Bigfoot CMMS Helps Oregon Zoo Bolster Green Infrastructure, Reduce Carbon Footprint

“Improving preventive maintenance is essential to increasing energy efficiency,” said Paul Lachance, chief technology officer for Smartware Group.  “Installing an efficient energy system does not automatically translate into energy savings, unless the equipment is monitored and maintained before it is found to be operating at less than peak efficiency.”

Oregon Zoo is the newest entry on a growing roster of customers who are using Bigfoot to manage the maintenance of equipment and building infrastructure systems for optimal uptime, reduced repair costs, and sustainability, health and safety compliance.  Not only will the Oregon Zoo tap the capabilities of Bigfoot to monitor thermostats, fans and lighting, it will also utilize the program to produce a carefully-timed maintenance schedule for an innovative filtration system that generates potable water from animal pools.

While the Oregon Zoo is known for its commitment to green practices - from limiting vehicle use on the zoo grounds to providing biodegradable plates and utensils for “compostable picnics” - its maintenance system needed to be updated.

“We had this antiquated system that wasn’t very functional,” said Chris Massey, facilities operations manager for the Oregon Zoo.  “As a result, no one was tracking or scheduling maintenance checks, and people could never find work orders.

“We’re trying to achieve a level of transparency and Bigfoot will open up our maintenance profile considerably.  It will keep track of every machine and every change.  Also our repair technicians appreciate Bigfoot’s easy user interface, which assures that maintenance work orders, schedules and history will be kept up to date.  Basically, wherever there is equipment to be managed for maintenance it will be on Bigfoot.  We expect to be up and running with Bigfoot by mid-April.”

Bigfoot will also be tracking the zoo’s manure-composting system. The manure from herbivore animals is composted and transformed into ZooDoo, a fertilizer produced in two 1,600 square-foot areas.

“With Bigfoot we can monitor the amount of compost we generate and distribute,” added Massey.  “We can track what we take in and what we take out.”

The preventive and predictive maintenance features of Bigfoot CMMS also enable facility engineers to head off operational problems in the early stages. At the Oregon Zoo, Bigfoot will be used in a leak detection system, which maps and identifies potential damage in valves and fresh water lines.

To continue reducing its carbon footprint, zoo staffers will also employ Bigfoot to monitor the efficiency and condition of its HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) systems and its inventory and replacement of florescent lighting.

In addition, zoo staffers will use Bigfoot to manage inventory for replacement parts, as well as the product’s asset life cycle management feature to grade equipment and machines over time, based on repair history, performance and condition.”

About Smartware Group, Inc.

Smartware Group, Inc., headquartered in Meredith, N.H., develops and services Web-based Bigfoot CMMS (computerized maintenance management software) for a variety of business environments, from data centers to manufacturing plant floors to convention centers and stadiums.

Since 2002, Bigfoot has helped more than 1,400 customers worldwide improve facility and equipment maintenance operations with advanced capabilities that include preventive maintenance (PMs) and predictive maintenance, work order scheduling, maintenance requests, asset life cycle management, parts replacement inventory, and built-in reporting. Bigfoot CMMS’s native functionality paired with its intuitive design allows maintenance professionals to implement the solution and get results quickly, often in a matter of weeks. To learn more about Bigfoot CMMS, visit www.bigfootcmms.com.