What is SAP PM Module

What is Computerized Maintenance Management System and SAP PM Module?

A CMMS software package maintains a computer database of information about an organization’s maintenance operations. This information is intended to help maintenance workers do their jobs more effectively (for example, determining which storerooms contain the spare parts they need) and to help management make informed decisions (for example, calculating the cost of maintenance for each piece of equipment used by the organization, possibly leading to better allocation of resources). The information may also be useful when dealing with third parties; if, for example, an organization is involved in a liability case, the data in a CMMS database can serve as evidence that proper safety maintenance has been performed.

CMMS packages may be used by any organization that must perform maintenance on equipment and property.

A typical package deals with some or all of the following:

Work orders: Scheduling jobs, assigning personnel, reserving materials, recording costs, and tracking relevant information such as the cause of the problem (if any), downtime involved (if any), and recommendations for future action.

Preventive maintenance (PM): Keeping track of PM inspections and jobs, including step-by-step instructions or check-lists, lists of materials required, and other pertinent details. Typically, the CMMS schedules PM jobs automatically based on schedules and/or meter readings. Different software packages use different techniques for reporting when a job should be performed.

Asset management: Recording data about equipment and property including specifications, warranty information, service contracts, spare parts, purchase date, expected lifetime, and anything else that might be of help to management or maintenance workers.

Inventory control: Management of spare parts, tools, and other materials including the reservation of materials for particular jobs, recording where materials are stored, determining when more materials should be purchased, tracking shipment receipts, and taking inventory.

Safety: Management of permits and other documentation required for the processing of safety requirements. These safety requirements can include lockout-tagout, confined space, foreign material exclusion (FME), electrical safety, and others.

SAP R/3’s PM module functions as a computerized maintenance management system (CMMS) and is used to plan and schedule ongoing, daily facility maintenance.

The SAP Plant Maintenance comprises of the following activities such as inspection, to measures and establish the actual condition of a technical system, preventive maintenance to measures and maintain the ideal condition of a technical system, repair to measures and restore the ideal condition of a technical system and other measures that need to be taken using the maintenance organization.

SAP PM is closely integrated with other modules (for example, Materials Management, Production, Sales and Distribution, Personnel Management, and Controlling) the data is always kept current and processes that are necessary for Plant Maintenance and Customer Service are automatically triggered in other areas (for example, a purchase requisition for non-stock material in the Materials Management/Purchasing area).




Source:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computerized_Maintenance_Management_System
http://www.sap-basis-abap.com/sappm.htm