ESAB operates in 147 countries worldwide and brings together more than 40 global and regional brands under its umbrella. It manufactures products in 26 facilities and employs over 8,700 professionals across all continents.
In Central Europe, ESAB has a presence in the Czech Republic, in the city of Vamberk, where INSEKO delivers a modern maintenance information system. The original MP2 system no longer met current technological requirements, and therefore, it was replaced with the advanced HEXAGON EAM solution, which brings greater efficiency and optimization to maintenance processes.
What led ESAB to implement the new information system?
- Outdated software – the original MP2 system no longer met current demands and technological standards.
- Lack of clear analytical tools for the presentation layer and advanced reporting capabilities.
- The original system did not support potential online work with mobile devices.
- Insufficient functionality – many processes had to be managed manually in Excel, as the old system didn’t allow for adaptation to the specific needs of maintenance.
How was the implementation carried out?
In 2023, we took our collaboration with ESAB to the next level by modernizing the system from MP2 to HEXAGON EAM. It all started with a thorough analysis of the existing situation and processes. Based on this, we jointly designed optimized solutions and methodologies that reflected real needs and everyday challenges.
We thoroughly worked on the original asset structures, organizational departments, manufacturers, cost centers, and classifications. We also focused on managing operational and preventive maintenance and set up new workflows in the system. We fine-tuned role divisions, work responsibilities, and configured outputs for meetings, reports, notifications, and other key managerial needs.
The implementation also included the user-friendly IWI web application, which significantly simplified the everyday use of the new system. After migrating data and deploying all necessary functionalities, we conducted training sessions for employees to ensure effective system and application usage.
Although the entire process posed several challenges, thanks to close collaboration between our teams, we successfully launched the live operation in April 2023.
The transition to HEXAGON EAM opened new possibilities for ESAB – functionalities that were previously scattered across spreadsheets were gradually integrated into the system. This was followed by a roll-out to a second plant and the expansion into areas such as preventive maintenance, forklift management, building management, as well as integration with the time tracking system, ERP system M3, and inventory management.
This modernization not only brought greater maintenance efficiency but also wider automation possibilities and significantly clearer management of corporate processes.
What are the main benefits of implementing the maintenance information system?
- Improved visualization and clarity of the entire maintenance process
- More accurate recording of daily maintenance activities
- Enhanced execution of the maintenance process for both maintenance staff and management
- Task tracking that was previously not captured
- Transition to paperless maintenance
- Elimination of unnecessary time losses between the requester and the maintenance staff
- Instant access to statistics on failure occurrence, maintenance response times, etc.
- Use of a single centralized system for maintenance execution
- Automatic notifications to relevant workers about issues
- Efficient management of individual maintenance processes
- Comprehensive data collection and analysis enabling effective evaluation and visualization of data necessary for strategic decision-making
Štěpán Zachariáš
EBX (Esab Business eXcellence) Champion
We approached Inseko as one of the first companies during the modernization of our maintenance system. Its historical connection with the older MP2 system, as well as the range of modern tools for digitization and reporting, were the main reasons for establishing a close cooperation. Thanks to its simplicity and compatibility, the system has significantly expanded from its original form and is now being used in processes that were definitely not planned at the beginning. The recent extension of the system to include electronic spare parts tracking and its integration with our internal M3 system was a major challenge for us. After intensive collaboration between our teams – including colleagues from India – the project was successfully completed. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Inseko for the long-term cooperation, and especially for the excellent communication and quick response times.
