Infor EAM: 9 enhancements to the best EAM solution [v 11.2]

Infor's EAM Enterprise solution was created over 20 years ago with the aim of becoming one of the most comprehensive solutions in the asset management market. Few other EAM solutions can match Infor EAM Enterprise in terms of accuracy and breadth of functionality. Indeed, the solution seems so complete that it's hard to know what else could be added. Kevin Price, Product Manager at Infor, gave TEC an in-depth analysis of the latest version of Infor's EAM solution, V11.2, and once again we were both surprised by the level of technicality (much higher than expected), and impressed by all that Infor has included.

See all software CMMS

What's new in Infor EAM version 11.2?

The new modules, capabilities and functionality have been inspired by a number of sources, the most important of which is a global community of Infor users who provide feedback to the product development team through an online community that includes forums on facility management, healthcare, manufacturing and other industries. Infor supports the EAM product with some 160 specialist support relays across the company, a strong commitment that demonstrates its commitment.

This new version of Infor EAM has been developed over the past year. It is based on the most advanced version of the product, Infor EAM V11. The list of enhancements on the V11.2 release is extensive and includes the following functionalities: resource reservation, key management service, contractor portal, case management, renewed call centre, service request portal, workspace management, move management, GIS enhancement, parity of Microsoft 8.1 and 10 with iOS/Android, specific tools for the transport industry, scalability improvements, Mechanic's Kiosk, Infor EAM Rapid Request application, new service quality survey, new import function, Postgres Plus Advanced server support, company search tool and, finally, language support in Arabic and Korean. We won't cover all these points in detail, but we will highlight the main improvements in this version of the product and give you a glimpse of what's in store for you in the future.

Highlights of the new version

1. The mechanic's terminal

The Mechanic's Kiosk - Over the years, Infor has made several attempts to design a 'kiosk' dedicated to maintenance. With the help of Infor's Hook & Loop design team, customer feedback and ongoing advances in digital technology, Infor has launched an application called Mechanic's Kiosk. This application is designed to work with a large touch screen, in the region of 40 inches. Mechanics often wear work gloves, their hands are dirty and full of oil, and they don't have time to sit at a desk. The Mechanic's Kiosk is similar to other counter experiences, such as airline counters that issue boarding passes. It's a tactile experience that lets mechanics know what they need to do in their workshop, thanks to a system that presents them with information on the screen, such as the tasks they've been assigned, all the tools they need to carry them out, and so on. So everything is designed specifically for the mechanic, which is particularly useful in any industry where mechanics and maintenance staff have to manage their work, such as the vertical markets in the transport sector (mechanics and logistics).

2. Gesture recognition... not yet

In a similar vein, and to add a touch of humour, we asked Infor what companies were interested in when it came to 'hands-free' technology, and the answer came as a big surprise. Apparently, Infor had worked with Microsoft to co-develop a gesture recognition application that used Kinect, enabling mechanics to generate movements and simulate operations in the system. The application worked perfectly and Infor had technicians on hand to pilot the tests, but in the end Infor decided not to implement it because of one major problem: the technicians didn't want to use it. Why not? Quite simply because when they did use it, they felt ridiculous in front of their colleagues.

3. Case management

Case management is a separate tool that tracks tasks relating to a particular case. This feature allows a company to document unexpected items or items that need to be tracked outside the work order process. There are often situations of this kind where it is not necessary to record an event using the usual procedures. You just have to record the event. In the past, users added notes or specified the steps to be followed on work orders, a procedure which sometimes ended up distorting the outcome.

4. Customer feedback

For some time now, the user community has been asking for surveys. In the past, users developed their own surveys or used interfaces with online questionnaire services. But customers have been coming back to Infor again and again, asking for an integrated survey mechanism. With Infor EAM 11.2, surveys can be deployed quickly and easily to manage customer feedback. A company can now create survey templates, automatically launch and send a survey when a work order or incident report is reported, and finally send an email via the Infor ION middleware. The surveys built into Infor EAM can be used to run analytical reports on the application that can extract statistics about the responses, for example, to which questions were asked and how many questions were answered.For example, how often have certain types of tasks resulted in positive or negative responses from customers? There are many applications where 'after-sales' surveys are useful, but this is particularly true for publishers of work management tools and for general services.

5. Easier customisation

This version of Infor EAM is much easier to customise and generalise, thanks to a number of significant new enhancements. In previous releases, one of the features introduced allowed a system administrator to extend the capabilities of a screen by adding a JavaScript client on the application server. The process of modifying a screen is now carried out using a new screen called Framework Extensible. It can be used to quickly create a clone of an existing screen, on which modifications can be made. These new screens automatically incorporate CRUD operations for viewing archives/lists. This allows administrators to extend the system, while ensuring that there is no negative impact on subsequent updates.

With EAM V11.2, the extensibility framework has also been extended to the technical aspect of the application. Everything is accessible to everyone via Web services. This opens up more possibilities for extending the application beyond what Infor provides on a turnkey basis. With this new philosophy, a customer can now easily create their own mobile application to meet a specific business need.

6. Resource reservation, workspace and move management

These additions are fairly self-explanatory, but they demonstrate the sophistication of the capabilities that continue to be added to Infor EAM. Resource reservations support the planning of the most critical assets and the functionality is integrated with the customer's rental capabilities. Any resource can be planned and booked, from cranes to conference rooms to a toolbox. Workspace and move management functionality work together. For example, a workspace that requires specific equipment can be described in advance and associated with a particular employee, enabling them to move around and use the space in the best possible conditions.

7. Key management

Very important for facilities management, this new feature allows organisations to keep control of their keys. These days, there are not as many physical keys, but Plip keys are frequently used. This new feature provides greater control over access, particularly by keeping an eye on the issue and return of keys, and the management of locks and associated key fobs.

8. The mobile application

The Mobile Rapid Request application has been developed for public bodies (such as municipalities) to enable them to distribute an application to their constituents. The Mobile Rapid Request application allows anyone to take a photo of a problem, enter their details and send it back to the organisation.

In terms of mobility, Infor has also brought applications to functional parity on Microsoft Windows 8.1 and Windows 10. Infor has the resources to develop native mobile applications that can then take advantage of the specific hardware capabilities of each mobile operating system. With V11.2, it is now possible to send messages to the mobile device's notification centre.

9. New languages added

Arabic and Korean have been introduced. This brings the total number of languages supported by Infor EAM to 14 (other languages include Simplified Chinese, Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Norwegian, Brazilian Portuguese, Russian, Spanish and Swedish).

Other Infor EAM enhancements

There is also a new import function that supports the import of all entities from a WSDL (web services description language) document. A user can easily create the model to import data by simply ticking a box. Infor EAM now complies with open database standards and contains the Postgres Plus Advanced server from Enterprise DB, in addition to Oracle and Microsoft databases.

See all software CMMS

Future product enhancements

One of the most popular topics in technology at the moment is the Internet of Things (IoT). Infor currently offers a number of ways of communicating with tools and resources, but has not yet defined its IoT strategy. TEC tried to get some information about where Infor is going with IoT in the future: will they start using Microsoft Azure IoT offerings, collaborate with a company like IBM, buy PTC to fill their gap? Infor has remained tight-lipped on the subject, but its executives promise that they will have an IoT strategy in place for next month's Inforum user conference.

We are well aware that the Infor Group will continue to support other technologies from itself and its partners. And as tools and functionality such as InforMing.le, Business Intelligence (BI), enterprise search, document management, GPS widgets, etc. are developed in the Infor product line, it is a safe bet that they will continue to integrate them into the Infor EAM solution.

Infor will continue to develop the EAM solution and will focus on 'editions' of the product for various sectors such as manufacturing, healthcare, transport, etc. Infor, like its customers, is very excited about the new CloudSuite offerings, such as Infor CloudSuite Facilities. We expect them to release new versions of their CloudSuite so that users of their Enterprise EAM Suite will see a faster return on their investment.