Marine engineer seeking SAP career.

Hello all,
I am marine engineer by profession having worked abt 8 yrs in plant maintenance (marine propulsion/power generation/oil and gas transporting ships) I have for done an MBA in operations management concurrently.
Off-late I am finding some interest in SAP plant maintenance as an alternative career path.
I have gone through many forums and found that querries addressed there are more for freshers as in w/o any previous work experience.

In my case I have spent quite a time in maintenance. Or I have "domain experience" in SAP jargon. However what are prospects for guy like me in SAP plant maintenance. I am too specific with PM coz 8 yrs with hammers and spanners have left me with no much other skills like programming or HR or whatever.

Can I start looking for a SAP job right away? Some of my friends have suggested this mode as they are not too sure if my previous work experience is relevent to employers. Hence they think it is better to see what interest employers find in me. If they are willing to train me. And then make a decision.Unfortunately none of them work on SAP.
Couple of guys having spent quite a time in SAP suggested to get Siemes SAP certification as they think PM domain + SAP certification is a deadly combo if I c'd use my experience for implementation. Now how can I guage if I can use my previous experience for any implementation prior enrolling to an expensive certification course. Honestly I do not have any SAP specific experience. I used computer based maintenance extensively but that software is an in-house developed and somehow mated with SAP implementation at headquarters.

No harm searching for jobs first but I think I might blow my 3 months vacation. It sh'dn't so happen that at the end everything w'd boil down to certification requirement. I am already 32 and I do not want to prolong transistion too much from now as I fear I might loose on age.

Hence I seek guidance of you knowledgeable and experienced SAP gurus.

Rgds.