When budgets are tight and expectations are high, there’s little room for solutions that take months to prove their worth. Industrial leaders need results, and they need them fast. The question isn’t just if technology will deliver value but how quickly it can start showing returns.
This urgency is felt across the board. According to a recent PwC Pulse Survey, 88% of executives admit they “struggle to capture value from their technology investments,” underscoring the growing challenge of justifying these expenditures. Delays in return on investment (ROI) don’t just test patience — they create uncertainty, making it harder to justify future investments and putting operational confidence at risk.
Azima DLI’s artificial intelligence-driven maintenance solutions offer a different narrative: one where results arrive early, and gains come faster than expected. By providing real-time insights and proactive maintenance strategies, Azima helps businesses achieve quick returns, turning maintenance from a cost burden into a strategic advantage.
In this article, we’ll explore why quickly demonstrating value has become a necessity in industrial settings and how Azima is helping businesses get ahead of the curve by delivering ROI faster than expected.
How Azima’s Solutions Deliver Fast ROI
The speed at which Azima delivers ROI isn’t just about luck or timing — it’s a result of carefully designed features that turn insight into action almost immediately. But what exactly makes Azima stand out from traditional technologies?
Fast Setup, Faster Results
One of the core advantages of Azima is quick implementation. Data collection is simple and straightforward for employees of all experience levels thanks to out-of-the-box functionality and the user-friendliness of data collection hardware.
For example, using the Azima TRIO™ portable vibration data analyzer is as straightforward as setting it up on a studded mount, starting up simple-to-use measurement configurations, and pressing a button. Data from each piece of equipment is sent directly to Azima’s diagnostic software for analysis. No need for a vibration analyst to come to the facility — just quick installation, and the system takes care of the rest.
This ease of setup allowed Azima to launch its system with a client who had 8,000 machines in just 6 weeks. The first machine came online and data started flowing within 24 hours. Unlike competitors, who typically take 12-18 months to deliver meaningful insights, Azima provides accurate and prescriptive results from day one, offering immediate value and speeding up the path to ROI.
See What Matters, When It Matters
Once setup is complete, Azima’s diagnostic engine delivers immediate insights, allowing maintenance teams to address potential issues before they escalate into costly problems. These insights don’t just identify early signs of mechanical or electrical wear — they provide actionable information that allows teams to act on these insights swiftly, whether adjusting maintenance schedules or prioritizing repairs to extend the lifespan of key assets.
For example, say you have a motor with a bearing that’s beginning to wear down. As the bearing deteriorates, subtle changes in vibration patterns start to appear — changes that would typically go unnoticed by human operators. Azima’s diagnostic software will detect the anomaly immediately. By analyzing the vibration data and comparing it to past failure modes, the system can predict that the bearing is progressing steadily toward a likely failure within a short period of time and should be repaired as soon as possible.
This early detection can help maintenance, repair, and operations (MRO) professionals plan for a bearing replacement during the next available maintenance window, preventing a catastrophic motor failure. Then, by performing routine preventative maintenance during scheduled downtime, the facility’s operations can continue smoothly, averting a potential crisis with minimal disruption.
This proactive intervention is powered by Azima’s extensive data library — spanning over 3 million machine tests and 6,000 diagnostic rules across industries, equipment types, and failure modes. Azima’s advanced artificial intelligence (AI) program for vibration analysis can identify over 1,200 fault conditions across 50 different machinery components, delivering highly accurate diagnostics in real-time. It is the most advanced diagnostic engine on the market.
Azima’s diagnostic engine analyzes about 93% of machine tests without human intervention. But when deeper expertise is required, Azima’s certified vibration analysts step in. Equipped with advanced AI, they are five times more efficient than performing only manual analysis. This system alerts technicians with recommended actions months in advance. This can mean the difference between doing a shaft alignment or replacing an entire asset.
By helping facilities address potential failures before they occur, Azima enables businesses to avoid costly repairs, replacements, and unplanned downtime — issues that can cost industrial manufacturers up to $50 billion a year. In doing so, companies can maintain efficiency, protect profitability, and ensure operational resilience from day one.
How Azima Helped Standard Steel Save Time and Money
A perfect example of Azima’s solutions in action is Standard Steel, a manufacturer of forged steel wheels and axles for the railroad industry. Once Azima’s diagnostic technology was in place, Standard Steel’s facility in Pennsylvania saw immediate results. They were able to prevent major equipment failures in key assets in the first month — stopping disruptions before they started and boosting operational efficiency.
So, how did Standard Steel achieve such fast gains? Azima’s wireless vibration sensors played a key role in identifying potential issues before they could escalate.
One quick save came when Azima’s solutions detected abnormal vibrations in a wheel press boost pump. “If it had failed, we would have lost our entire wheel mill production line,” explained Andrew Boyer, a maintenance and reliability engineer for Standard Steel. “The sensors identified that a bearing was locking, and we got there and checked it to see that one of the external bearings was starting to lock up.” Early detection gave the facility team time to replace it during scheduled downtime — preventing a significant production halt and the financial losses that would have followed.
In another instance, Azima’s system flagged high vibration levels in a motor, enabling the team to address the issue before it led to a serious failure. By transitioning from reactive to proactive maintenance, Standard Steel optimized its maintenance schedule and reduced emergency repairs.
With Azima’s diagnostic insights, Standard Steel avoided costly breakdowns and saw a fast return on investment, boosting operational resilience and cutting unexpected costs. “The system has been pretty spot-on,” Boyer said. “I really like how accurate the predictions actually are.”
Maximizing the Speed of ROI with Azima
While Azima’s technology is designed to deliver fast results, the speed of return on investment can be influenced by how effectively the solution is rolled out and adopted. For companies looking to accelerate ROI even further, a few strategic approaches can make a significant difference.
Team training plays a key role in accelerating returns. Azima’s hands-on approach goes beyond a basic installation — training is provided to facility teams to know how to set up hardware and interpret the diagnostics. Standard Steel benefited greatly from this, with Azima offering step-by-step guidance during the rollout. “They were very good at showing me, who knew nothing about vibrations, exactly what to look for in the predictive portal system,” said Boyer, the maintenance and reliability engineer. “They didn’t just install — they were showing me exactly how it works, which helped me greatly in reading and understanding the data.” This partnership empowers facility teams to act swiftly on insights, which significantly speeds up ROI.
Businesses can also benefit from phasing in Azima’s solutions. Instead of deploying the technology across all assets at once, starting with high-priority areas means that teams can familiarize themselves with the system and begin seeing results faster. Once the initial deployment is successful, expanding to other parts of the operation becomes more seamless, leading to quicker, widespread impact. After employing Azima’s technology at its wheel mill, Standard Steel planned to adopt Azima at other facilities thanks to its affordability. Ease of use, one of the main features of Azima sensors, also means that there won’t be a steep learning curve for staff at other locations.
Furthermore, integrating Azima’s technology with existing systems can help companies see faster returns. For instance, by connecting Azima’s diagnostic portal with computerized maintenance management system (CMMS) platforms like eMaint, Azima’s diagnostics can feed directly into maintenance workflows, triggering work orders when issues arise. Repairs are prioritized by severity, allowing teams to act quickly and prevent costly breakdowns. Once repairs are completed, the data is stored for future reference, helping teams track performance and improve maintenance strategies.
Finally, Azima’s ability to pinpoint the root causes of equipment issues unlocks even more value. But organizations need to jump on these insights quickly to prevent recurring failures and avoid costly downtime. By addressing the underlying problems head-on, businesses can secure both quick wins and long-term improvements — extending asset life, cutting repair costs, and boosting overall performance. It’s a proactive strategy that keeps operations running smoothly and ROI growing long after the initial fix.
The Smart Choice for Immediate and Lasting Gains
Azima’s solutions are designed to solve today’s problems and change how enterprises approach asset reliability for the future. With rapid insights that reduce downtime and prevent costly failures, Azima addresses the urgent demands of maintenance. Yet, the true value of Azima’s technology lies in the lasting improvements it brings, shifting maintenance from a reactive measure to a strategic advantage.
Through the Azima Reliability Portal and Predictive Portal, enterprises gain a clear, comprehensive view of their reliability program’s impact. Business-level metrics and KPIs provide executives and teams with insight into overall asset health and production risks while also pinpointing key savings. These tools reveal patterns and blind spots across sites, helping organizations identify which assets are critical to plant health and long-term success. This visibility empowers everyone — from operators to executives — to make timely, data-driven decisions that align with both immediate needs and strategic objectives.
With Azima, repairs are no longer just reactions to failures but essential steps in a forward-looking reliability program. Diagnostic insights arrive months in advance, allowing enterprises to act with foresight and confidence. Each repair, metric, and insight contributes to building an operation that’s prepared for both today’s challenges and tomorrow’s opportunities.
And knowing that assets are protected brings a sense of security that goes beyond maintaining uptime. It’s about focusing on growth, innovation, and the bigger picture — without the constant worry of unexpected breakdowns. Azima doesn’t just keep the equipment running; it gives enterprises the confidence to move forward with a maintenance strategy that’s a true driver of long-term success.