Riding the digital wave in ship building
How Damen transformed vessel lifecycle management with the DMMS platform powered by IBM Maximo.
Damen is an international maritime company that designs, builds and services vessels across the globe. Damen Services plays a crucial role in supporting customers throughout the entire lifecycle of their ships. As the global installed base continued to grow, so did the need for a unified platform to manage all configuration and maintenance data. In this context, the Damen Maintenance Management Solution (DMMS), powered by the IBM Maximo Application Suite, has evolved into a central and indispensable platform. As Thijs van Dorssen, Lead Digital Tooling at Damen Services, explains, DMMS is rapidly becoming essential for asset identification and management, not only within Damen Services but throughout the entire organization.
The Challenge
Damen faced a significant challenge in managing a massive volume of data related to vessel configurations, maintenance plans, spare parts, manuals and technical documentation. This information was scattered across many systems, resulting in inconsistencies, inefficiencies and operational risk. The company required a solution that could scale with its digital ambitions and centralize all asset-related information.
An earlier implementation partner had presented a solution that was financially unattainable, requiring Damen to search for a more feasible alternative. At the same time, the organization wanted to better leverage IoT data, adopt more predictive maintenance strategies and improve the productivity of field technicians with modern mobile tools. Addressing these issues was vital for operational excellence, customer experience and long-term service revenue growth.
“Met DMMS zetten we een stap richting intelligent asset management en krijgen we een betrouwbaardere manier om te bepalen of en wanneer onderhoud wordt uitgevoerd, waardoor we contractrisico’s beter kunnen beheersen.”
The Solution
After evaluating several options, Damen chose the IBM Maximo Application Suite because of its strong industry reputation, modular architecture and ability to grow alongside the organization. The platform offered the functionality and flexibility that Damen needed. The company then partnered with LAMA Empowers, a highly experienced IBM Business Partner known for its deep Maximo expertise and collaborative, cost‑effective approach.
Together, Damen and LAMA Empowers built DMMS as the central platform for vessel configurations, maintenance plans, spare parts information and technical documentation. Using the Preventive Maintenance module in IBM Maximo Manage, the team developed an application that calculates the projected operational hours of each vessel over a three‑year period and predicts the spare parts required during that timeframe. This allows Damen to provide customers with upfront spare‑parts proposals at vessel delivery.
They also created a lifecycle cost calculator that estimates the total operating costs of a vessel based on usage hours, fuel consumption, docking requirements, labor and maintenance costs. Through API integrations, DMMS was connected to Triton, Damen’s IoT platform, enabling sensor data to be compared automatically against maintenance plans and triggering work orders where needed.
DMMS also became a key data source for the MyDamen customer portal, giving customers direct access to up‑to‑date manuals, technical drawings and configuration details. IBM Maximo Mobile was introduced as an extension of the platform, enabling customers and service technicians to perform and manage maintenance activities on mobile devices.
Implementation
The implementation of DMMS followed a phased and collaborative approach. Damen reassessed its technology landscape and partnered with LAMA Empowers, whose pragmatic and flexible way of working made it possible to refine and execute Damen’s existing implementation plan in a cost‑effective manner.
A comprehensive data model was established to centralize all vessel configurations and maintenance information. Once this foundation was in place, the platform was expanded with modules for maintenance planning, operational‑hour forecasting, parts prediction and lifecycle costing. API integrations with the Triton IoT platform and the MyDamen portal enabled seamless data exchange and improved the customer experience by ensuring consistent, accurate information across all touchpoints.
In parallel, Damen prepared the rollout of IBM Maximo Mobile, enabling technicians to send job reports directly from the app and allowing customers to approve work digitally. Damen also collaborated with IBM to enhance the mobile inspections capabilities, including the addition of shareable inspection reports. Finally, Damen began jointly developing an AI‑powered configuration management assistant with IBM and LAMA Empowers, using IBM watsonx Orchestrate.
The Formula for Success
The success of DMMS comes from the combination of centralizing all asset data, selecting a robust and scalable technology platform and forming a highly effective partnership. By consolidating information into a single source of truth, Damen eliminated system fragmentation and created a far more reliable basis for maintenance planning, operational coordination and customer communication. IBM Maximo provided a solid enterprise engine with the flexibility to evolve as Damen’s needs grow.
LAMA Empowers played an essential role by providing deep Maximo expertise while working closely and flexibly with Damen to deliver the platform step by step. Integrations with IoT and the MyDamen portal added significant value by converting real‑time data into actionable maintenance activities and offering customers accurate, easy access to all relevant information. The result is improved risk management, higher customer satisfaction and new business opportunities driven by better insight into the installed base.
The Road Ahead
Damen is only at the beginning of its DMMS journey. The organization plans to further scale IBM Maximo Mobile to enhance technician productivity and give customers better visibility into completed work. Inspection capabilities will be expanded so that results can be shared quickly and clearly with customers.
A major innovation in development is the AI‑supported configuration assistant powered by IBM watsonx Orchestrate, which will allow Damen to create vessel configurations more quickly, reduce costs and increase the range of product variants supported throughout the year. Over time, Damen aims to extend DMMS into new areas of the business and further strengthen the platform as a digital backbone for asset and maintenance management across the entire organization.