Atlas CMMS
Open sourceOpen-source CMMS
Self-hostable open-source CMMS with web and mobile apps for work orders, preventive maintenance and assets.
- Preventive Maintenance
- TPM
- Pricing
- Free plan + paid
- Deployment
- Self-hosted, Cloud, Mobile
CMMS software: choosing maintenance software for TPMFix it before it breaks.
CMMS software, short for computerized maintenance management system, plans preventive maintenance, tracks work orders and keeps a repair history for every asset. In a lean plant it also carries the operator checks of TPM, so production and maintenance share one record of how equipment is cared for.
Who it's for
Maintenance managers and plant leaders who want fewer breakdowns and want operators and maintenance working together on equipment care.
Showing 4 of 4 tools
1 2 CMMS + OEE + andon
Combined CMMS, OEE and digital andon platform that turns line stoppages into maintenance work orders.
- TPM
- OEE
- Andon
- Preventive Maintenance
- Autonomous Maintenance
- Pricing
- Published pricing
- Deployment
- Cloud, Mobile
3 CMMS (Rockwell)
Rockwell Automation-owned CMMS for preventive maintenance, asset hierarchies and work orders with a free tier.
- TPM
- Preventive Maintenance
- Pricing
- Free plan + paid
- Deployment
- Cloud, Mobile
4 Mobile CMMS
Mobile-first CMMS for work orders, preventive maintenance and digital procedures used by maintenance and operators alike.
- TPM
- Preventive Maintenance
- Autonomous Maintenance
- Standard Work
- Pricing
- Free plan + paid
- Deployment
- Cloud, Mobile
The basics
What is cmms & tpm software?
A CMMS, or computerized maintenance management system, manages work orders, planned maintenance, asset history and spare parts. In lean plants it supports TPM.
Two measures come up often. MTBF, mean time between failures, shows how often an asset breaks down. MTTR, mean time to repair, shows how long it takes to fix.
Some products describe themselves as EAM, or enterprise asset management. EAM usually adds asset lifecycle and finance features on top of a CMMS.
Paper, spreadsheet or software?
Small plants can start with a planned maintenance calendar, paper work orders and an asset list in a spreadsheet. Operator check sheets support autonomous maintenance.
Software helps when assets and technicians grow, when parts stock needs control, and when breakdown history should drive the maintenance plan.
The routine it supports
- 1Register critical assets
- 2Set planned and operator checks
- 3Operators run daily checks
- 4A breakdown raises a work order
- 5Find the cause of repeat failures
- 6Adjust the plan from MTBF
How the listed tools are priced
- Free plan + paid: 3
- Published pricing: 1
Preventive maintenance software or a full CMMS?
Preventive maintenance software schedules recurring tasks by calendar or by meter readings, such as run hours or cycles, and reminds people when they are due. For a small asset list with stable equipment, that may be all you need.
A full CMMS adds work requests from the floor, breakdown work orders, spare parts stock, labor time and failure history. Choose it when you also need to understand why equipment fails and what it costs.
In a TPM program, check that the tool also handles operator checks, such as cleaning, inspection and lubrication, and that an abnormal check can raise a work order directly.
CMMS for small manufacturing plants
Start with the assets whose failure stops the plant, not with every pump and fan. A short list of critical equipment with good data is more useful than a long list nobody maintains.
Look for mobile work orders technicians can open and close at the machine, a way to import your current spreadsheet of assets, and simple failure codes. If you already track downtime in OEE software, ask whether stop events can create work orders.
Keep configuration light at first. Extra fields, approval steps and custom reports can wait until the team uses the basic work order flow every day.
How to implement a CMMS
Clean the asset list first: one name, location and criticality for each asset. Then review the preventive tasks you already do, drop the ones that add no value and add checks for failures you keep seeing.
Train technicians to close every work order with what failed, why and what was done. Without that, the history cannot show repeat failures or support root cause analysis.
Review breakdowns, MTBF and MTTR monthly with production. Use what you learn to adjust the maintenance plan, so it follows how equipment fails rather than a fixed calendar.
Buying guide
How to choose CMMS & TPM Software
Who it's for: Maintenance managers and plant leaders who want fewer breakdowns and want operators and maintenance working together on equipment care.
What to look for
Preventive scheduling
Time- and usage-based maintenance plans that generate work orders automatically.
Autonomous maintenance
Simple cleaning, inspection and lubrication checklists that operators complete on the line.
Asset history
Every failure, repair and part used per machine, so reliability can improve.
Spare parts control
Stock levels and reorder points for critical spares.
Common mistakes
- Running TPM as a maintenance department project rather than a partnership with production.
- Scheduling so much preventive work that it crowds out root cause analysis of failures.
- Poor asset data that makes reliability reports meaningless.
Before you choose
Questions to ask vendors
- 1Can operators complete autonomous maintenance checks on a phone?
- 2How do you track mean time between failures and mean time to repair?
- 3Can work orders be created from OEE downtime events?
- 4How is spare parts inventory managed?
FAQ
CMMS & TPM Software: common questions
What is TPM?
Total productive maintenance: an approach where operators, maintenance and engineering share responsibility for equipment, aiming for no breakdowns, no small stops and no defects.
What is autonomous maintenance?
Routine care such as cleaning, inspection, tightening and lubrication carried out by operators, who work with the equipment every day.
Is a CMMS the same as a TPM tool?
A CMMS manages maintenance work and assets. TPM is a broader practice; many teams use a CMMS plus operator checklists to support it.
Is TPM a lean tool?
Yes. Total productive maintenance is part of most lean manufacturing programs. It shares routine care between operators and maintenance to keep equipment available.
What is the difference between MTBF and MTTR?
MTBF is the average time between failures. MTTR is the average time to repair a failure. Together they show how often and how long equipment is down.
What is a CMMS used for?
Planning and tracking maintenance work: preventive schedules, breakdown repairs, spare parts and the history of each asset.
What is the difference between preventive and predictive maintenance?
Preventive maintenance runs on a fixed schedule or usage count. Predictive maintenance uses condition data, such as vibration or temperature, to service equipment when it shows signs of wear.
Should a CMMS be on mobile devices?
It helps. Technicians and operators can record work and checks at the machine instead of from memory at the end of the shift.
Sources
- Lean Enterprise Institute: total productive maintenance ↗
- Lean Enterprise Institute: overall equipment effectiveness ↗
Written by the lean-stack editors following our methodology. Updated October 3, 2026.
Related categories
OEE SoftwareReal-time OEE, downtime tracking and production monitoring.Andon SoftwareDigital andon systems that summon help the moment problems appear.Work Instructions SoftwareDigital standard work at every workstation.Root Cause Analysis SoftwareA3, 5 Whys, fishbone and 8D problem solving.Skills Matrix SoftwareTrack who is trained on which job, and spot coverage gaps.FMEA SoftwareBuild and maintain FMEAs that stay linked to real controls.
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