Reliabilityweb Reflections: Three Things I Took Away from the Conference

I recently attended the Reliabilityweb’s, The Reliability Conference, in Seattle. Although I’ve interacted with the Reliabiltyweb team for years and attended other events like the International Maintenance Conference (IMC), , 2024 marked my first interaction as a Hexagon employee. It was exciting to connect with customers and partners about the significant steps we are taking to provide an unparalleled asset management solution.  

Here are a few of my takeaways that I think you will find interesting:

Takeaway 1 - Reliability is alive and well

At the conference, we spoke to companies from around the country that noted reliability and maintenance goals were at the top of their minds.

Not surprisingly, customers are at different stages of their asset management journey. Everything from home-grown maintenance solutions to installed enterprise asset management (EAM) solutions while looking for more reliable and sophisticated asset lifecycle maintenance solutions.  

The increasing interest in advancing maintenance maturity arises from several needs. These include a desire for improved control and management of risks, more comprehensive oversight of their asset portfolio, realization of economic advantages and achieving operational efficiency.

These customers understand that not all assets are the same. Some are more critical than others based on metrics like frequency of failure and severity of downtime, hence the need for more dynamic planning and prioritization. They are also looking to have better control over their entire asset portfolio, understand the different types of assets, and understand their specific maintenance needs.

The second driving factor is economic benefits. By implementing more mature maintenance practices, these companies can achieve significant cost savings, mainly by reducing downtime, extending the life of assets, and optimizing resource allocation. Moving away from unnecessary maintenance and focusing on critical areas means more effective budget use and avoidance of unpredictable expenditures.

Lastly, improved reliability and efficiency are key. The companies are keen to move from reactive maintenance to proactive and predictive maintenance strategies. This shift provides timely interventions, reduces failure likelihood, and increases operation reliability.

These conversations illuminated where we find ourselves in the industry – customers know they need a solution to drive greater reliability and maintain assets, but how? Luckily for customers, the field has matured and evolved to provide solutions that provide real insight to truly manage assets.

Takeaway 2 - Not just EAM anymore, customers are looking for solutions to manage the complete asset lifecycle

We have moved well beyond just maintaining assets. Customers are looking for solutions that provide guidance and insights throughout the entire asset lifecycle. When asked, "What does EAM mean to you?", during a panel discussion I participated in, I explained that EAM now involves more than just maintenance. It's encompassing comprehensive asset lifecycle management. This idea has become a guiding philosophy in my discussions about asset management.

While EAM is crucial for maintaining equipment and handling work orders, it's become clear that managing the entire asset lifecycle involves more strategic components like reliability and investment planning.  Elements like Asset Performance Management (APM) ensure that assets perform at their best, while Asset Investment Planning (AIP) focuses on planning and optimizing asset investments over their lifecycle.

By layering APM and AIP solutions alongside EAM solutions, customers can extract greater insights to make more strategic decisions around types of maintenance and prioritize investment – essential with the current state of higher capital costs. (As an aside, those attending Hexagon’s Make Data Make Sense Series in Dallas this June can sign up to hear my colleague James Sanwald and I share our presentation, “Evolving Your Enterprise Asset Management Strategy with Asset Performance.)

Takeaway 3 - “Think Big, Start Small”

Wherever customers are on their journey, getting to where you want to be can feel overwhelming. My guidance to customers evaluating their strategy was that the broader goal and vision are important. But you don’t have to get there all at once. It can zig and zag with baby steps and giant leaps. Ensuring the vision aligns with your broader organization is critical to successful implementation and adoption. 

“Meet your organization where you are” is another statement I made and continue to make to companies in a related manner. Where you are isn’t right or wrong; it’s just where you are. But it doesn’t have to dictate where you will go next. You can plan around that as you think big.

Award-winning Recognition for HxGN EAM

We were grateful to be recognized by Reliabilityweb for ‘Best Asset Condition Management Solution’ at the Reliability Conference. The award recognizes the hard work and dedication of the team behind HxGN EAM. I’ve been blown away by the team's insight, ingenuity and commitment to delivering for our customers.  

Reliabilityweb recognized HxGN EAM’s holistic approach to enterprise asset management, incorporating features such as user-defined formulas and hierarchical levels to evaluate asset reliability, as having set us apart. Not to mention the ability to optimize equipment risk levels with a robust RCM study and detailed analysis. These features just scratch the surface of what HxGN EAM offers.

Overall, my time in Seattle only confirmed that Hexagon and its vision for the future of asset management are a perfect fit for what customers need—and, more importantly, will need in the future. I’m excited about what the future holds.
And we’re only getting started…