Fleet Maintenance - 36

MANAGEMENT

CMMS marketplace
Finding the right computerized
maintenance management
system for your fleet.

Computerized maintenance management
system (CMMS) software can help your fleet
better track its assets and organize preventive
maintenance schedules, but selecting one that
is the right fit can be a challenge. There are
several aspects to keep in mind when searching for CMMS software, including upfront cost,
ongoing costs, and ensuring the software's
functionalities fit your fleet.

Purchasing software

Think about it: When purchasing software, you
pay thousands of dollars and all you get is a
disc, a code for a download, or, in the old days, a
tape. The fact is software development has to be
funded well before anyone sees the product. In
one extensive system, we estimated we had 30
person-years of development before we made
our first sales call.
Once the product is written and debugged, the
software business can be quite lucrative (look at
SAP or Microsoft). Of course, the highest ongoing
cost is the next version or next new product.
The price you pay for software is directly
dependent on the assumptions the marketing
department makes about the number of units

Joel Levitt

PRESIDENT OF SPRINGFIELD RESOURCES
Joel Levitt is the president of Springfield Resources, a
management consulting firm that services a variety of
clients on a wide range of maintenance issues. Levitt
has trained more than 17,000 maintenance leaders
from more than 3,000 organizations in 38 countries. He
is also the creator of Laser-Focused Training, a flexible
training program that provides specific, targeted training on your schedule.

36 Fleet Maintenance | October 2020

they will sell. In the example above, the software
has 30 person-years of development. Multiply
that by $200,000 of burdened cost per year, and
the total development cost is $6 million.
Using that example, if the company estimates
they will sell 20 units, each unit will have to be
sold for $300,000 just to recoup the development
cost and break even. If 100 units are sold, each
unit will cost $60,000; if 1,000 units are sold,
each unit will cost $6,000; and so on.
This pricing means the same type of software can have wildly different sticker prices. In
development, companies - especially smaller
ones - are only able to estimate the number of
units they will sell.

Software as a Service

Software as a service (SaaS) refers specifically
to business software applications that are delivered on-demand via a cloud provider instead
of being deployed on local platforms. Users pay
for the applications as a subscription rather
than purchasing the software outright.
SaaS is a concept that is as old as the computer. In SaaS, you pay a relatively small monthly rental fee that includes the software and
the storage. Everyone seems to be migrating
toward that business model. Google was a
pioneer with Google Drive, Docs, etc.
Much of the development has taken place
in the SaaS arena. SaaS requires a consistent
Internet connection to operate since it is a
cloud-based product. As long as you have
stable Internet service, SaaS is an excellent
option. Without stable Internet, SaaS can be
a huge problem.
This business model is not new by any
means. Originally, this was called timesharing where you could rent the computer and
software and pay by the second. One of the
significant general-purpose packages today,
Maximo asset management software, has
timesharing in its corporate history. The original designer, Project Software & Development

»When purchasing CMMS software,
find an option that includes the
functionalities your fleet requires.
165030026 | Snowingg | Dreamstime

"As long as you
have stable
Internet service,
SaaS is an excellent
option. Without
stable Internet,
SaaS can be a
huge problem."
Joel Levitt

Inc (PSDI), was known for timeshare project
management software.

Functionality to consider

Whenever you choose a maintenance management system, design a new system, or revamp
an existing system, consider these components
separately and in this order:
1. Daily transactions: This component

includes all data entry, such as work orders,
receipts of parts, payroll information, fuel logs,
and physical inventory information.
Look for: Completeness, speediness, quick data
entry, logical format, and consistent format.
2. Master files: The master files are fixed

information about the vehicles, parts, technicians, and organization. In better systems,
the master files drive the report headings,
utilization fields (hours and miles are never
mixed), and screen headings.
Look for: Completeness is the big issue because
it is tough to add new fields to a master file

Fleet Maintenance

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