The verdict in three sentences
For a 150-employee manufacturing plant in Germany, a SaaS CMMS costs EUR 50 to 150 per user per month, while a custom CMMS requires EUR 40,000 to 100,000, delivered in 10 to 16 weeks. Custom wins when you need to connect IoT sensors, PLCs and the ERP around your real machines, and when technicians must log work in 30 seconds on the shop floor. The financial stake, a 2026 order of magnitude, is a 20 to 35% reduction in breakdowns, on stoppages that often cost EUR 2,000 to 10,000 an hour.
SaaS CMMS or custom: the numbers side by side
Maintenance managers in Baden-Württemberg or North Rhine-Westphalia know the market CMMS products well. They cover preventive maintenance and work orders, but sensor and ERP integration comes as paid add-ons, and mobile usability is often designed for the office.
| Criterion | SaaS CMMS | Custom CMMS |
|---|---|---|
| Entry cost | EUR 3,000 to 15,000 (setup, migration) | EUR 40,000 to 100,000 |
| Recurring cost for 25 users | EUR 15,000 to 45,000 a year | EUR 7,000 to 18,000 a year (maintenance + hosting) |
| Sensor and PLC integration | Paid add-on, limited protocols | Native (OPC UA, MQTT, Modbus) |
| ERP integration (SAP, proALPHA, abas) | Standard connectors | Built on your actual flows |
| Shop floor usability | Generic | Designed for your technicians, offline |
| Data ownership | Vendor | Plant |
| Go-live time | 1 to 3 months | 10 to 16 weeks |
For 25 users at EUR 100 a month, a SaaS CMMS costs EUR 30,000 a year, before IoT options. A custom CMMS at EUR 70,000 with EUR 12,000 of annual maintenance becomes cheaper from the fourth year, but the real gain comes from fewer stoppages.
Modules and their cost
| Module | Function | 2026 budget (EUR) | Timeline |
|---|---|---|---|
| Asset register and hierarchy | Lines, machines, components, documents, QR codes | 5,000 to 12,000 | 2 to 3 weeks |
| Preventive maintenance | Calendar or meter-based plans, work order generation | 7,000 to 15,000 | 3 to 4 weeks |
| Mobile work orders | Shop floor entry, photos, time, offline mode | 8,000 to 18,000 | 3 to 5 weeks |
| Spare parts stock | Thresholds, reservations, purchasing link | 5,000 to 12,000 | 2 to 4 weeks |
| Sensor and PLC connector | Vibration, temperature, counters, condition alerts | 8,000 to 25,000 | 4 to 6 weeks |
| ERP integration and KPIs | Costs, MTBF, MTTR, OEE, dashboard | 7,000 to 18,000 | 3 to 4 weeks |
Expected return on investment
The calculation rests on unplanned downtime. In a mid-sized plant, it often represents 3 to 8% of operating time. A well adopted CMMS, coupled with condition-based alerts, shifts maintenance from reactive to preventive.
| Indicator | Before (mostly reactive) | After custom CMMS |
|---|---|---|
| Breakdowns per month on critical lines | 12 to 20 | 8 to 14 (down 20 to 35%) |
| MTTR, mean time to repair | 3 to 5 hours | 2 to 3.5 hours |
| Share of preventive work | 25 to 35% | 50 to 65% |
| Critical spare part stock-outs | 4 to 8 per quarter | 0 to 2 |
| Logging time per intervention | 10 to 15 minutes | 1 to 3 minutes |
| OEE of critical lines | 60 to 70% | Up 3 to 8 points |
Mini case study
Niklas, maintenance manager at a 150-employee plant near Stuttgart, suffers an average of 45 hours of unplanned downtime a month on three critical lines. One hour of downtime costs EUR 3,500 in lost output, overtime and scrap, i.e. EUR 157,500 a month. He invests EUR 78,000 in a custom CMMS connected to 40 vibration sensors and the ERP, plus EUR 14,000 a year of maintenance.
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After one year, unplanned downtime falls by 28%, or 12.6 hours avoided a month and EUR 44,100 saved a month. Over twelve months, the gain reaches EUR 529,200. The project pays back in under two months of operation, and the plant postponed buying a EUR 250,000 backup machine.
FAQ
How much does a custom CMMS cost for a 150-employee plant?
Expect EUR 40,000 to 65,000 for the asset register, preventive maintenance, mobile work orders and stock. With IoT sensors and ERP integration, the budget rises to EUR 80,000 to 100,000.
Can the CMMS connect to our PLCs and sensors?
Yes, via OPC UA, MQTT or Modbus depending on your equipment, for EUR 8,000 to 25,000. Condition alerts trigger a work order as soon as a vibration or temperature threshold is exceeded.
Can technicians work without network coverage on the shop floor?
Yes, the mobile app works offline and syncs as soon as Wi-Fi returns. Logging an intervention drops to 1 to 3 minutes with a photo and a machine QR scan.
How long until the CMMS is live?
Plan 10 to 16 weeks, with a pilot on one line from week six. Migrating the asset register and preventive plans takes 1 to 3 weeks depending on data quality.
How do we measure ROI?
Track hourly downtime cost, MTBF, MTTR and OEE before and after deployment. A 20% reduction in stoppages is usually enough to pay back the project within a year.
Let's scope your project. Send us your number of critical machines, users and your ERP: we will price a scope between EUR 40,000 and 100,000 with a 10 to 16 week plan. Detailed quote within 48 h. WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
