Migrating thousands of work and asset records into a new computerized maintenance management system (CMMS) sounds like a recipe for disaster. The risk of lost data and corrupted compliance records could mean months of cleanup and failed audits.
That was Brett Pyper's fear when Hudsonville Ice Cream decided to switch platforms. The 100-year-old company had decades worth of data on hundreds of assets that needed to be carried over to the CMMS.
That’s why Brett, Hudsonville’s Maintenance Planner, and his team designed a carefully-crafted strategy that led to zero data loss and ROI within months. This article breaks down the framework Brett used so you can use it too, including how he sequenced the work, addressed compliance concerns, and turned initial skeptics into advocates.
Watch an in-depth conversation with Brett below
The challenge of migrating data between maintenance systems
When Brett realized that rolling out a new CMMS would mean moving roughly 80,000 work orders to the new platform, he set out a single, clear goal for the transition: "Getting all our old data into the system properly."
He knew it wasn’t going to be easy. Brett’s main concern was that Hudsonville's legacy system was "formatted and set up differently" than the new platform. Those 80,000 records included old PMs, reactive maintenance history, and compliance documentation for their refrigeration systems. For a company with a century of records, the team couldn't afford to lose that institutional knowledge.
Data formatting differences between systems
Different CMMS platforms organize data in different ways. Field names, data hierarchies, and naming conventions rarely line up perfectly between systems. This mismatch creates mapping challenges that can corrupt records or make historical data hard to search after migration.
Historical records for trending and analysis
Historical work order data allows maintenance teams to spot patterns, track asset performance over time, and check whether PM schedules are effective. Without that history, you're starting from scratch. You can't reference past failures, compare performance periods, or make data-driven decisions about maintenance intervals. As Brett put it, "Without good data, you're just taking a best guess at what your 'highest hitters' are."
Regulatory compliance documentation
For facilities with industrial refrigeration systems, compliance documentation carries regulatory weight. Brett noted Hudsonville has "a regulatory obligation to hold some of that data and keep track of it." Losing or corrupting compliance records during migration could create audit problems, which meant that protecting this documentation through the migration was a primary concern for the team.
The three types of data to prioritize and protect during a CMMS migration
1. Compliance records
This includes everything from inspection records to leak checks, maintenance logs, and safety documentation that regulatory agencies may request during audits. This documentation proves technicians provided required care at required intervals. This is especially important for highly-regulated industries, like food and beverage manufacturing or pharmaceutical manufacturing.
2. Preventive maintenance documentation
PM records show that technicians completed scheduled maintenance. These records include completion records, technician sign-offs, procedure documentation, and scheduling history. Not only is this important for safety and compliance, it also allows you to take immediate action with a new CMMS, speeding up adoption and reducing the time it takes to see value in the platform.
3. Reactive maintenance history
Corrective maintenance records document failures, root cause analysis, and response times. This history matters for both compliance and operational analysis. Understanding what broke, when, and why helps teams identify recurring problems and check whether PM programs are catching issues before failure.
The migration framework that worked at Hudsonville Ice Cream
Brett's approach to migration followed a practical philosophy: "Don't let perfection get in the way of progress." Rather than trying to perfect everything before going live, his team focused on getting the system running and collecting good data right away. Here's how they sequenced the work.
1. Move all historical data first
Brett's team moved all its old data right away. This decision preserved trending capability, compliance records, and institutional knowledge from day one. Starting fresh might seem simpler, but you’d sacrifice valuable historical context that informs future maintenance decisions.
2. Establish recurring preventive maintenance work orders
After migrating historical data, Brett focused on "the stuff that we were doing really well—our preventive maintenance." Making calendar-based PMs operational first provided immediate value. Technicians received structured work from day one, and the team could build confidence with the system before adding complexity.
3. Expand capabilities over time
Hudsonville didn't try to set up everything at once. They started with calendar-based PMs, then progressed to hour-based PMs using Ignition meter data, then added condition-based triggers. "We didn't let our vision of where we wanted to go get in the way of…getting the system up and running," Brett explains.
4. Collect good data from day one
Brett references a principle drilled into him early: Practice makes permanent. "If we constantly put in bad data, that's what gets ingrained. If we change the mindset and start doing things the right way, we'll continue to do them the right way,” says Brett. Migration creates an opportunity for teams to reset data quality standards. The habits teams establish in those first weeks tend to stick.
A month-by-month timeline for getting ROI from a CMMS
Migrating thousands of work orders into a new maintenance software is by no means simple, so you expect to get value from all that hard work without waiting a year or more. Here’s how Brett and the Hudsonville team set expectations, measured progress, and calculated value after migrating to a new CMMS.
First month after migration
"I think we started really seeing value after a month of having data visibility in the CMMS," Brett recalls. The first month brings initial visibility into data, PM execution in the new system, and early process improvements. Teams start recognizing the difference between the old and new ways.
The three-month milestone
"It was probably three to four months later, sitting down with the team and saying, 'Guys, can you really believe that a few months ago we were printing all this stuff out?'" says Brett. "That was the 'aha moment' for them, where it clicked that this was really doing something for us."
By this point, teams solidify their adoption, recognize obvious process improvements, and initial skeptics often become advocates.
Long-term validation through time studies
Hudsonville validated their improvements with data. They conducted a time study after using the system for a few months and confirmed they had improved more than anticipated. Brett noted they gained about 10% to 15% more wrench time than expected.
How MaintainX supports large-scale CMMS data migrations
Hudsonville's team relied on several MaintainX capabilities for their successful migration:
- Implementation specialists: Dedicated support throughout the migration process
- Quick data import: Historical records transferred efficiently
- Mobile-first platform: Technicians adopted the system faster because MaintainX designed it for field use
- Integration capabilities: Connection with systems like Ignition enabled future capabilities
Brett's team also beta-tested MaintainX's Smart Tag Mapping feature for connecting Ignition data. "It works really, really well actually," he notes. "It does a pretty good job of mapping."
Dedicated support and purpose-built tools reduce risk and speed up time to value for teams considering large-scale migration.
Marc Cousineau is the Senior Content Marketing Manager at MaintainX. Marc has over a decade of experience telling stories for technology brands, including more than five years writing about the maintenance and asset management industry.
.webp)