7x24 2015 Fall Magazine

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59
PREVENTIVE
MAINTENANCE
pM management lies at the core of
the CMMs and undergirds a variety
of its functions.
on the basic level, pMs are
assigned to each piece of
equipment or building system in a
data center and the pM calendar
generates work orders (wo) to
alert technicians to specific
maintenance tasks. pM calendars
can be viewed on a daily, weekly,
monthly, quarterly, or annual basis –
or in any other time configuration
needed. in addition, readings from
meters and monitors on equipment
or infrastructure systems can directly
interface with the CMMs to
generate automatic pM
notifications.
at ragingwire, pMs could contain
more than 100 line items for
servicing a data center generator,
including checking the engine,
intake exhaust, fuel system,
generator controls, and fuel tanks.
and each line item might require
technicians to complete 15 to 20
specific inspections or repair steps
that are then checked off and
documented in the CMMs.
“our CMMs helps us not only track
all assets, but we can also forward-
think when the next pM is due,”
thames said. “and if we miss the
pM, the CMMs will calculate that
we were late and reschedule it for
us.”
pMs also contribute to worker safety
when they are set up to remind
technicians to refresh skills or
complete professional certification
requirements. and pMs are useful
for tracking updates from
manufacturers as well.
but beyond these specific
capabilities, the CMMs serves as a
catalyst to shift attitudes from a
reactive, “fix-it-when-it-breaks”
mentality to a pro-active, preventive
maintenance mindset. the true
beauty of the CMMs lies in its
ability to keep an eye on machine
components before they break
down – and to generate pMs to
prevent them from doing so. in data
centers, where uninterrupted
service is critical, a CMMs offers a
clear benefit in terms of reducing or
eliminating downtime for crucial
infrastructure systems.
the preventive maintenance
approach is also well suited to the
unique demands placed on data
centers. because pM tasks are set
up in advance, they offer managers
more flexibility with work
assignments, and as noted, pMs can
be scheduled to avoid colliding with
a customer’s peak activity times.
ASSET PLANNING
AND MANAGEMENT
in terms of managing assets, a
CMMs gives managers access to
crucial information, such as
unplanned repairs vs. pMs for
specific assets.
during the course of completing
pMs as part of the workday,
technicians use the CMMs to
document the status of repairs,
creating an archive of information
on assets. that archive becomes an
invaluable tool for asset analysis.
data center services provider
viawest relies on CMMs – and
scheduled pMs – to handle
maintenance for backup generators,
ups, cooling infrastructure
equipment, fire equipment and
more. each piece of equipment is
assigned a pM, based on timed
frequencies, such as quarterly,
annually, or biannually.