lake City. The number of assets will rise to nearly 30,000 machines once the construction of a new Salt Lake City facility is completed.
After 25 years using a legacy work order system, the state agency wanted to move into the future with a robust, computerized maintenance management system (CMMS) software program that could align with its reliability-centered maintenance (RCM) strategies. A selection committee chose eMaint CMMS because it met the agency’s exacting criteria and was flexible enough to fit its prison facilities’ niche needs.
BACKGROUND
Within the Utah Department of Corrections, a 71-person maintenance team services 211 facilities statewide, including the agency’s parole offices and treatment center equipment. The team completes more than 10,600 corrective work orders per year.
These facilities contain a massive variety of critical and auxiliary assets, including air handlers, circulation pumps, boilers, AC/heating units, food freezers, generators, chillers, clothes, washers, and dryers— anything having to do with inmate safety and security.
Maintenance leaders wanted to upgrade to a cloud-based CMMS to help manage the multitude of assets and spare parts and track labor hours more effectively and efficiently. Bob Kempe, facilities bureau correctional administrator for the department, sought to integrate eMaint with RCM strategies. RCM is designed to ensure maintenance tasks are performed in an efficient, cost-effective, reliable, and safe manner.
Kempe secured buy-in for the system from Greg Peay, bureau director facilities for the Utah Department of Corrections, and provided decision criteria to the committee choosing a CMMS. After researching several systems, committee members agreed that eMaint CMMS software offered the vital features and flexibility they needed.
The strong push to upgrade the existing system was also fueled by Utah Senate Bill 215, requiring the prison system to provide individual facility energy consumption data. The data would be stored in the new CMMS and made available to state officials.
CHALLENGES
Because the existing work order system and its technology were outdated, the data couldn’t be uploaded into eMaint, so an outside engineering firm extracted it. Only about half of the data was usable once it was uploaded into eMaint and distilled. There were no work order histories, and work order completions were documented in vague terms.
Executives and maintenance leaders developed an achievable five-year plan to ensure the success of the mammoth undertaking, entirely transforming the corrections facilities’ maintenance program.
Immediate goals included:
- Acquire asset data
- Adopt RCM strategies
- Procure appropriate maintenance tools
- Develop key performance indicators (KPIs)
IMPLEMENTATION
Before implementing eMaint CMMS software, the agency brought in Gregory Perry, CRMP, CRL, a capacity assurance consultant for Fluke Reliability, to conduct an asset criticality analysis. The assessment enables the correct identification and categorization of critical equipment based on how much it would impact operations should it fail.
Stakeholders participated in various training opportunities, including eight weeks of instruction on configuring and maximizing the software. Several maintenance team members also attended Fluke Reliability’s Xcelerate2018 and Xcelerate2019, the annual maintenance and reliability training, innovation, and education conference.
RESULTS
RCM processes help reduce maintenance costs and optimize work requirements. eMaint enables asset performance tracking and equipment condition analysis using historical data and reports. Both bolster equipment reliability.
Maintenance leaders are working to capture data and reinforce the team’s necessary daily commitment to entering accurate and complete information when recording work.
The road ahead for the agency:
- Maximize the automatic PM scheduling function and optimize workflows
- Develop KPIs to support continuous improvement goals
- Add to the growing number of staff certifications already earned, including vibration, thermography, and Certified Reliability Leader (CRL)
“The best training that we received was attending the Xcelerate2019 conference in Bonita, Florida. It went farther than any other type of training.”
– Bob Kempe, facilities bureau correctional administrator for the Utah Department of Corrections