The "Flat List" Failure: Most CMMS implementations fail because they dump all assets into a single list. You need a Parent-Child relationship to track costs accurately.
The ISO Standard: Adopting ISO 14224 (Taxonomy) allows you to standardize naming conventions (e.g., Line > Unit > Equipment > Component) across multiple sites.
The Fabrico Method: How to use a drag-and-drop visual tree to build your hierarchy in minutes, not months.
The foundation of any reliability program is the Asset Hierarchy.
If your CMMS is just a list of 5,000 unconnected serial numbers, you cannot do analysis.
You can't tell if "Line 1" is profitable because you don't know which machines belong to it.
You can't tell if "Motor A" is a bad actor because you don't know it was moved from "Pump B" to "Fan C."
You need a Structured Taxonomy. You need to organize your assets like a family tree.
Here is how to build a robust Asset Hierarchy using ISO 14224 principles and Fabrico.
Reliability-Centered Maintenance (RCM) requires context.
Knowing that a bearing failed is useless. Knowing that a bearing failed on the Main Feed Pump of Bottling Line 3 is actionable.
A proper hierarchy allows you to "Roll Up" costs.
Level 1 (Plant): Total Maintenance Cost.
Level 2 (System): Cost of the "Packaging Line."
Level 3 (Asset): Cost of the "Labeler."
Level 4 (Component): Cost of the "Drive Motor."
Do not invent your own structure. Use the industry standard.
Industry/Category: (e.g., Food & Beverage).
Business Unit: (e.g., Chicago Plant).
Process Unit: (e.g., Liquid Filling Line).
System: (e.g., Cooling System).
Equipment Unit: (e.g., Centrifugal Pump P-101).
Maintainable Item: (e.g., Mechanical Seal, Bearing).
Fabrico Tip: In Fabrico, you can create infinite levels of "Parent/Child" relationships. Start simple (3 levels) and expand later.
Technicians will not search for "Centrifugal Pump Horizontal 50HP." They will search for "Pump 1."
You need a standard naming convention that is readable by humans and machines.
Bad Name: P-101 (Too vague).
Bad Name: Pump_Centrifugal_Line1_North_Wall (Too long).
Good Name: L1-PUMP-01 (Feed Pump)
The Formula:
[Location]-[Asset Type]-[Number] ([Common Name])
L1: Line 1
PUMP: Asset Class
01: Sequential Number
Feed Pump: Description for the human.
This is where RCM happens.
You don't just maintain the "Pump." You maintain the Motor, the Coupling, and the Seal.
In Fabrico, create these as "Child Assets" under the Pump.
Why? If you replace the motor, you can move the "Motor Asset" to the "Scrap" location or "Repair Shop" location without losing its history. The Pump history stays with the Pump.
Legacy systems force you to click through endless folders to find an asset.
Fabrico uses a Visual Asset Tree.
On the left sidebar, you see the hierarchy (Plant > Line > Machine).
You can drag and drop a machine to a new line if you move it physically.
Technicians can drill down by tapping the screen: "I'm in Hall A" -> "I'm looking at the Filler" -> "I'm fixing the Glue Gun."
Sometimes you have assets that don't need individual tags, like "Fire Extinguishers" or "Emergency Lights."
Group these into a "Route Asset."
Asset Name: "Fire Safety Route - Hall A"
Components: Extinguisher 1, Extinguisher 2, Extinguisher 3.
This allows you to issue one Work Order to inspect 20 items, keeping your database clean.
Your asset list is not static. It grows.
If you build a flat list in Excel today, it will be unmanageable in 3 years.
If you build a Hierarchy in Fabrico today, it will scale with your factory.
Organize your chaos.
[Book a Demo with Fabrico] to see how our Visual Asset Tree makes finding equipment instant.
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