Calculating CMMS Software Cost

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ByTiago

One of the common questions warehouse managers ask is how much CMMS costs and what is CMMS software. They are both tough questions and there are several factors that you should consider that have an impact on the software cost and the value you get from the CMMS.

In this article, we are going to highlight some of these factors in the assumption that you have some CMMS knowledge and the solution you are looking for.

Factors that determine the CMMS cost

Software costs

Cloud-based CMMS operates on a subscription structure. These subscription fees are payments made to a software provider for using the product. They are made on yearly basis and also quarterly or monthly. The fees are paid per user and there are various subscription tiers. The subscription price increases with the service level, the number of features, and much more.

When determining the subscription fees think about:

  • The features you require
  • The number of people that will be using the software
  • The service level you need from the vendor.

Implementation

The cost of CMMS implementation includes indirect and direct costs of creating the software and making it operational. Among the implementation costs are paying for the CMMS vendor’s service of configuring the system, creating preventive maintenance, and data migration. Some providers offer hourly costs while others charge for an implementation package that offers some of these services.

The worked description from the vendor should indicate the number of hours needed for implementation depending on the number of assets, pieces of inventory, and PMs.

Support, training, and administration

Support and training costs depend on the goals, size, and capacity of your team. Concerning implementation, the majority of CMMS providers provide a certain number of support and training hours upon purchasing a subscription. The more expensive the tier the more the hours of support and training.

When arriving at the cost of support and training for your CMMS you need to check whether your team is comfortable with using the software, how fast you want the software to operate, and the number of users that will be accessing the system.

The last factor to be considered is the work and time spent on the administration of the system which involves the long-term management of the software. This involves the expense of recruiting new users and creating new PMs and reports.

The cost of hardware

 Mobile device purchasing is among the hardware costs that are involved in cloud-based CMMS software. Among the advantages of a CMMS is that it is mobile which makes it possible for the technician to operate from anywhere at any given time. This makes it important to equip your workforce with smartphones or tablets to enable you to get the most value from your software.

Cloud-based CMMS systems incorporate a mobile CMMS app which makes it simple for the operators to access the system from their own smart devices. On the other hand, it is important to contact the CMMS provider and figure out which devices offer the best user experience.

Integration fees

It is important to integrate your CMMS with other software such as ERP. This enables the maintenance to communicate with other relevant departments, and collect better information and fine solutions. CMMS integration with other systems has become affordable thanks to the latest innovations.

To figure out price integration is figuring out the systems that connect to your CMMS. Three systems connect to your CMMS:

  • Product systems i.e., PLCs, sensors, and SCADA
  • ERP software
  • Business process management software

You can then have a conversation with CMMS providers to understand the possible CMMS integrations, the fees they charge for the integrations, and the cost of each integration.

Growing your CMMS

As your business grows the demands of your CMMS grow in proportion. Updating your software to accommodate these needs means more expenses. Therefore, you have to include the future when making calculations of the total cost of the CMMS.

One factor to put into consideration is the increase in users. If you think that the maintenance team will grow in the following years your subscription fees will increase.

The other consideration is training, hardware, and support. You need to spend more on this equipment and services when more sites or users access the software.

Your CMMS must also grow as your business becomes more complex. This might require you to move your CMMS to a higher subscription that offers more reporting tools, customization, security elements, and much more.

CMMS software ROI calculation

We can now figure out the value that CMMS software can offer. You should, however, know that the CMMs Roi depends on many factors some of which are more specific to you, your aims, and your plant. Therefore, this is just a general ROI calculation and most likely a software list whereby a CMMS generates business efficiency.

Labor

Removing unnecessary processes with a CMMS calculator can save you time and money. Once you have a goal that includes the time taken to complete tasks such as pay rates and labor you can begin looking for the answers to these questions and figuring out the ROI of CMMS and its relationship to the labor costs:

  • Are the few unplanned equipment breakdowns leading to additional staff or costly contractors?
  • Are you conducting more planned maintenance?
  • Are you saving time on information entry due to simpler digital report creation?
  • Is work being identified and worked on faster due to mobile notifications?
  • Are factors such as work quality, production time, and the total labor value of work hours increasing?

 

Downtime

Unexpected equipment downtime can cause thousands or millions of dollars in loss to a business every year. However, a CMMS can help you reduce downtime and the relevant costs through:

  • Assisting you in figuring out each hour of the downtime.
  • Tracking the downtime hours before and after adopting a CMMS.
  • Offering you insights into specific types of failure or preventive maintenance tasks to show how the CMMS has reduced downtime in every case.

In summary, the best CMMS software comes in different prices, sizes, and shapes.  Some software is free and others go for thousands of dollars. CMMS software comes with various features, use cases, capabilities, and ROI. Determining the cost of a CMMS and the value it offers needs proper analysis of your business, its goals, and the options available.

Tiago is a passionate movie enthusiast and dedicated reviewer with a keen eye for cinematic details. He is passionate about Tamil, Telugu, Bollywood, Hollywood, English, Malayalam movies.