CMMS: Trends And Attitudes

Posted by Heidi Schwartz

Current CMMS Methods
Prospective buyers’ current methods

How do facility managers feel about computerized maintenance management software (CMMS)? What are they buying? What do they look for in systems? What is keeping them back from upgrading their CMMS investment—or making initial purchase in the first place?

Every year, Software Advice conducts a survey of current and potential CMMS users to determine the answers to these questions and more. The goal is to uncover this year’s top CMMS buyer trends, including deployment preferences, most requested features, and buyers’ current management systems.

The results were somewhat surprising, to say the least. The survey found that 48% of prospective buyers were currently using manual methods such as paper and spreadsheets to track their maintenance management, rather than using a formal software system.

Some of the other key findings:

  • Preventive maintenance is the most sought-after feature at 25%, followed closely by asset management (22%), and work order management (21%).
  • 85% of buyers plan to make a CMMS purchase in three months or less.
  • The majority of buyers (71%) say they have no preference between on-premise and web-based systems, showing they may not understand the benefits each provides.
Most buyers (37%) said they have 101 to 500 employees to manage. In general, most buyers oversee somewhere between 21 and 500 employees.
Most buyers (37%) said they have 101 to 500 employees to manage. In general, most buyers oversee somewhere between 21 and 500 employees.

Taylor Short, managing editor of Software Advice writes, “The data shows that prospective buyers in our sample are mostly from smaller businesses new to CMMS software, and who are looking to reduce manual work and increase efficiency of operations. According to John Rimer, owner of FM360 Consulting, with new technology and a growing number of CMMS vendors, the real determinant for most buyers isn’t functionality, as many are extremely similar. Rather, the systems that are easiest to understand and use are chosen most often, he explains.”


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