Benefits of Standard O&M Platforms for Multi-Site Organizations

In a corporate multi-site environment, getting everyone across each site to work together can be challenging. Lack of documentation, communication gaps, few or no standard operating procedures, etc., can enable different facilities to do their own thing. This introduces variability and increases safety risks when policies aren’t clearly communicated or consistently followed. It can also lead to higher operating costs and missed opportunities to meet business objectives.

Often, asset management and operations and maintenance (O&M) policies and activities are stored only in the heads of experienced team members – referred to as institutional knowledge. Tackling the standardization of processes and creating documentation to replace institutional knowledge can provide organizations with many advantages.

Key Benefits

At FTI, there are several key benefits we see with our clients as a result of standardizing their asset and O&M platforms.

• Consistency Between Sites: Standardizing documentation enables activities to be duplicated across all sites. Collaboration and improvements are made, and the entire organization benefits from knowing and using best practices.
• Improved Safety: Creating standardized steps and procedures improves visibility and understanding. Safety shortcuts are eliminated because processes have already been evaluated in terms of safety and efficiency, making work safer.
• Consistent Key Performance Indicators: Creating KPIs with specific, measurable and actionable metrics used to evaluate the performance of a particular process or activity (mean time to repair, on time O&M tasks, unplanned maintenance repairs, etc.) can have a huge impact on how work is identified and completed. By tracking consistent KPIs, organizations can easily increase productivity and identify areas for improvement.
• Consistent Training: Creating standard process documents for new team members provides a continuous reference for training materials, bringing new personnel up to speed quickly and streamlining the onboarding process. These documents can also provide continual points of reference for team members throughout their career with the organization.

Getting Started

Depending on where your organization is with establishing standard O&M platforms, getting started can seem like a difficult task. Begin with these steps:

• Assign an internal role for someone who is an overarching platform project manager. Consider including a technical writer if needed for creation of standard operating procedures (SOPs).
• Conduct an asset identification inventory to capture make, model, serial number and asset condition.
• Research and understand the insurance requirements, Authority-Having-Jurisdiction requirements, and corporate KPIs or requirements for your assets.
• Compare those requirements and identify any current gaps.
• Research and understand the tools and reports needed to manage your asset platform, like a CRM or work order management system for a system of record.

Once you’ve standardized your asset and O&M platforms, your investment of time, money and other resources will yield clear benefits: increased productivity, reduced costs and a safer work environment, leading to a solid return on investment.