Proposal for an SMS-driven CMMS solution

The current possibilities for accessing and using CMMS software remotely are essentially through the use of the Internet.This is a major challenge in areas not served by the global network; this is the case in developing countries where only large towns are covered.The purpose of this article is to propose an alternative solution, which uses SMS.After a review of the literature, on the possibilities of using SMSs and existing remote access solutions for CMMS tools, a proposal for using short messages as a solution for the remote use of CMMS software is presented and implemented, as part of the maintenance of medical equipment in two medical structures in Cameroon and Gabon.The results obtained show that the GSM-SMS technology can be used in a relevant and effective way in a context of managing the maintenance of medical equipment to provide mobility and remote control of CMMS software.Maintenance, CMMS, SMS, Internet, Remote Control I. INTRODUCTION In a context of development research, African countries must put a lot of effort into achieving their emergence goals.Among the challenges imposed on them, they have the obligation to succeed with very limited financial means.In such a context, it is important that the populations, first vital forces of these states, be in excellent health.This good state of health requires good maintenance of medical devices.Today, no medical facility can be effective without a well-equipped and operational technical platform.Indeed, the first global forum on medical devices in 2012 was an opportunity to remind and specially to raise awareness of the key role played by medical devices in the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of diseases and in the rehabilitation [1].This directly involves the maintenance of the medical equipment that compose it and more precisely the effective management of this maintenance.Nowadays, the issue of computer-assisted maintenance management tools no longer arises in terms of necessity, but rather in terms of efficiency that depends on the end-user [2].Most of the time, the CMMS software is a web application, hosted on the company's server or on a remote server, whose access is only possible via the Internet.In both cases, users need to install in front of a workstation connected to the corporate network or the internet.This drastically reduces the mobility of maintenance agents.In this article we propose a solution to give more freedom to the personnel in charge of managing maintenance in a medical structure.The plan of this article is articulated as follows.After this introduction, follows successively the review of the literature, the methodology, the material used in the test bench, the results and discussions, then the conclusion.II. LITERATURE REVIEW In 2012, the World Health Organization (WHO) issued a series of technical publications entitled "WHO Technical Series on Medical Devices", as guidance and advice, for park management, maintenance and maintenance management of medical equipment [1,3,4,5].This shows the importance of rigorous monitoring of medical devices.With regard to Yaoundé Central Hospital in Cameroon, the implementation of a CMMS solution, in partnership with the National Polytechnic School of Yaoundé has been taking shape for some time [6].This project suffers from a lack of mobility as it can only work in a local network, and immaturity because it has not been conducted to a satisfactory level for use.The main features offered by such a tool are: equipment management, maintenance management (corrective and preventive), inventory management, security management, purchasing management, key performance indicators, ... For the moment, working with such a tool, even in the case of a deployment in a computer network, is only possible if the users are in the presence of a workstation like computer, connected to the corporate network.