About the author
Tony Tate is the director of project management at Holistic and runs the capital development and real estate department, which includes facility maintenance.
Flying on the edge of our seats
Before implementing a CMMS, Holistic Industries faced challenges tracking maintenance tasks and scheduling preventive maintenance. We had maintenance teams at our seven sites working independently of each other. Each site focused on reactive maintenance, so maintenance costs were high.
We had no CMMS system, so scheduling and tracking preventive maintenance activities were challenging. This resulted in missed inspections and inadequate maintenance planning. Many PMs were not completed, leading to significant issues down the line.
The biggest challenges with the old process were tracking and accountability. In 2022, it became apparent that we had to stop firefighting and become more proactive to support the business's continued growth.
The goal of best-in-class maintenance
Implementing best-in-class maintenance in a medical cannabis producer is critical for ensuring consistent quality and reliability of operations. Given the highly regulated nature of the industry and the importance of product purity, maintaining equipment and facilities to the highest standards is paramount. As part of the shift to proactive maintenance, we identified the three components that would have the biggest immediate impact. The company should:
1. Develop a comprehensive maintenance strategy tailored to the unique needs of the cannabis production process. This strategy should include regular cleaning, calibration, and inspection of equipment such as grow lights, irrigation systems, RTUs, and HVAC systems to ensure optimal performance and compliance with regulations.
2. Invest in advanced CMMS software to streamline maintenance workflows, schedule preventive maintenance tasks, and track asset performance, minimizing downtime and maximizing productivity.
3. Train maintenance staff on best practices and compliance requirements to ensure they have the necessary skills and knowledge to uphold maintenance excellence.
With these three changes, Holistic can uphold product quality, regulatory compliance, and operational efficiency, ultimately contributing to the business's success and reputation.
CMMS initial rollout
Holistic implemented Zoidii at its seven sites in 2022 as part of our best-in-class maintenance improvement initiative. Coordinating maintenance activities across different locations, ensuring consistency in data management, and addressing varying operational needs can be complex.
By leveraging a multi-site CMMS, we could standardize maintenance operations across all sites, improve data accuracy, and achieve consistent service levels.
“Now that we have the CMMS, all that information resides in the system and stays within the business. It makes Zoidii the employee with all the knowledge that will never leave.”
Impact and key benefits
The results were immediate. We automated many of our maintenance processes, reducing downtime, improving asset performance, and increasing productivity. Implementing Zoidii CMMS software significantly improved Holistic's maintenance operations, bringing us closer to best-in-class maintenance. The key results and benefits achieved in the first year were:
1. Preventive maintenance
With a proper preventive maintenance tracking system, there was nowhere to hide. As we started tracking our PMs, we found some equipment without any preventive maintenance in years. In one case, we found filters that should be changed yearly installed in a system for over four years.The implementation of a CMMS helped ensure that preventive maintenance was completed on time. Subsequently, with preventive maintenance schedules in place, equipment downtime decreased significantly.
Regular inspections and proactive maintenance activities helped identify and address issues before they led to major failures, ensuring optimal asset reliability and availability.
2. Sharing best practices across all sites
Zoidii's multi-site capabilities enable collaboration and knowledge sharing across sites, improving teamwork and increasing efficiency. For example, all sites have a reverse osmosis skid, but one facility had significantly better water treatment.When we investigated, we found that the site had developed a PM checklist for servicing and cleaning the skid. We created a checklist in Zoidii outlining the cleaning process and added it to PMs at all sites. As a result, all sites now have excellent water treatment.
3. Accelerating troubleshooting
Checklists and work orders help tackle seasonal issues. We got the same issues with condensation build-up each winter in the RTUs. The troubleshooting steps tend to get forgotten over the spring, summer, and fall. So, it felt like we were starting from zero when the issues arose each winter.Now, we can generate a work order in Zoidii and add a troubleshooting checklist when we have RTU issues. The techs can also mine work orders for similar problems from last year and see what they did, what parts they replaced, who they called, etc., considerably reducing the mean time to repair.
4. Mitigating the impact of employee turnover
Most manufacturing organizations today know how hard it is to find and retain great engineering and reliability people. In the past, when experienced people left, much of the knowledge went with them.Now that we have the CMMS, all that information resides in the system and stays within the business. It makes Zoidii the employee with all the knowledge that will never leave.
5. Real-time visibility on operations
Zoidii provides real-time visibility into maintenance activities, allowing for better planning and resource allocation. The maintenance leaders at each site can track work orders, monitor asset performance, and analyze data to identify trends and patterns.This data-driven approach enables proactive maintenance and helps optimize the use of resources.
6. Enhanced communication
The CMMS software streamlines communication by providing a centralized platform for managing maintenance activities, facilitating real-time updates and notifications, and improving stakeholder collaboration. For example, technicians can update work orders in real time using the CMMS mobile app and receive instant notifications about new tasks or urgent maintenance needs.Guest users such as operators and cultivation managers can be tagged in work orders, giving them automatic updates as technicians resolve issues. Automatic updates help ensure timely responses to maintenance issues while keeping individuals informed.
“We reduced maintenance costs by 36% compared to 2022. In particular, mechanical, electrical, and plumbing (MEP) expenses are down 68%.”
Cost analysis and return on investment (ROI)
One key factor in determining the success of a CMMS implementation is the return on investment (ROI). Investing in a CMMS may require upfront costs, including software licenses, hardware upgrades, and training. However, we have seen that the long-term benefits far outweigh these initial expenses. In early 2024, I pulled the numbers for the executive team. When we looked back to see the impact, the metrics were astounding.
In 2023, we reduced maintenance costs by 36% compared to 2022. In particular, mechanical, electrical, and plumbing (MEP) expenses are down 68%. We've also seen massive improvements on the manufacturing side.
With the proper preventive maintenance systems and processes in place, we've reduced microbes and mold by 71%. This had a huge impact on the bottom line. We've also reduced the time it takes to turn over a grow room by 50%.
Undoubtedly, Zoidii has helped formalize our processes and deliver exceptional service to the business. Implementing Zoiidi is not the silver bullet to solve maintenance problems. Rather, the CMMS software is an enabler of continuous improvement, efficiency, and productivity. It gave us the platform to build on and improve everything we do.
Rolling out best-in-class maintenance and the future outlook
The future of our CMMS implementation is promising. As the business strives for improved efficiency and reduced costs, the CMMS will continue to play a crucial role in optimizing maintenance operations.
The immediate plan is to optimize the current implementation across all sites. We will then expand CMMS usage to other areas within maintenance, such as inventory management and procurement.
I believe the parts and inventory module will become our favorite feature as we improve our inventory management, ensuring the parts are there when the technicians need them. It will also help eliminate the need for excess spare parts and reduce inventory holding costs.
Would you recommend Zoidii?
Every employee starts out saying CMMS software is the worst thing, an administrative burden that slows them down. Give them thirty days using the CMMS; they say this is the best thing in the world, and they can't live without it. They realize the CMMS helps them become more organized rather than running around like headless chickens.
The support that Zoidii provides exceeds every vendor we have. Whenever we send an email, they promptly respond within the hour. The system is simple and intuitive enough that new hires can quickly get up to speed on the CMMS with minimal training. Hands-on training, workshops, and online resources can help employees learn how to use the CMMS effectively.
Advice for anyone looking to implement a CMMS
Implementing Zoidii CMMS has significantly benefited Holistic by helping us optimize our maintenance operations. Again, Zoidii gave us the platform to build on and improve everything we do. The CMMS helps the business achieve operational excellence, reduce costs, and drive continuous improvement by streamlining processes, improving asset performance, and leveraging data-driven insights.
We're only scratching the surface of what a CMMS can do. We believe there are plenty more opportunities to increase productivity and efficiency.
Implementing a CMMS is an intelligent step toward achieving best-in-class maintenance practices. By leveraging the power of technology and data-driven decision-making, any organization could similarly transform its maintenance operations and drive continuous improvement.
With the right approach, training, and ongoing support, any manufacturing organization can unlock CMMS's full potential and transform its maintenance operations for long-term success.