How AST Networks Planned Maintenance System (PMS) Can Benefit your Business

Vessel maintenance is comprised of many different activities ranging from an entire engine service to an oil filter change. The individual actives are all integral to ensuring the vessel can perform optimally with as minimal downtime as possible.

A Planned Maintenance System (PMS) is designed to allow vessel owners and operators to plan, undertake and document all essential maintenance undertaken on the fleet. Whilst this can be managed manually efficient PMS systems are now available to automate much of these processes, in turn reducing inefficiencies in manual data input and reducing operational costs.

Cost Effectively Manage Your Maintenance

An effective PMS System can offer the vessel owner and operator some of the following key benefits:

• Planned, scheduled, predictive and condition based maintenance
• Analysis of maintenance history and reporting
• Cross fleet job standardisation and cross fleet KPIs
• Defect reporting and management
• Stock / spare part management
• Records when work is complete
• All ships equipment listed with associated work procedures
• Class surveys and certificate management
• Plan vessel dry dock visits/refits
• Key Benefits of Planned Maintenance

Our Planned Maintenance System contributes towards:

• Pro-active maintenance on the vessel(s) increasing efficiencies by avoiding downtime and preventing part(s) malfunction
• Pro-active maintenance allows for reduced operational costs and reduced time that the asset is out of operation
• Allowing users to plan, monitor, record and implement complex maintenance tasks, including compliance reporting and innovative predictive maintenance monitoring
• From medical supplies to the main engine, every piece of equipment on board can be listed together with any associated work procedures to ensure quality standards remain as high as possible
• Extensive & Detailed Reporting

The AST Networks Planned Maintenance System (PMS) is a powerful organisational software tool that enables vessels to reduce their operational expenses. The PMS platform was purpose built alongside a frustrated chief engineer and substantially enhanced and developed ever since.

The Planned Maintenance System is a sophisticated, but easy to use, modular application designed for Marine Engineers and Operations Managers to cost effectively manage their vessel(s) maintenance tasks.

The Planned Maintenance System has modular architecture and as such can be introduced in ‘simple to implement’ modules, with optional added value functionality to meet the needs of individual vessels.

The Planned Maintenance System uses a simple traffic light system to highlight any equipment that requires attention, and indicates dates when tasks are due. When tasks are due work procedures can be assigned to the task ensuring all adequate steps are taken and provide reassurance the maintenance is completed as instructed.

Additional modules are available and fully integrate within the PMS platform:

Spare Parts and Consumables

A Spare Parts & Consumables module can be supplied that fully integrates with the PMS. Parts and materials used can be dragged onto work orders and automatically deducted from stock. Minimum stock level alarms can be set on/off for individual parts/consumables, for example it is able to warn when lubricating oil stocks approach minimum level. The Ships General Stores option manages the whole general stores, from here you can create requisitions and keep a hold on stock levels and keep up to date on every item kept on the vessel. A traffic light system gives a visual indication of stock level and expiry dates.

Class Surveys

Class surveys are listed in the Class Surveys section of the system where surveys can be added, modified and deleted, and detailed listings of surveys carried out can be produced. Surveys are attached to the appropriate job by a simple drag and drop method, then they will show as due at the same time as the job. A dry dock specification module integrates with the duplicate system allowing managers to create a dry-dock specification. Defect reports can be included by a simple drag-&-drop method. A Gantt chart is also provided to calculate timings and critical paths.

Ship Chandlers Stock List

The ships chandlers stock list module manages stock lists from multiple ship chandlers. The vessel can be supplied with listings from any number of chandlers in various ports. A spreadsheet containing the list of requirements can be generated from the lists and sent by email to the owner, which can then be sent to the relevant ship chandler.

Predictive Maintenance and Vibration Analysis

The predictive maintenance module uses various methods of non-intrusive testing such as vibration analysis, min/max pressures and electrical current flow and resistance to determine when items of machinery should be overhauled. This important feature can substantially reduce maintenance costs, assist with planning of maintenance, and enhance machine integrity.