SCHAD, a leading specialist in mobile operation, control and maintenance of automated systems using an ordinary mobile device, announces that IBM has added SCHAD’s suite of software, including Mobile SCADA and AMR (Automated Meter Reading), to the IBM Watson Internet of Things (IoT) set of product offerings. Under the terms of this agreement, IBM will be able to resell any of the SCHAD software modules, which provide real-time connectivity between multiple operational control systems such as SCADA, Building Management Systems and PLCs, and IBM Maximo, enabling maintenance processes to deliver more rapid response, and enable fully-automated Condition-based Maintenance to be implemented in Maximo.

For IBM Maximo users, adding SCHAD’s automation increases the speed of the reaction to equipment failure and provides the basis for condition-based and preventative maintenance strategies. SCHAD customers have consistently demonstrated improved Mean Time To Repair (MTTR) and lower maintenance costs.

MTTR reductions are enabled by getting technicians to failures quicker and better informed. SCHAD’s Mobile SCADA provides a technician direct access to both real-time data from process equipment and maintenance data in Maximo. With this data in context, it is possible to perform remote diagnosis of failure and to travel to the asset with the correct parts, tools and documentation. Users have demonstrated MTTR improvement of up to 30% by implementing SCHAD’s Mobile SCADA with Maximo.

SCHAD also provides the foundations for condition-based maintenance by creating a bridge from existing equipment in highly-automated processes and Maximo’s asset database. Data points available in the BMS and SCADA systems, including usage meters and gauge values, can be recorded in Maximo to enable preventative maintenance to be planned according to actual usage or condition of an asset. Maximo’s Condition-Monitoring application can be used to trigger preventative maintenance automatically once a meter value is provided by SCHAD’s AMR module.

SCHAD’s automation products also offer extended connectivity to the IoT Foundation, through its ability to convert data from SCADA and BMS systems into MQTT, enabling real-time, high volume data from all manner of operational control systems to be used within enterprise applications.

The effectiveness of the SCHAD solution in improving maintenance efficiency for IBM Maximo users has already been proven. Toyota UK has been using SCHAD to connect its SCADA-controlled automation systems to IBM Maximo and collect asset data directly from PLCs since 2013. Toyota UK’s aims in implementing SCHAD’s software were to gain a deeper understanding of maintenance issues by having the ability to gather detailed information about asset breakdowns, record why a failure occurred, spare parts used, time to fix and monitor total downtime incurred.

After implementing SCHAD’s solution, Toyota UK saw a significant improvement to maintenance efficiency and measured a full return on the investment within 6 months through a wide range of cost savings and efficiency improvements. The need for a dedicated operator per shift to monitor SCADA alarms and control maintenance process was removed and instead, PLCs send maintenance alarms directly to engineering teams, with relevant data transferred into Maximo at the same time. In addition to cost savings and greater maintenance efficiency, this also removed the subjectivity of having an operator make on the spot maintenance decisions, reduced the time required for processing information about completed maintenance jobs and improved overall data capture.

SCHAD CEO Dave O’Reilly: “Across multiple industries, organizations like Toyota, which have mature asset management and device monitoring practices, can see an immediate benefit to both routine downtime management and preventative maintenance because SCHAD enables true Internet of Things integration for Maximo users, by intercepting SCADA messages and delivering them directly to Maximo.”

SCHAD AMR Value Proposition

SCHAD AMR is aimed at IBM Maximo users in precision manufacturing, distribution, utilities and airports, offering the following value propositions:

• Operationally intensive customers can benefit from real time data to improve maintenance efficiency, reduce equipment downtime and extend asset lifespan;
• Engineering teams can benefit from reduced ‘time to action’ on automation fault reporting, with users able to respond quickly to alarms and switch seamlessly between planned and unplanned maintenance activity from a mobile device.

Pete Karns, VP Offering Management, IBM Watson IoT says: "Our partnership with Schad builds upon successful engagements where our client's are optimizing their operations by driving real-time awareness of machine and control system status into Maximo Asset Management. This next phase of our partnership aligns with IBM's commitment to IoT, as Schad will not only integrate to Maximo, but also directly to the Watson IoT Platform where client's can use a variety of services and APIs to uncover new actionable insights - which would be executed in Maximo."

For more information on SCHAD please visit http://schad-automation.com/web/en/.