The challenge of industrial turnarounds

When industrial plants undergo a turnaround, things get complex – fast. For 4 to 6 weeks, up to 1,500 people work together under immense time pressure to carry out critical maintenance and replacement tasks up to the recommissioning of the plant.

In this interview, our product manager Christian shares how a customer request sparked the initiation of the pilot project “MaTaP – Management Tool for Turnarounds and Projects” to the development of the comprehensive industrial turnaround software “MaTaP PRO”. He also gives insight into the challenges the development team needed to overcome, and what the future holds for the software solution.

Christian has been leading the project at Augmensys since summer 2021. The project started in 2018 and was handled by our previous colleague Roman. When Christian took over, the project was still in the pilot phase.

Why the process industry needs a better way to handle turnarounds

Q.: Why does the process industry need MaTaP PRO? 

Christian: In the process industry, large-scale activities like component replacements, repairs, or the recommissioning of a plant often involve several hundred, sometimes even up to a thousand people. Detailed planning of all work orders is absolutely essential, as is ensuring that execution is transparent and traceable.
At the same time, teams need to stay flexible, as scope changes and punch points can arise unexpectedly and need to be addressed quickly and efficiently. Clear documentation and strict adherence to safety standards are also non-negotiable, both for internal staff and external contractors.
Moreover, turnarounds represent a significant financial investment for companies. Minimizing downtime and keeping costs under control requires accurate planning, efficient execution, and reliable documentation. That’s where MaTaP PRO comes in – as a modular software for turnarounds, optimizing planning and execution during industrial shutdowns. The solution helps reducing downtime and ensures smooth management of changes throughout the project.

How it all started: From pilot project to product vision

Q.: What was the reason for starting the pilot project “MaTaP”?

Christian: In 2018, a customer reached out to us: they needed a solution specifically tailored to the demands of turnarounds.

Up to that point, they had been relying on paper-based processes and a few isolated digital tools. But that approach made it difficult for everyone involved to have a transparent overview of tasks. It was also hard to track completed work or keep up with changes to the scope or budget.

There was no single tool that all teams used consistently, which made communication and coordination across groups more complicated. And since documentation was incomplete in many cases, important learnings from past turnarounds were often lost – making future planning and negotiations with contractors more challenging.

The goal was clear: they wanted a software solution that would accelerate planning and execution while providing more structure and clarity. That’s how the pilot project “MaTaP” was born – a custom tool built based on our UBIK® software.

Christian: We realized pretty quickly that the pilot project had much more potential than just being a solution for one customer. The core idea of accelerating turnarounds is valuable for other clients as well, so transforming it into a full product made perfect sense.

One of the biggest challenges our development team faced was finding the right balance between flexibility and stability. From the start, we built the product on a modular architecture using plugins through the Managed Extensibility Framework (MEF) within the .NET Framework. This means that MaTaP PRO is based on core modules that cover the entire turnaround lifecycle, but additional modules can also be added and customized to the specific needs of individual clients.

But that flexibility came with a challenge: we had to separate client-specific features from the core modules in a clean and sustainable way. The goal was to ensure that new developments wouldn’t interfere with existing functionality or impact our current users. At the same time, we needed to create customizable interfaces and generate templates efficiently from historical data – both critical for reuse and long-term value.

We started turning the pilot into a comprehensive solution in September 2023 until the end of December 2024. So, it’s been a little over a year. Working with Scrum, doing early tests and having functional designs as manual tests really helped us to secure stability and quality at the same time.

What sets MaTaP PRO apart from other solutions

Q.: Are there comparable solutions for the process industry? What distinguishes MaTaP PRO from other solutions?

Christian: There are indeed other solutions on the market, but many of them only address specific parts of a turnaround’s lifecycle. MaTaP PRO, on the other hand, was developed specifically for turnarounds – so our clients can manage the entire lifecycle within a single software.

With our software, users can monitor progress in real time, whether on a desktop using the wallpaper or via tablets on-site. The admin tool gives management full access to all recorded data, enabling them to plan and make informed decisions when adjustments are needed.

What really sets MaTaP PRO apart is the flexibility and transparency it gives turnarounds. Scope changes and punch points can be added and tracked easily at any stage. This adaptability, combined with a clear overview of all processes, is what makes the software so effective.

Looking ahead: The future of MaTaP PRO

Q.: How will MaTaP PRO continue to develop? What is your vision for the future?

Christian: We already have several clients who’ve seen significant cost reductions and efficiency gains thanks to MaTaP PRO  –  and we’re excited and proud about that. But our work doesn’t stop here. We’re continuously working to expand and improve the solution.

Looking ahead, we plan to develop a dedicated desktop client, expand our plugin ecosystem, and further enhance our import technology. Additionally, we’re focusing on extending the functionality of the mobile app to give users even greater flexibility when working in the field.

Thank you

Instead of a classic summary of this interview, we’d like to fill the last lines with appreciation and gratitude for our colleagues: Dear Development and Service team, without your hard work, extra hours, lots of passion and brain power put into this project – the launch of MaTaP PRO wouldn’t have been possible. Thank you! You rock!

We were honoured with the Business Award given from Austria´s Leading Companies securing third place in the Small Business category, in the beginning of October 2024.

The success of the companies was measured based on economic performance over the past three business years, and we’re proud to be recognized as one of the most successful companies in Carinthia.

A big thank you to our amazing team for their hard work and dedication, and to everyone who made this evening unforgettable!