What is Enterprise Asset Management? A Detailed Guide

If a firm’s assets fail to generate the required level of performance or, worse, are unavailable during operational activities team members will not be able to do their work or meet organizational goals and objectives. 

It is always challenging to track and manage the enterprise assets and due to this most companies fail to maintain their equipment, optimally utilize their assets, and control and minimize operational overheads.

That’s where Clue's enterprise asset management comes in.

Whether your company specializes in facilities management, runs a manufacturing plant, focuses on transportation projects, or works in another asset-intensive industry, intelligent enterprise asset management software can help it increase equipment uptime, extend asset life cycles, and make better maintenance decisions.

Start realizing these benefits today with this in-depth overview of all things enterprise asset management, from core applications and functions to what features your company should look for in its enterprise asset management solution.

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What is Enterprise Asset Management in Construction?

The goal of enterprise asset management is to use specialized systems, methods, and procedures to manage the lifecycle of commercial assets.

This includes the management of the whole lifecycle of assets: acquisition, maintenance, repair, and eventual disposal.

The global enterprise asset management market size was valued at USD 5.60 billion in 2023 and is projected to grow from USD 6.09 billion in 2024 to USD 13.69 billion by 2032, exhibiting a CAGR of 10.9%. 

Such rapid growth means that there are numerous EAM solutions available, making it critical to research management systems before making an application decision.

EAM follows an asset from its assembly or collection through its eventual archival, retirement, or disposal, continuously monitoring its maintenance, risk, and compliance.

In the construction industry, asset management is crucial since it keeps the business operating at its highest level of efficiency.

When resources are poorly managed, whether through acquisition, maintenance, or disposal, the business and continuing project procedures suffer both immediately and over time.

Unexpected downtime results from a resource's temporary failure or stoppage, which increases process inefficiencies.

Despite the frequent comparisons to computerized maintenance management systems (CMMS), a powerful EAM typically provides a broader array of functions and capabilities,

such as:

• A method for keeping track of stock

• Information and document management platform

• Applications for managing multiple sites

• A mechanism for managing purchases

• Keeping track of money and using an accounting system

• An approach to managing projects

• Methods for monitoring efficiency

• Tools for managing labor

• Managing service contracts

• Protocols for lockouts and tag outs

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Types of Assets in the Construction Sector

Construction Equipment

Heavy machinery and specialized tools used in construction are included in construction equipment including:

• Excavators

• Bulldozers

• Cranes

• Loaders

• Concrete Mixers 

Every piece of equipment does a specific job, from moving earth to lifting materials to pouring concrete. 

This allows management of these assets to remain efficient, with projects completed on time and at budget, with minimal downtime to maximize productivity.

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Vehicles/Fleet

Vehicles of business construction areas are for transporting workers, materials, and equipment from one job site to another including:

• Trucks

• Vans

• Trailers

• Utility vehicles

An important thing regarding fleet management is scheduling and properly maintaining fleets so that not only you will have reduced costs but also you’ll be more efficient.

By installing GPS and fleet management systems, companies can see how their vehicles are used and how much fuel they consume, as well as measure vehicle health to keep operations running smoothly.

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Computers and other devices

Today, computers, tablets, smartphones, and other electronic devices are indispensable in the construction industry.

These tools help when planning a project, whether communicating or reporting. 

These devices provide access to construction management software, used by teams to track progress and manage budgets and schedules in real time, bringing the office and field together.

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Importance of EAM

Enterprise asset management is important because it creates a structured system for managing your organization’s physical assets.

EAM is of particular importance to your maintenance operation. 

Maintenance teams enjoy numerous benefits when working within the structure provided by EAM software and systems including a clear set of expectations, operational guidelines, and standard operating procedures for performing routine and critical maintenance activities. 

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How Enterprise Asset Management Works

To get an understanding of how an EAM works, let's examine the basic components that make up the majority of most systems:

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Budget Management

You need to keep tabs on all the different expenses related to running and maintaining each asset you own if you want to know how much they cost in the end.

You can enter spending figures for purchase, maintenance, repair, and servicing in most EAMs. You can oversee budgets for each asset and the service and facility teams as a whole by integrating your EAM with other financial software solutions.

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Lifecycle Management

Your team can be guided through each key step of an asset's lifecycle with the use of an EAM. Buying and selling equipment isn't the only thing you need to keep in mind.

In an EAM, you can monitor important stages of an asset's lifecycle, such as:

• Planning

• Procurement

• Installation

• Operation

• Maintenance

• Transfers

• Decommissioning

• Sale, storage, or disposal

You and your team will be able to make more informed decisions as the process progresses if you can keep track of the costs and work orders linked to each phase.

Many of the system's entry fields and other characteristics can be adjusted to meet the requirements that differ for each organization and industry.

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Labor Management

It is one thing to maintain tabs on your assets, but it can be equally difficult to keep tabs on your staff members.

Thanks to EAM's integrated schedules and real-time assignment capabilities, managing work hours and priorities is effortless.

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Supply Chain Management

Maximize your control costs with full oversight of inventory procurement and management.

Have an understanding of what materials are being demanded of your facility and how you are going to manage your parts to ensure you don't overstock or go short on materials.

With real-time tracking of inventory levels, you can predict the need for stock, eliminate unnecessary waste, and prevent expensive delays when vital components are missing.

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Health and Safety (EHS)

To maintain a safe working environment, you must document and report effectively Environmental, Health, and Safety (EHS) concerns.

Support risk mitigation through incident analysis, which is a tool that provides teams the ability to identify safety issues by their root causes.

It tracks corrective actions, maintains accountability and follow-up for risk identified, and process change management improves compliance and adapts to the changing safety protocols. 

Now let’s take a detailed look into the key features of each of these EAM components.

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Key Features of Enterprise Asset Management

1. Asset Tracking

Asset tracking is a formal process of identifying and monitoring an organization's physical inventory to synchronize activities and effectively use resources.

Modern asset tracking technology has moved beyond the paper catalogs used traditionally; today technologies like barcodes and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) etc are used to provide data on activities concerning: 

• Location
• Usage
• Condition of the asset.

This guarantees better accountability, less loss, and better decision-making around asset utilization.

• Asset Register: A centralized database to log and monitor all organizational assets, including their details, location, and maintenance history.

• Barcode Integration: Automates asset identification and tracking using barcode scanners for enhanced efficiency.

• Geographical Information Systems (GIS): Tracks asset location in real-time, especially useful for field assets or mobile equipment.

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2. Preventative Maintenance

This type of maintenance focuses on maintenance services aimed at reducing the likelihood of a certain equipment failure.

This is proactive as it reduces asset lifespan, frequency of breakdowns, and repair costs, due to early identification and prevention of the problems.

• Maintenance Scheduling: Automates routine maintenance tasks, ensuring all equipment is serviced on time.

• Condition-Based Maintenance: Monitors asset performance and condition, triggering maintenance when predefined thresholds are reached.

• Resource Allocation: Efficiently assigns labor and materials to maintenance tasks based on availability and priority.

Clue offers a straightforward approach to preventative maintenance, allowing you to create tailored project management plans for a single asset or thousands, using a variety of templates and services.

Thanks to intelligent scheduling and automatic work orders, every asset is kept in optimal condition and ready to work immediately.

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3. Work Order Management

Work order management considerably enhances the process of creating assigning, as well as performing the works related to maintenance and operation. 

This feature makes sure that every single work order is accounted for, responded to, and followed up correctly and on time, while at the same time offering a clear view of every task.

• Work Order Creation: Simplifies the process of initiating work orders with detailed instructions and asset information.

• Workflow Automation: Automates task assignments and notifications, ensuring efficient progress and minimal manual intervention.

• Tracking and Reporting: Monitors work order statuses and generate detailed reports for performance evaluation and improvement.

Keep projects on schedule by visualizing and tracking orders on a map. Clue improves efficiency by integrating all maintenance actions and historical repair work orders into your system.

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4. Inventory Management

Retail management entails developing ways of monitoring and preserving all sorts of various materials; things, and components necessary for outside work.

It helps in reducing wastage and ordering of stock space, and it also leads to increasing productivity of business operations.

• Inventory Tracking: Monitors inventory movement and usage, ensuring real-time visibility.

• Stock Levels and Reordering: Sets alerts for low stock levels and automates reordering processes to avoid shortages.

• Cost Tracking: Tracks the financial aspects of inventory, including acquisition costs and usage expenses.

You can keep track of your parts inventory management with precision using Clue. Make sure every part is used optimally and replaced just in time by managing the preventive maintenance status across your whole fleet from one dashboard.

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5. Audit and Compliance

Audit and compliance tools assist the organization in meeting the legal regulations and internal standards by record-keeping and auditing functions.

This minimizes one of the major concerns in legal departments and also creates operational credibility.

• Regulatory Compliance Checks: Automates compliance assessments to meet industry standards and regulations.

• Internal Audits: Facilitates periodic internal reviews to identify and rectify procedural gaps.

• Record Keeping and Documentation Management: Maintains detailed logs and documents to support audits and regulatory reviews.

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6. Contract and License Management

Contract and license management is an efficient means to address contract and license management, renewal, and compliance with vendors and service providers.

It allows for proper renewal and commitment to contracts to be met.

• Contract Tracking: Monitors contract terms, milestones, and expiry dates to avoid lapses.

• License Renewals: Automates renewal reminders to ensure continued compliance with legal requirements.

• Vendor Management: Maintains vendor records and performance history for streamlined collaboration.

• Compliance Verification: Ensures contracts and licenses meet regulatory and operational standards.

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7. Depreciation Management

Depreciation control determines and records the decrease in value of the assets, useful for statements and tax purposes.

It offers multiple depreciation techniques and includes accounting standards to ensure the company’s legal conformity.

• Depreciation Methods: Supports various calculation methods, such as Straight-Line and Declining Balance.

• Asset Valuation: Regularly updates asset value to reflect depreciation accurately.

• Tax Implications: Provides insights into depreciation-related tax benefits and obligations.

• Financial Reporting: Generates detailed reports to support accounting and audit processes.

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8. Reporting and Analytics

Measurement and communication tools report on the condition of noted assets, execution of processes, or financial performance.

It also means that the features help in decision-making and preparing for maintenance schedules relying on history.

• Customizable Dashboards: Allows users to create dashboards tailored to specific KPIs and metrics.

• Advanced Analytics: Offers in-depth analysis of asset usage, costs, and performance trends.

• Predictive Analytics: Uses AI and historical data to forecast future asset behavior and potential maintenance needs.

Tell the story of your equipment journey with our reports and analytics feature, providing insights to assess performance, identify trends, and make confident decisions.

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3 Key Benefits of Enterprise Asset Management

1. Cost Savings

It has been found that the application of Enterprise Asset Management reduces operating expenses by a large amount due to efficient asset deployment and minimal chance of failures.

Through the usage of proactive and predictive measures, organizations can significantly reduce or prevent complications such that they do not lead to expensive overhauls or replacements. 

EAM also benefits in inventory management where the right quantity of every part is ordered so as to maximize the right part at the right time without housing excess inventories thus helping in control of more of the company’s expenses.

According to a report from Flexera, which identified that cost optimization is one of the main goals of businesses that implement IT Asset Management (ITAM) where many organizations use ITAM to deliver richer, usable data to FinOps, security, and sustainability teams. 

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2. Improved Compliance

With the use of EAM systems, business organizations ensure compliance with regulations and industry requirements since documents are well organized with records of audit trails.

Automated compliance helps to make sure that the schedules for inspections, certifications, and safety checks are met, reducing compliance penalties and creating a safer working culture.

EY’s observations about automation in compliance clearly establish how using technologies such as SARGE can significantly save time by up to 75% in compliance processes, suggesting the opportunities provided by integrated EAM solutions.

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3. Mobile Maintenance Management

As for mobile-enabled EAM systems, field maintenance crews can easily access asset information, work orders, and manuals, and enhance response time and task accomplishment.

Users can capture and record maintenance activities, and conditions of the assets and interact with the head office in real-time, especially if they are out in the field.

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Industries That Benefit from Fleet Management

Fleet management is applicable across various industries, allowing organizations to streamline operations and enhance efficiency.

Here are some key sectors that can take advantage of fleet management:

• Transportation and Logistics: Ensures timely deliveries and optimal routing of freight. Logistics tasks including fuel management, driver logs, rail and road maintenance, and air traffic control operations can all be facilitated with the use of EAM solutions.

• Construction: Manages vehicles and heavy equipment for project efficiency. It controls the optimal usage of machinery to understand real-time location and usage status, reduce idling time, and enhance productivity. Maintenance scheduling helps avoid breaks and prolong equipment’s life cycle, and fuel analysis to minimize waste and spending. Fleet management systems also improve compliance with safety regulations and certifications meant for the fleets.

• Government Agencies: Roads, bridges, and public buildings can all be better managed with EAM software, which also helps with budgeting, safety inspections, and regular maintenance.

• Public Services: Oversees municipal fleets for waste management, emergency services, and public transportation. Important assets like roads, bridges, and utilities are overseen by government agencies and public infrastructure companies.
  

• Healthcare: Coordinates ambulances and mobile clinics for timely medical assistance. Utilize EAM to guarantee that equipment undergoes regular inspections, maintenance, and upkeep in accordance with current healthcare legislation, as well as patient safety standards.

• ‍Utilities: Utilities, which have both permanent and linear assets, have a dual responsibility to their communities and to protect their staff and equipment. Plants, power stations, and other harsh, remote areas house the assets. By facilitating collaboration on planned and operational asset performance, continuous documentation and data management, and benchmarking capabilities, EAM supports the industry's reliability-centered maintenance paradigm.

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EAM vs. CMMS

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How to Choose the Right Enterprise Asset Management Software

Choosing the right Enterprise Asset Management (EAM) software can significantly improve your company’s asset management, but with numerous options on the market, finding the perfect fit can be daunting.

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Integration and Security

The EAM software should ideally be simple to integrate with the platform it will be used on, be it ERP, IoT, or CMMS platforms.

Specific points of interest relate to robust data protection measures to protect assets in order to meet stringent regulatory requirements.

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Data-Driven Insights

Choose software with better and more enhanced analytical and reporting features. Having the necessary knowledge about the current performance and status of the assets and the overall ability to analyze big data in terms of what the assets require to further improve its functionality and reduce its maintenance cost is essential knowledge to have.

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Scalability and Support

Consider whether the software can expand to meet the growth of your organization and can support more people, properties, or equipment if necessary.

Moreover, where possible, consider vendors that have a good customer relations support desk, and frequent software enhancements.

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Mobile Access and User Experience

Mobile-enabled EAM software gives them real-time access to asset details, work orders, and maintenance updates making responsiveness possible.

A well-integrated design improves the software’s adoption across the team and generally increases efficiency.

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Total Cost of Ownership

It’s not avoidable for organizations to examine the complete cost of licenses, installation fees, training expenses, upgrades, and support.

An open and fixed-price service with tangible benefits that will justify its cost will be beneficial in the long run.

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Final Thoughts

Building an effective asset management program requires forethought and preparation. These days, there are a plethora of EAM solutions out there, so it's easy to choose one that works for you.

Making an educated decision and keeping system implementation costs in check is possible by learning about the key features of an EAM.

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FAQs

1. Why do you need an EAM?

Organizations can monitor, evaluate, control, and enhance the dependability and quality of their assets with the help of EAM. Every type of organization has assets—hundreds, thousands, or even millions of them.

2. What is the difference between ERP and EAM?

The primary focus of EAM system data is physical asset management, which includes collecting a plethora of additional asset data points, tracking their condition, and so on. Overarching company operations are the primary focus of ERP data. Common types of data that an ERP may handle include sales, human resources, financials, and production tracking.

3. What is the difference between EAM and ITAM?

Equipment, machinery, vehicles, and infrastructure are the primary objects of EAM, which aims to manage their lifetimes. Contrarily, IT Asset Management (ITAM) focuses on overseeing the entire lifecycle of information technology assets, which encompass software, hardware, and associated services.