In a recent interview by China Plant Engineering magazine, I spoke about the “death of EAM”… This interview apparently drew a lot of attention. How can software introduced more than 15 years ago, long before even mobile phones and internet connections became common (I distinctly remember a time when I was implementing EAM systems but did not own a personal mobile phone), represent a modern approach to maintenance?

Ancient maps used by Western explorers would sometimes bear this mention “Here be Dragons” to indicate unknown overseas realms, rich with threats and perhaps, to the most adventurous minds… wonders.

Once more, we have come to this special time of the year. We have set up the Christmas tree at the office and at home. For me, Christmas always brings back childhood memories of family members reunited on snowy days.

People often ask me who my competitors are. Truth is, our single biggest competitor is “doing nothing”. The single biggest obstacle to our business, with multinationals, is “but we don’t do it that way back home”. With Chinese companies, it is more like “your approach so different from all your competitors”.

Those who have been in the maintenance industry in China for a long time (not that there are many of us!) often complain that we keep dealing with the same issues over and over again, mostly in relation to preventive maintenance…

For the second time our “Maintenance in China” newsletter is distributed at the Annual Process Industry Engineering & Maintenance Congress, held in Shanghai on September 5 & 6. I am also speaking at the event on the ambitious topic of “Technology-enabled technicians vs. the intelligent plant: the Chinese view”: behind the fancy title, I will simply share our real-life experience dealing with maintenance improvement in the Chinese market.