Discussion for small shops still on 4.1.1

[Ray Hahne]

This post is just an opinion and meant to promote frank discussion.

I think that sometimes "progress" in the IT world is not for everybody. One of the beauties of Maximo 4.1.1 is that it is a big-league application, and once you get the hang of it, can be operated by just one or two skilled semi-technical adminstrators. You barely even need DBA help usually. Maximo 4.1.1 running on Citrix servers is simple and has similar deployment advantages as a web-based application. Therefore, there are lots of maintenance departments operating this way out there, including some PANMU members.

IBM may say otherwise, but with v6 or v7, I think it would be difficult to keep operating in that mode. Unless you have lots of IT help or an administrator with Java/web-based application skills, the upgrade and continued operations would be difficult. Plan on a big consulting budget. And when I hear of companies upgrading to v6 or v7 and having to start over (leaving historical data behind), that is concerning too. Maximo v7 is not as complex as a big ERP, like PeopleSoft or SAP, but it is a move in that direction.

We have v7 going, and while it is definitely a superior application, we are not that big a company, and it concerns me that other small companies/shops may have to stay on 4.1.1 or drop out. An IBM rep even admitted to me that they are having trouble selling Maximo to small to medium sized companies.

If your company is considering "dropping out", this is where working with a vendor to run Maximo v7 as a "hosted" service should get serious consideration. There is nothing to install on the PC client for v7, so it should work very well in a "hosted" environment. Unless you need integration, you may barely notice the difference! I have not heard of any companies going this route yet, but it has occurred to me this would be a good alternative. Just impress your management with the buzzword that you are moving towards "cloud computing", and you could get budget approval! I see that IBM and other vendors out there are recognizing this opportunity - I will try to have one come speak at one of our meetings.

Ray.
Chelan County PUD