Operations & Maintenance

I recently visited the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region to attend two key events for the asset management industry - EAM Symposiums in Auckland (New Zealand) and Manila (the Philippines). It was an exciting and eye-opening experience, and a great opportunity to meet some of Hexagon’s key customers in the region. 

Overall, it’s clear that there is significant interest in both enterprise asset management (EAM) and asset performance management (APM) in APAC. So, let’s take a look at three of the key takeaways from my visit.  

Takeaway 1 - Asset Management is a Strategic Imperative for Many Industries 

 In both Southeast Asia and New Zealand, it was great to see so many attendees from such a diverse range of industries. I met with key representatives from the healthcare, water services, food and beverage and facilities management sectors - to name just a few.  

It was a reflection of our experience that asset management has moved to the top of the strategic agenda for most asset-intensive industries. What’s more, this trend is set to continue for the foreseeable future, as companies look to maximize the delivery capability of their industrial assets at an optimal cost and risk profile.  

APM has a key strategic role to play in managing the asset lifecycle. It can help companies to approach asset management through a more strategic lens, linking the shop floor to the top floor. 

Overall, it was great to hear so many diverse perspectives. I particularly enjoyed hearing from Health NZ at the Auckland event and M. Montesclaros Holdings in Manila.  

Takeaway 2 - Reliability is Alive and Well in APAC 

Visiting the The Reliability Conference in Seattle earlier this year, I reflected on the fact that so many companies are not satisfied with simply maintaining their equipment. Increasingly, they want to manage the entire lifecycle of their assets. This was also a consistent theme in both Manila and Auckland. 

There was a lot of interest in Hexagon’s coverage of EAM and APM during each event. Audience members found our recent acquisition of Itus Digital and relaunch as HxGN APM to be very interesting. This revolutionary solution leverages data and analytics to monitor asset performance and optimize maintenance activities in real-time. It also offers an advanced analytical and optimization engine to solutions like HxGN EAM, HxGN SDx® and j5. 

In short, customers everywhere (including APAC) are telling us they want pragmatic solutions to identify potential threats, mitigate risks and extend asset lifecycles. The conferences were a fantastic opportunity to demonstrate that Hexagon is listening to these requests - and responding! 

Takeaway 3 - There is a Thriving Hexagon APAC Ecosystem 

It was great to see not only Hexagon customers, but also many partners attending both events. It’s clear there is a thriving HxGN EAM ecosystem across the APAC region.  

Notably, I met with partners from a range of Hexagon’s divisions. For me, this was a strong indicator that companies are increasingly looking for holistic outcomes to shared challenges as they continue their digital transformation agendas, rather than focusing on individual solutions that are only one piece of the data puzzle. For example, I enjoyed discussions on the significant synergies between asset management and availability, and overall equipment effectiveness (OEE) and quality management.   

That’s why Hexagon’s focus is on working collectively to help our customers to harness the power of their data to boost efficiency, productivity, quality and safety - regardless of industry. In terms of asset management, that means supporting the development of optimal asset strategies based upon the actual condition and operating context of plant assets.  

My visit to APAC confirmed companies are responding to Hexagon’s commitment to driving sustainable, data-driven transformations in asset-intensive industries. We’re helping to transform reactive asset management to proactive, strategic asset management - and we are very proud to be part of the solution.