Korea Fujitsu said on Monday it will launch in South Korea MasterControl Ax (Asset Excellence), a cloud-based asset management solution developed by MasterControl, targeting life sciences industries such as pharmaceuticals, biotech and medical devices.

The company said MasterControl Ax is a life sciences-focused CMMS (Computerized Maintenance Management System) that integrates management of the full asset lifecycle, including preventive maintenance and calibration of facilities, instruments and research and testing equipment, as well as work orders and service histories.

The company said in the pharmaceutical and biotech industries, facilities and instruments are key GMP (Good Manufacturing Practic) management items that directly affect product quality and record reliability, beyond being simple production assets. If calibration or preventive maintenance is not carried out on time, it can also affect the reliability of test results, batch production schedules, deviation investigations and regulatory responses.

However, many companies often manage equipment maintenance and calibration histories through Excel, documents or separate systems even if they have computerised QMS (Quality Management System) and MES (Manufacturing Execution System).

MasterControl Ax supports efforts to systematise such fragmented asset operating environments. Users can check equipment status and location, calibration schedules, preventive maintenance plans, work orders and service records in one place, and set maintenance plans based on time periods or usage.

Kyung-joo Park (박경주), CEO of Korea Fujitsu, said, "The launch of MasterControl Ax is meaningful in that it expands the scope of digital operations for life sciences companies from quality and manufacturing to facilities and asset management." He added, "Korea Fujitsu will strengthen digital operating systems across quality, manufacturing and asset areas based on the MasterControl platform expanding to Qx, Mx and Ax, and will continue to support customers so they can respond more effectively to regulatory inspections while using accumulated data for analysis and AI-based decision-making."