The challenge
Managing thousands of geographically distributed assets presents a massive logistical and data challenge for maintenance teams.
- Planning complexity: The MJOP requires highly accurate data on the physical condition of assets to forecast budgets correctly for the next decade. Disconnected processes made it difficult to get reliable cost estimates from the field into the financial planning systems.
- Inefficient routing: Inspectors cover large distances. Traditionally, work orders were pre-assigned, meaning an inspector might drive past a weir that needed checking but wasn't on their list for the day.
- Data silos: Field findings needed to be manually re-entered into their Enterprise Asset Management system (Ultimo), creating delays and potential errors.
The solution
Aa en Maas implemented a Smartflow solution deeply integrated with Ultimo to digitize the inspection process for Gemalen and Stuwen.
- Map-based "Claiming" system: Inspectors now have a visual overview of all Work Orders on an interactive map. Instead of rigid schedules, they can see their real-time location relative to pending inspections. If they are near an "Open" work order, they can "claim" it and execute the inspection immediately, significantly reducing travel time and fuel consumption.
- Direct MJOP financial integration: The solution empowers inspectors to do more than just check boxes. If a defect is found, they can immediately input the estimated maintenance costs and the recommended year of execution directly in the app.
- Standardized workflows: The app enforces the strict CTBO inspection standard, guiding inspectors through specific checks for electromechanical and hydraulic components.
The results
By connecting the field directly to the MJOP planning process, Aa en Maas achieved a more agile and financially accurate maintenance operation.
- Proactive budgeting: With cost estimates captured at the source, the financial data for the Multi-Year Maintenance Plan (MJOP) is updated in real-time within Ultimo.
- Optimized field efficiency: The ability to visualize and claim nearby tasks on the map has eliminated unnecessary travel, allowing teams to clear inspection backlogs faster.
- Seamless data flow: The bi-directional integration ensures that work orders flow from Ultimo to the app, and completed inspection results flow back instantly, creating a single source of truth for asset health.
Looking ahead: Laying the Foundation for AI
By standardizing their inspection data today, Aa en Maas is building the dataset required for tomorrow's innovations.
- Objectifying costs: While inspectors currently estimate costs manually, the accumulation of structured historical data lays the groundwork for AI-driven cost estimation.
- Intelligent insights: In the future, the system utilizes this data to "learn" from thousands of past inspections, potentially flagging anomalies or suggesting maintenance costs automatically shifting the focus from data entry to data verification.