IBM IoT Exchange in Florida

In April 2019, together with our distribution partner for the UK, TechData, BPD Zenith attended the IBM IoT Exchange in Florida.

We decided to show how IBM Maximo Enterprise Asset Management can be used track mobile IoT devices and how that can be linked in with Maximo Asset Health Insights (MAHI). This can be useful for assets on the move and could be applied to the workforce. For example, if the Tracca was installed in fleet vans for mobile workers, we could use their GPS locations to determine who best to allocate a work order to based on their proximity to the work location.
 

Connecting IoT Devices to IBM Watson

TechData supplied us with Entopy Traccas which are IoT devices with the ability to connect to the IBM Watson IoT Platform.
They send the following data in a JSON format:

• GPS location
• Temperature
• Speed
• Battery life

Getting IoT Data into Maximo

We then used NodeRED to connect the devices to Maximo and pushed the data into Asset and Meter records we had already configured to correspond with each of the devices.

Once the data was in Maximo, we used Condition Monitoring to automatically create Work Orders with associated job plans – when the temperatures breached high and low thresholds, and when the battery was critically low.

We configured our example to have an optimal temperature of 20 degrees Celsius and 100% battery life, with the health score decreasing as the meter values move further away from their optimal point. Health scores in MAHI can be applied to a group of assets, allowing for consistency within the scores.

Monitoring Asset Health with MAHI

In MAHI, we were then able to configure cards to show the condition of a group of Tracca assets by setting up queries in Maximo. This then showed us:

• Health Score for each of the individual Traccas
• Live location on a map of the Tracca devices
• Health Summary for all assets

~ Maximo Asset Health Insights in Action with Live Reporting and Map View ~

By clicking on the Tracca itself we were able to see the health score history while also viewing each of the associated meters. Because we have Condition Monitoring set up, we can also see graphically where past readings have fallen, in relation to the upper and lower limits we defined.

New Capabilities for IBM Maximo

By capturing the live location data of an Asset using IoT and IBM Watson, we are then able to push through to Maximo to track the GPS location of the Asset and follow its journey live. You are also able to compare previous recent and historical performance data if required.
Once the Assets were configured correctly, the data flowed through to Maximo nicely and everything worked relatively seamlessly. Delay was minimal and accuracy was pretty much flawless, so all in all, the demo was very encouraging.

This is just one aspect from a range of capabilities that IoT devices are beginning to offer asset management. The insights these devices are providing look set to revolutionise how we use Maximo, expanding its suite of tools and capabilities to cover areas we never thought possible! Not only to increase efficiency and maximise asset lifecycle, but also to improve health and safety and save lives.
The range of IoT enabled devices and the kind of data they can offer is also expanding everyday which means asset management will become all the more important in the next few years – so BPD is preparing for the future today!