Oil & gas
IBM Maximo for oil and gas: integrity, inspection and turnaround
Maximo for oil and gas: ISO 14224 and API-aligned data, risk-based inspection, permit-to-work integration, and turnaround planning. Senior consultants with 25+ years on operator estates.
Oil and gas is where Maximo proves what it can do when the configuration respects the engineering standards. We design to ISO 14224, API RP 14C and ISO 15926 from day one because retrofitting those standards under audit pressure is far more expensive than building to them.
Operational and regulatory context
- ISO 14224 — failure-data taxonomy aligned for industry comparability
- API RP 14C / API 580 / 581 — safety analysis and risk-based inspection methodology in the configuration
- ISO 15926 — data exchange and lifecycle data integration
- HSE / Seveso / OSHA — process-safety inspection evidence held in Maximo
Where Maximo earns its keep in this sector
- Aligning failure-data and equipment hierarchies to global standards
- Risk-based inspection strategies that actually drive the work plan
- Permit-to-work and isolation management with no ambiguity
- Multi-site, multi-contractor turnarounds planned in one system
- Replacing SAP PM where it has been stretched beyond its sweet spot
Oil and gas: where Maximo earns its origin story
Maximo grew up serving asset-intensive industries, and oil and gas is one of the original homes. Upstream platforms, midstream pipelines and downstream refineries all use Maximo as the system of record for asset integrity, inspection, work execution and inventory. The configurations that succeed in this sector are the ones that respect the standards the engineers already work to — ISO 14224 for failure data, API recommended practices for inspection, ISO 15926 for data exchange.
Standards-aligned data from day one
One of our senior consultants, Jonathan Heward, spent more than a decade defining and rolling out ISO 14224, API RP 14C and ISO 15926-aligned data standards across a major operator's global Maximo estate. That experience shapes how we approach every oil and gas implementation. Failure-class taxonomy, equipment-class hierarchies and inspection libraries are designed to those standards from day one — not retrofitted under audit pressure two years later.
Asset integrity and risk-based inspection
Pressure systems, rotating equipment, structural integrity and corrosion management are all inspection disciplines with their own risk-based methodologies. We model RBI strategies, anomaly registers and integrity operating windows in Maximo so that the asset integrity engineer is working from the same record as the maintenance planner. SAP-PM legacy estates often need to be re-platformed onto Maximo so this convergence is possible.
Permit-to-work and isolation management
Hydrocarbon environments require permit-to-work and isolation management that cannot fail. We integrate Maximo with PTW systems where they exist and replace them with Maximo-native configurations where they do not. The aim is one source of truth for what is isolated, what is being worked on, and who is in the field.
Turnarounds, shutdowns and shut-ins
A refinery turnaround can run into nine figures. The planning system has to be defensible. We use Maximo for work-package definition, contractor management, materials staging and critical-path tracking through the turnaround, with lessons-learned captured in Maximo rather than in a project office that disbands at handback.
Typical integrations
Outcomes our clients see
- Comparable failure data across sites and across years
- Defensible asset integrity record under regulator and insurer audit
- Shorter, lower-risk turnarounds with captured lessons learned
- Inspection backlog under control and visible to leadership
Talk to Jonathan about oil & gas
Jonathan Heward
Head of Account Management · 25+ years in IBM Maximo
Jonathan leads account management at MaxIron. His Maximo career spans more than 25 years, including 16 years as Principal Maximo Business Consultant at Vetasi and a decade at BP working on multiple Maximo implementations.
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MAS suite for oil & gas
When Manage is in shape, Predict is usually the next conversation upstream
On upstream estates with rich failure history and large rotating-equipment populations, IBM Maximo Predict is one of the better-justified MAS-suite components. Health backs the capital case across the asset integrity portfolio, and Monitor often surfaces alongside historian work. We deliver and operate these on the same managed cloud as Manage today.
Oil & gas — frequently asked questions
- Are you set up for ISO 14224 and API standards alignment?
- Yes. Our senior team includes consultants who have led ISO 14224, API RP 14C and ISO 15926 alignment programmes at major operators. We design Maximo failure taxonomy and equipment hierarchies to those standards from day one.
- Can Maximo replace SAP PM for oil and gas asset integrity?
- Often, yes. Where SAP PM has been stretched to cover inspection, integrity and rotating-equipment maintenance, replacing it with Maximo brings asset integrity engineers and maintenance planners onto one record. We have done this on multi-site upstream and midstream estates.
- How does Maximo support permit-to-work and isolation management?
- Either through integration with a dedicated PTW system or through Maximo-native configuration. We always design for one source of truth on what is isolated, what is being worked on and who is in the field.
- Do you support remote and offshore environments?
- Yes. Maximo Mobile is designed for low-bandwidth and intermittently-connected environments. We have configured patterns that work on offshore platforms, remote terminals and mobile pipeline-inspection teams.