Digital Transformation in EAM Market Being Driven by Changes in Maintenance Philosophy

Expectations are High for Today's EAM Systems

As today's industrial organizations expand beyond IT innovation to include OT as well, nowhere are these changes more evident than in the enterprise asset management market.  There is increased interest and demand for advanced capabilities in areas, such as predictive maintenance, predictive analytics, IoT, AI, ML, and cloud computing.    

In addition to being able to manage traditional maintenance tasks, such as inspections, work request, work orders, and the planning and scheduling of repairs, maintenance management systems are expected to be intelligent and anticipate potential problems before they occur.  There is a movement toward smart EAM solutions that offer real-time or near-real-time visibility into asset condition, health, and insight into potential problems. 

Elevating Business processes with Digital Transformation in EAM

Even though EAM is often considered a mature market, many changes are occurring.  Central to these changes is the movement from reactive, to automated, to intelligent asset management.  Consequently, the EAM market is at an inflection point as digital transformation is driving a need for more intelligent systems based on a trend toward IT and OT convergence.  

The underlying data must be filtered to provide timely, relevant, and actionable information.  And a lot of these systems are including information from outside systems, which often includes both structured and unstructured data.  In addition, much of this data may be stored in data lakes, databases, and/or data warehouses.  Many of these solutions are offering information from outside systems as well, including inputs from PLCs, edge devices, and various automation systems.  These next-gen EAM solutions support organizations’ desire to move from preventive to predictive to prescriptive maintenance. 

These next-gen EAM solutions are delivering added value with expanded connectivity and interoperability to intelligent sensors, IoT, and mobility devices.  From there, deep insights can be gleaned from data and predictive analytics capabilities extracted from the underlying data, and increasingly augmented by AI and ML.

Other Trends in EAM Driving Change

Many EAM customers are increasingly embracing a SaaS business model.  SaaS offers the potential for lower costs, complexity, and risks, because software, services, upgrades and patches, and hardware needs are current, and managed by the supplier.  Also, a SaaS deployment option can scale quickly and easily.  Some users also opt for a hybrid on-premise/SaaS deployment model.     

As many EAM users are desiring more industry-specific features and functionality to better manage their complex assets, there is an increased focus on vertical capabilities.  Based on industry best practices, such prefigured industry functionality is becoming a core requirement of asset-intensive industries embracing smart EAM initiatives.  Also, an increased interest in adopting asset management standards, such as the ISO 55000 series of standards and similar vertical-focused guidelines, is driving much of the interest in advanced EAM systems. 

Summary

There’s a resurgence of interest in EAM Solutions.  Even though the market is often thought to be mature, advances in IoT, sensors, and automation -- and more recently digital transformation – continue to bring innovation to users.  Consequently, the EAM market is dynamic, because of technology and process advances, as organizations seek greater business benefits.

At the same time, the reach and influence of EAM solutions continues to expand.  As EAM systems become increasingly intelligent and interconnected, the underlying role as an important repository for enterprise asset data that can be shared with adjacent systems is growing.  This has spurred an increased interest in broadening its footprint, including adopting both asset management standards and increased vertical expertise to increase efficiencies and maximize uptime.   

Keywords: EAM, asset management, Digital transformation, IoT, AI, ML, ARC Advisory Group.