The International Manufacturing Technology Show returned this month to connect and inspire tens of thousands of manufacturing professionals. Taking “Inspiring the Extraordinary” as its theme, the bi-annual event welcomed cutting-edge vendors and industry leaders to Chicago to see how innovators are powering manufacturers past familiar and emerging obstacles.
This was Limble’s first time attending the event that’s sometimes called the Super Bowl or Indy 500 of manufacturing conferences. Needless to say, it was an impressive event that gave us plenty to reflect on as we approach the last quarter of 2024.
Takeaways from Limble’s presentations at IMTS 2024
Two highlights of IMTS 2024’s packed agenda were the presentations hosted by Limble in the Smart Manufacturing Showcase. We demonstrated our award-winning platform and the benefits of data-driven maintenance strategies in a pair of thought leadership sessions.
Matt Olson and Jake Westbrook discuss how Limble took Bentek from paper-based tedium to tech-powered innovation.
Streamlining Maintenance Operations: Bentek’s Journey from Clipboards to CMMS Efficiency
On IMTS Day 2, Matt Olson, Director of Facilities and Reliability at Bentek, spoke on Bentek’s experience both before and after Limble, emphasizing the numerous benefits of making the switch to a more preventive program.
Here’s some of what Olson and co-panelist Jake Westbrook discussed:
- Olson stressed the importance of securing executive buy-in for a CMMS platform as early as possible and shared strategies for building the case. Maintenance managers should gather what data they can to make the value of new technology inarguable. At Bentek, Olson emphasized how much work simply wasn’t getting done.
- Centralizing communication channels with Limble has been a life-saver for the Bentek team. The team used to lose lots of time searching through texts and emails, but Limble puts all essential information at their fingertips. Work order histories, warranty documents, and other must-have documents are never misplaced and technicians can operate more efficiently than ever.
- Limble has allowed Bentek to build safety-focused asset cards to eliminate risk factors, boost productivity, and improve their safety culture. Any manufacturer, Olson contends, can promote safer facilities with a CMMS.
Olson was among the winners of Limble’s first-ever Maintenance Hero Awards earlier this year. See how the whole team at Bentek leveraged Limble to set a new standard for become heroes to their organization.
Ken Kyle offers IMTS 2024 attendees strategies to help them maximize the ROI of their maintenance software.
Recognizing and Overcoming Roadblocks: How to Optimize Your Maintenance Software for Greater Team Efficiency
On the final day of IMTS 2024, Ken Kyle, a Limble Sales Engineer, addressed a Smart Manufacturing Experience crowd. Here’s some of what attendees took away from the discussion:
- A staggering number of CMMS implementations are considered failures. A survey by Reliable Plant found that 80% of implementations fall apart while 90% of organizations feel like they aren’t using maintenance management technology to its full potential. The sources of trouble vary. In some cases, maintenance managers fail to secure buy-in from the necessary decision makers. In other instances, vendors don’t offer the necessary support to encourage adoption.
- Kyle encouraged conference-goers to emphasize user-friendliness, scalability, vendor support, and integration capabilities when evaluating tech providers.
- Once they’ve implemented maintenance software, organizations can maximize ROI by continually measuring performance, emphasizing the value of training, and continually leveraging their vendor’s services.
- Limble stands out from competing vendors thanks to award-winning usability, best-in-class customer support, and features that companies of all sizes and types can customize to their needs.
What were attendees talking about at IMTS 2024?
The Limble team met conference attendees and showed off the preferred CMMS of manufacturing leaders.
In addition to showing off our platform with daily presentations, Limble’s team surveyed attendees about the challenges facing maintenance teams in manufacturing and their go-to strategies for driving process improvements.
- Though half of respondents said they’re adequately staff, the most common challenge they identified were talent shortages. For some, an aging and retiring team complicates this issue and makes it especially important to begin digitizing .
- Other common challenges included a lack of useful data or analytics capabilities and aging equipment.
- A majority of respondents reported that their organizations were currently at work tackling sustainability initiatives.
- Attendees reported using reactive and preventive maintenance in about equal numbers. Around 64% said their organizations were reactive at least some of the time and 71% said they leverage a preventive approach.
Learn more about what maintenance professionals in manufacturing and facilities are focused on with a closer look at our 2024 Industry Report.
IMTS 2024 recaps from industry analysts
SME Media recorded recaps from the conference floor after each day’s booth- and session-going. Speaking on Day 3 of the event, SME’s panelists echoed Booth 236181 visitors. They noted that plenty of attendees were discussing skills gaps and plenty of solutions on display aimed to address these concerns. On Day 4, panelists noted the efforts providers were making to engage directly with customers and design solutions to their specific pain points.
Check out SME’s roundtable conversation from National Manufacturing Day 2023, featuring contributions from Limble’s Founder and CEO, Bryan Christiansen.
Writing for Control Engineering, Chris Vavra notes that exhibitors stressed the importance of connectivity throughout the event. A strict emphasis on technology, he argues, leaves workers in maintenance with plenty of tools but no solutions. The vendors who exhibited and hosted presentations at IMTS 2024 were undoubtedly interested in proving they offered true solutions.
Share your conference takeaways in the Limble Community
Want to share your reflections on the IMTS 2024 agenda, workshop your next conference presentation, or find some networking tips? The Limble Community is the place for you. Sign up today to join a vibrant and growing network of professionals in defining the maintenance world’s next era.
