Automating Plant Maintenance Operations With SAP BTP

How LeverX automated plant maintenance operations using SAP BTP, SAP Datasphere, and mobile apps – unifying maintenance data, enabling real-time access for technicians, and accelerating issue resolution by 50%.

Manufacturing plants face a critical problem: essential maintenance data is fragmented and scattered across disparate systems, such as work order systems, spare parts inventory, and real-time operational data. This leads to an absence of easy data access, resulting in wasted time and decisions based on incomplete information.

LeverX helped a manufacturing plant improve the efficiency and effectiveness of its maintenance operations. Our work unified disconnected data systems and enabled a shift from reactive to predictive maintenance. The result is a 50% faster issue reporting and resolution thanks to mobile access and streamlined workflows.

Client and Challenge

A large manufacturing plant faced significant challenges in managing its maintenance operations. The core data needed for effective work was scattered across multiple disconnected systems. This resulted in a lack of easy data access, which slowed down decision-making and reduced overall efficiency.

The key challenges included:

• Data Fragmentation: Maintenance work, inventory, and real-time operations data were stored in separate, loosely connected systems.
• Slow Data Access: Maintenance technicians spent a lot of time searching for information, which hindered the timely completion of tasks.
• Reactive Approach: Due to the lack of a single source of truth and predictive analytics, the maintenance team reacted to issues after they occurred instead of preventing them. 

Solution

LeverX developed a comprehensive solution based on SAP BTP that unified fragmented data and provided personnel with the tools for efficient and proactive work.

The solution enabled the client to:

• Unify Data: Using SAP Datasphere, we consolidated all maintenance information to create a single source of truth, eliminating data fragmentation. The client took the lead on this step, enabling data aggregation for real-time insights.
• Ensure Seamless Integration: SAP Integration Suite was used to manage the data flow between traditionally separate systems, like CMMS and ERP, ensuring all information was current and accessible.
• Empower Mobility: We developed a mobile application using SAP Build Apps that allows technicians to access data and update tasks directly from the field. We implemented a standard user authentication mechanism for the mobile application and used destination connectivity within the SAP Build Apps development environment.
• Simplify Access: SAP Build Work Zone provided a unified portal for role-based access to all relevant tools and data. This streamlined workflows and reduced the time spent searching for information.

Technology Stack

The solution is built on a scalable and integrated SAP technology stack:

• Core Platform: SAP BTP — serves as the foundational platform, providing tools and services for developing and running applications.
• Data Unification: SAP Datasphere — is used to consolidate fragmented maintenance data into a single source of truth.
• Integration: SAP Integration Suite — serves as the single, secure gateway to the valuable data within SAP Datasphere. It acts as a central API access layer, making curated data products securely available to both internal applications and external consumers like partners or third-party developers.
• App Development: SAP Build Apps — allows for rapid creation of mobile applications for technicians, while SAP Build Work Zone provides a unified portal for convenient access to data and tools.

Results

Implementing the solution led to significant, measurable business benefits for the client:

• Faster Processes: The time for issue reporting and resolution was reduced by 50% thanks to mobile access and unified workflows for maintenance workers.
• Single Source of Truth: Data fragmentation was eliminated, leading to a single source of truth for all maintenance operations.
• Increased Efficiency: Technicians gained the ability to access information and update statuses in real-time, making their work more efficient and less prone to errors.
• Shift to Predictive Maintenance: Thanks to a unified platform, the client gained the ability to use data for analysis and forecasting, enabling a shift from a reactive to a proactive approach.