AHP-based evaluation of CMMS software

Purpose - To provide a structured methodology to permit an optimal selection of the best suited Computer Managed Maintenance System (CMMS) software within process industries. Design/methodology/approach - The analysis has been executed adopting a multi-attribute decision making methodology, namely the analytic hierarchic process (AHP) technique. A specific hierarchic structure has been defined considering 46 criteria outlined via questionnaires and interviews with administration, production and maintenance managers of several industries. To improve the effectiveness of the methodology, AHP has been coupled with a sound sensitivity analysis. Findings - The application of the proposed approach allows the maintenance practitioners to concentrate on a limited subset of CMMS applications and to compare their actual capabilities in order to select the right one, rather than considering only their purchase cost. Practical implications - The methodology enables decision makers to restrict the selection process to a limited number of software programmes that better suit the actual requirements of the corporation's personnel and to help the managers involved in the choice to better understand what each software can offer to them to effectively help the management of maintenance-related activities. Finally, the choice is driven by objective considerations rather than by subjective opinions, and the purchase and the following implementation of the CMMS can be better justified to the corporation top-level management Originality/value - The paper proposes a robust approach, structured and useful in practice, for the selection of a CMMS software, that takes into account multiple, often conflicting, criteria and overcomes the intrinsic limitations of subjective decisions.