Utilities generate and distribute a wide variety of vital resources to communities, including water, power, and even telecommunications. Utilities must manage and maintain numerous assets to ensure that communities receive uninterrupted service. This makes asset management a priority.
According to IBM, 70% of the largest water companies and 90% of the largest global utility companies use Maximo for asset management. While IBM Maximo is the go-to enterprise asset management (EAM) solution for the industry, utility companies gain additional benefits from switching to Maximo as a Service. Benefits of MaaS include cost savings, flexibility, agility, and enhanced communication.
The utility industry is becoming increasingly competitive. The industry is being disrupted by alternative energy sources, such as wind, solar, and nuclear energy. Sustainable energy is less expensive to generate, so utilities that rely on traditional sources, such as fossil fuels, must pivot and shift to stay in the game. MaaS gives utility companies the flexibility they need to change from one energy source to another.
In wastewater, it can be tough to get rate increases through. Communities don’t want to see a rate hike on their water bill due to wastewater costs. Wastewater utilities must find better, faster, and cheaper ways to work so they can keep costs down and avoid passing them along to customers.
MaaS provides opportunities to cut costs because of its cloud-consumption model. Utilities pay a predictable monthly fee and are not required to purchase their own infrastructure or software licenses. Necessary upgrades are included at no extra cost.
Utilities may be working out of plants and other facilities that are 30, 40, or even 50 years old. This aging infrastructure puts utility companies at risk. They must keep track of which assets they can continue using, which need to be repaired, and which must be ripped out and replaced.
MaaS ensures that utility companies have the information they need to make these crucial decisions. Hosting Maximo in the cloud helps utilities track the status of assets no matter where they are located. Accurate, real-time data is available so decisions about maintaining or replacing assets can be made before an issue develops.
Asset management is a challenge for utilities because their equipment is geographically distributed. Many communities object to having not only power plants but also wind farms and solar arrays in their area. Residents have concerns about noise, light pollution, and having their views obstructed by unsightly equipment. For this reason, assets are often located in remote areas. Remote locations, such as waterfronts and fields, are also ideally suited for the equipment used to generate renewable energy.
To track and manage these geographically dispersed assets, utility companies need robust connectivity. With Maximo in the cloud, utilities gain the ability to work at the edge of the network where information is generated.
Utilities can examine the power distribution site by the mile, tracking meters and underground pipelines. Equipment can be managed linearly rather than as individual assets. Utilities can work with a single data set, eliminating informational silos that prevent them from getting full visibility into assets. With MaaS, utilities are able to communicate with assets instantaneously, wherever they are located.
Today, mechanical meters are being replaced with electronic meters, making connectivity more important than ever. Utilities are embracing IoT, and MaaS optimizes these capabilities by supporting edge computing.
With MaaS, utilities are able to make plans based on shifting conditions and situational factors, such as weather. By predicting the weather, utilities can plan where to place assets and where repairs may be needed. Crews can move from region to region to help out at a location that has been hit by a storm. Every crew is familiar with Maximo, so changing locations and collaborating with other utility companies isn’t an issue.
Utilities turn to IBM Maximo for asset management because it is a best-in-breed solution. Maximo has exceptional out-of-the-box capabilities and can be adapted to meet the unique needs of industries and individual companies.
Now, these companies can take Maximo to the next level through MaaS. Organizations that use MaaS benefit from working with a partner that has specialized expertise and has learned important lessons through experience.
Projetech is an ideal partner for utility companies that want MaaS. We understand the asset management needs of the utility industry and have earned key industry certifications. We provide geographically diverse cloud data centers for MaaS. With our MaaS, your company receives all necessary Maximo resources, as well as upgrades, all at an annual subscription rate. Our MaaS offering provides data security, backup, and disaster recovery so your company knows its asset management and customer data is protected, complete, and accurate.
Find out how MaaS can enhance your company’s Maximo experience. Request a quote from Projetech.
