Defining Work Order Task Requirements

This chapter presents an overview of work order task resource requirements and discusses how to define resource requirements for a work order task.

Understanding Work Order Task Resource Requirements

Work order task requirements are used for planning the resources needed and determining the estimated costs to complete each work order task. You optionally define these requirements before submitting the work order for approval. You can also load these requirements into Microsoft Project for further planning and analysis. In addition, you can easily define these requirements by copying work order job and work order task templates to the work order. If you schedule these work order tasks, you can copy these requirements to the corresponding fields in the schedule.

Note. When you access a new work order that requires approval, the Schedules tab and page does not appear in the work order until the work order has been approved.

You click a link on the Requirements page to set up resource requirements, which include:

Labor requirements.
Inventory requirements.
Purchase and on-hand requirements.
Tool resource requirements.

Important! You must select the appropriate check box in the work order business unit to enable you to access and enter these requirements. You must install the Inventory product before the Inventory link in the Requirements page displays.

See Understanding Work Order Business Unit Setup.

If a work order requires approval, then you must define these resource requirements before they are submitted for approval. Once the work order's status is approval pending or approved, you can no longer define requirements.

There are three different methods that you can choose to use to set up resource requirements for a work order task, which include:

Entering the resource requirements manually in the work order's Requirements page.
Selecting a predefined work order job or task template.

The resource requirements are copied into the work order as part of each task.
Copying to another work order.

You can select specific resource requirements that you want to copy to another work order.

See Copying to a New Work Order.

Some work orders require a limited number of resources to perform the work and may not need any resource requirements defined or scheduled. In this case, you may want to use the Express Work Order component, which is designed for quick and easy work order creation.

Note. You cannot specify inventoried and purchase/on-hand resource requirements for an express work order.

Labor Requirements

When you click the Labor link in the work order's Requirement's page, a Labor Requirements group box displays with a grid containing these tabs:

Details.
Timetable.
Estimated Cost.

You can optionally set up labor requirements to determine the number of resources from a craft with specific qualifications that are needed to perform a work order task, as well as enter how long it will take to perform the task. When you enter the labor cost and billing rates, the system calculates the estimated labor costs for each labor resource requirement line in the task. In addition, the system calculates and tracks the total estimated labor costs for each work order and each work order task and displays them in the work order's Cost page and in the Work Order History, Summary page. When the tasks are scheduled and executed, the Cost page displays the total scheduled labor costs and later the actual labor costs for the work order and for each work order task, along with the variance between the estimated and actual costs.

See Using the Work Order History Inquiry.

Before you can define labor requirements for a task, you must set up crafts and optionally associate a qualification profile to a craft. When you select labor resource requirements in the Details grid for a work order task, you select the crafts needed to perform the work order task, the number of resources needed per craft, and the total number of hours it will take each of these resources to complete the task. In addition, when you select the craft, you can click the link to the Qualifications Profile associated with the craft and modify these qualifications so that they correspond more specifically to the work order task. You can also add or copy a qualification profile to associate with the selected craft. Later, if you copy these requirements to the schedule, the Resource Matching process can use these qualifications to match resources to the task.

The work order task's required start and end dates and times display as the default values in the Timetable grid. You can override this information as necessary for each labor resource that you specify for a work order task. Each labor requirement can have different requirement start and end dates and times than the work order task's required start and end dates and times. However, the start and end dates and times for each labor requirement must fall within the work order task's required start and end dates and times.

To calculate estimated cost, the default standard hourly bill rate and cost rate display in the Estimated Cost grid and are derived from either the work order business unit level or the shop level. You can enable specific users to override these default values in User Preferences, if desired. The system multiplies these rates times the number of resources and the total number of hours required to complete the task and calculates the estimated cost for each resource requirement. The total estimated labor costs for the entire work order and each task display in the work order's Cost page and the Work Order History, Summary page.

The default currency code used for all requirements and schedules is set up in the work order business unit. Even if the work order task transactions are processed by an application, such as Inventory, that uses a different currency code, the transaction amounts are converted back into the currency code identified in the work order business unit and displayed in Maintenance Management.

Inventory Requirements

Inventory parts requirements are determined based on Maintenance Management’s integration with Inventory. You can identify inventory parts requirements for a work order by:

Selecting a work order task template associated with the asset being repaired, which copies the inventory requirements defined in the template to a task.
Selecting the parts manually on the work order task’s Inventory Requirements grid.
Selecting inventory items from the Equipment Parts List (EPL).

Asset Management can optionally set up the EPL for an asset category. The EPL template can then be defined to an asset. When you identify the asset on the work order and inventory parts exist for the Inventory business unit that is identified in the work order business unit, the EPL button is enabled. Otherwise the EPL button is not available for selection in the work order. If the EPL is enabled, you select the inventory items needed for the task and they are copied to the Inventory Requirements grid for the task.

See Setting Up Equipment Parts Lists.

Inventory requirements are defined on three tabs, which include:

Details.
Default Settings.
Estimated Cost.

When you select the Details tab, you can select an item from the Inventory Item prompt list, or optionally select the Item ID expanded search icon that enables you to enter more search criteria. The Inventory Requirements and Scheduling pages are only used for Inventory item planning and scheduling. You enter the planned quantity, the unit of measure, and whether you need to provide delivery instructions. If you select the Delivery Flag check box, you can enter delivery instructions and indicate either that you plan to pick the item up, that you want it delivered to a specific location, or that you intend follow your organization's delivery policies. The item type indicates if the item can be obtained from Inventory or is a floor stock item that is maintained within the shop and not obtained from the Inventory warehouse. Floor stock items are not included in the overall estimated cost of Inventory Requirements as they have already been costed and accounted for by a purchase order unrelated to the work order.

Note. The items that are available on the Item ID prompt are specific to the Inventory business unit that is setup in the work order business unit definitions page.

When you select the Default Settings tab, the default values for the Inventory business unit and the GL business unit are derived from the work order business unit's Integration page. The default item setID is based on the setID associated with the Inventory business unit in the work order business unit's Integration page. This grid also displays the commitment status of the item, and a supplier reference. The supplier reference only displays if you copied the item from the EPL and the supplier reference was indicated in the EPL.

See Inventory Resource Scheduling.

Select the Estimated Cost tab, where the default value of the estimated unit cost is derived from the selected item setup. The planned quantity is multiplied by the unit cost to come up with the estimated cost for each item. The total estimated inventory costs for each task and the work order appear in the work order's Cost page and the Work Order History, Summary page.

See Reviewing the Work Order History Inquiry.

Purchased and On-Hand Resource Requirements

When you click the Purchase/On-hand link on the Requirements page, you can identify non-inventory items that are not stored and tracked by any Inventory business units. You can also enter open description lines that contain a description of the goods or services that you wish to procure for the work order. These items, along with selected tools and contracted labor and services are added to the Purchase/On-hand grid to enable users to create requisitions or purchase orders in the Schedules page of the work order. If you have to procure certain goods or services often, you can establish a non-inventory item ID for this type of procurement need and then select the item ID instead of using open descriptions to identify the item.

You can also identify on-hand items, which are goods and services that you have at your disposal, are not obtained from Inventory, and do not need to be procured. You identify them to indicate they are needed for successful completion of the work order. Lines marked as on-hand are for information purposes only an do not accumulate in the work order costs. An example of this type of item might be computer hard drives that were previously procured and needed to complete a work order. The hard drives were expensed previously but may be needed to complete the work order task. In this case, the organization does not need to rigorously track the drives in the Inventory application.

An EPL button appears for purchase/on-hand requirements based on whether asset identified in the work order task line has non-inventory parts or open description items defined in an equipment parts list.

Tool Resource Requirements

A tool is a piece of equipment that is specifically designated for use in the maintenance and repair of other assets. A tool is normally stored in Asset Management's asset repository and can be specified by asset type and subtype, manufacturer, and model. Access the Tool Requirements grid to enter:

Details.
Timetable.
Estimated Cost.

You select the Details tab, where you can specify the asset type, asset subtype, manufacturer, and model for each tool that you plan to use for a work order task. You must at a minimum specify the asset type and subtype. You identify the quantity needed and how long a specific tool is needed to complete the work order task. You enter the estimated usage to determine the costs. For example, you may only need a truck for two hours to haul equipment to complete a work order task. However, because the cost to rent the truck is 20.00 USD per day, you should enter an estimated usage of one day. When you enter the Estimated Cost grid, the cost (20.00 USD) is multiplied times the estimated usage (1 day) and the quantity needed to determine the estimated cost.

You select the Timetable grid, where the work order's required start and end dates and times display as the default values in the Timetable grid. You can override this information as necessary for each type of tool that you specify for a work order task. Each tool requirement can have different requirement start and end dates and times than the work order task's required start and end dates and times. However, the start and end dates and times for each tool requirement must fall within the work order task's required start and end dates and times.

You select the Estimated Cost tab, which contains the cost and billing rates for a specific tool. The default values for these rates that display are based on the selection of an asset subtype or the shop associated with the work order. The estimated usage is multiplied times the cost and bill rates and the quantity to determine the estimated cost and billing amount. The total estimated cost for tools used for a work order task is displayed in the work order's cost page and compared against the actual costs as these values are accumulated based on the execution of the work order and work order tasks.

You can copy the tool requirements to the Schedule by using the Copy from Requirement button on the schedule page. These requirements, like the labor requirements, can be analyzed by the Resource Matching engine to identify qualified and available tools.

Work Order Job and Task Template Usage

To reduce data-entry time, you can set up work order job and work order task templates, which define work order requirements and can apply to more than one work order. You can click the Job Template link in the Work Order page to copy a job template to the work order. A job template consists of one or more task templates set up in sequence. You set a work order task template based on selected asset characteristics and define the resource requirements needed to complete the task.

For example, you could set up a work order job template for a 3000 mile maintenance for asset type (Fleet) and asset subtype (Automobiles). The task templates that you add to the job template are:

Change engine oil.
Flush radiator.
Rotate tires.

Each task template consists of the typical resource requirements to perform the task. When you create a work order to perform a 3000 Mile Maintenance for your fleet of electric automobiles, you can select the 3000 Mile Maintenance job template and its associated work order tasks to copy into the work order. Each of the three tasks and their requirements specified in the template are copied into the work order. You can override the specified requirements, if necessary, as well as add additional tasks, work order job templates, and individual task templates to the work order. In addition, if you are scheduling the work order, you can also copy these requirements to the schedule.

You can select specific problem, cause, and resolution data to more specifically locate the template that best suits the work order. You do this by associating a particular task or job template with a predefined resolution code, and, if that resolution code is linked to a problem group, you can expedite the search for the most appropriate template to apply to the asset and problem and cause codes specified on the work order. When the template is copied to the work order, you can optionally choose to also copy the PCR lookup data to the individual task line or lines on the work order.

See Understanding Work Order Templates.

Defining Resource Requirements for a Work Order Task

To define work order task requirements use the Work Order (WM_WO) component.

This section discusses how to:

Define labor resource requirements for a work order task.
Modifying the labor qualifications profile.
Specify inventory resource requirements for a work order task.
Identify purchase and on-hand resource requirements for a work order task.
Define tool resources for a work order task.

Pages Used to Define Resource Requirements for a Work Order Task

Page Name	Object Name	Navigation	Usage
Requirements	WM_WO_TASK_RQMT	Maintenance Management, Work Order Management, Work Order, Requirements.	Set up a work order task and identify resource requirements.
Labor Qualifications	WM_TASKLBRQUAL_SEC	Click the Qualifications View link in the Labor Requirements - Details grid.	Review and modify the qualification profile set up for a craft specified as a requirement in a work order task.
Delivery Instructions	WM_WO_DELIVERY_SEC	Maintenance Management, Work Order Management, Work Order, Requirements, Inventory Requirements - Details grid. Click the Delivery Instructions link.	Enter the instructions for how and where you want an inventory item delivered in order to perform a work order task.
Equipment Parts List	WM_EPL_SELECT_SEC	Click the Equipment Parts List button above the Inventory Requirements grid on the Requirements page. Click the Equipment Parts List button above the Purchase/On-Hand Requirements grid on the Requirements page. Click the Equipment Parts List button above the Inventory Requirements grid on the Requirements page.	Select items or materials from the Equipment Parts List to use as resources in a work order task.
Work Order Supplemental Data	WM_TSK_SD_SEC	Click the Supplemental Data link in the Requirements page to display the Work Order Supplemental Data page.	Displays any supplemental data that has been set up for this work order task. See Establishing Supplemental Data.
Work Order Task Notes	WM_TSK_NOTES	Click the Notes link in the Requirements page to display the Work Order Task Notes page.	Add or review any notes related to this work order task. See Creating a Work Order.

Defining Labor Resource Requirements for a Work Order Task

Access the Labor Requirements in the Requirements page.

Labor Requirements - Details

Select the Details tab.

Craft	Add a row for each type of craft and select the craft required for this work order task.
Quantity	Enter the number of resources needed to perform this work order task for each craft.
Hours	Enter the total number of hours for each of the specified number of resources to perform this work order task.
Qualifications	Click the View/Addlink to review, add, and modify labor qualifications that are applicable to the selected craft for this work order task. Note. The link shows View by default, however, if a Craft is selected from the prompt list, the label shows Add. See Adding and Maintaining Qualification Profiles.

Labor Requirements - Timetable

Select the Timetable grid.

Required Start, Start Time, Required End, and End Time

Enter the start and end date and time values for each craft based on the duration entered in the Details grid. The default values that display in these fields for a new work order task are derived from the required start and end dates and times for the work order task. The values entered here cannot exceed the required start and end dates and times for the task.

Labor Requirements - Estimated Cost

Access the Labor Requirements - Estimated Cost grid.

Cost Rate and Billing Rate

View or modify the default rates. The default values are derived from the work order business unit or shop.

Billing Amount and Cost

Click the Save button for the system to calculate these amounts by multiplying the total number of hours for the task times the rates and the number (quantity) of craft resources required. This calculation is used to determine whether the labor requirements are necessary.

See Understanding Overall System Setup Parameters for Maintenance Management.

See Work Order Business Unit Defaults and Default Hierarchies.

Currency

View the default currency. The default value is derived from the currency specified in the work order business unit.

Modifying the Labor Qualifications Profile

Access the Labor Qualifications page.

The system automatically copies the qualification profile associated with a selected craft. You can add an modify the competencies and qualifications associated with this profile. You can also search for and copy another profile's attributes using the following options.

Qualification Profile	Select an existing qualification profile and the system automatically copies the craft's profile information into the Competencies, Licenses, Degrees, Memberships, and Languages grids by using the button. Modify this information as necessary. Note. You can also select another craft's profile to copy, even if the profile for the craft displays in the grid. The additional lines from the profile that you copy are added to the existing profile's lines in the grid.
Copy Profile	Click this button to copy the selected qualification profile's competencies and qualifications to the page. You can add to the attributes or modify them as necessary to apply to the work order task.
Competency	Click this link to add one or more competencies manually, including proficiency, importance, and years of work experience needed for this type of craft's worker to perform this work order task.
License	Click this link to add one or more licenses manually, including the accomplishment, country, state, and importance, needed for this type of craft's worker to perform this work order task.
Degree	Click this link and add one or more degrees, including the accomplishment, major code, and importance, needed for this type of craft's worker to perform this work order task.
Membership	Click this link to add one or more memberships manually, including the accomplishment and importance, needed for this type of craft's worker to perform this task.
Language	Click this link to add one or more languages manually, including the accomplishment, abilities to speak, read, and write the language, and importance, needed for this type of craft's worker to perform this task.

See Understanding Qualification and Employee Data in Maintenance Management.

Specifying Inventory Resource Requirements for a Work Order Task

Access the Inventory Requirements in the Requirements page.

Inventory Requirements - Details

Select the Details tab.

Item ID	Select an item from the Inventory business unit item table to use to perform this task. Default values appear in all of the fields in the grid, except for the Planned Quantityfield based on the selected item. Note. You can only select Inventory items in this grid. The items that can be selected are only items that are defined for the Inventory business unit that is defined for the Work Order business unit. See Inventory Setup Considerations.
Planned Quantity	Enter the quantity of the item needed, and optionally, override the default Unit of Measure value, if a different measure is applicable. The unit of measures definitions in the list are only those that were defined previously and are applicable for the specific item ID.
Delivery Flag	Select this check box if you want to add instructions for obtaining the item. Selecting this check box enables you to click the Delivery Instruction link to access the Delivery Instruction page.
Delivery Instructions	Enter delivery instructions for Inventory to know where and how you want to obtain the selected item for the work order task. You can enter that you plan to pick up the item, as well as have it delivered, depending on the needs of the particular work order task and the item.

Inventory Requirements - Default Settings

Select the Default Setting tab.

Commit

Displays one of the following values:

Committed

Indicates that the item in Inventory has been committed and Inventory is aware of the demand for this item by the work order.

Not Committed

Indicates that the item has not yet placed demand on Inventory. In most cases committing the item happens when the item is scheduled in the work order.

See Inventory Resource Scheduling.

Inventory Unit

Displays the inventory default business unit value, which is derived from the value entered in the work order business unit's Integration page.

GL Business Unit

Displays the GL business unit that is associated with the work order business unit.

Item SetID

Display the setID value that is associated with the Inventory business unit specified in the work order business unit's Integration page.

Supplier Reference

Supplier reference is only populated if the row was copied from an EPL in which the EPL row had a defined supplier, otherwise it is blank.

Inventory Requirements - Estimated Cost

Select the Estimated Cost tab.

Estimated Unit Cost

Save this page and the planned quantity is multiplied by the unit cost to arrive at the estimated cost.

Note. The unit cost and estimated cost for floor stock item types are calculated but the calculated amount is not rolled up to the overall estimated requirement cost of the work order.

Identifying Purchase and On-Hand Resource Requirements for a Work Order Task

Access the Purchase/on-hand Requirements in the Requirements page.

Purchase/On-Hand Requirements - Details

Select the Details tab.

Item ID and Description	Select a non-inventory item from the Item Master table. Non-inventory items are those that do not belong to any Inventory business units and are defined on the item master as non-inventory. You can also simply add an open description in the Description field for goods and services you need to procure. An item ID is not required.
Resource Type	Select whether the resource is: Labor An example of a labor resource is a contractor. Note. You can enable a contractor to enter work order time in the Technician Workbench. However, if a PO is used to procure contract labor for a work order and you have set up the contractor to enter the time, then you must not associate the invoiced costs based on the PO with the work order or the contractor's labor costs will be double-counted. However, if you create a PO for the contractor and want to associate the invoiced costs with the work order, then you should not allow the contractor to enter time in the Technician Workbench. Material An example of a material resource could be a specific part that is not maintained in Inventory. Also, you can specify open description items, which are materials that do not have an item ID. Tools You may have to purchase or rent a special tool to complete the work order.
Planned Quantity	Enter the quantity that you need to purchase or that you need to identify as on-hand.
On-hand	Select this check box if the selected item is on-hand. The cost of on-hand items are not tracked in Maintenance Management.

Purchase/On-Hand Requirements - Default Settings

Select the Default Settings tab.

GL Unit

Displays GL business unit value associated with the work order business unit.

Item SetID

Displays default value based on the work order business unit associated with the item table.

See Defining Items at the SetID Level.

Purchase/On-Hand Requirements - Estimated Cost

Select the Purchase/On-Hand Requirements - Estimated Cost tab.

Unit Cost

Enter a cost per unit, if the resource is not an item selected from the Item Master table. If this is an item selected from the Item Master Table, a default unit cost value appears, if a cost exists, based on the setup of the item. Costs for non-inventory items are derived from the Purchasing Attributes Standard cost in the Item setup component.

Estimated Cost

The system multiplies the planned quantity times the unit cost and displays the resulting value in this field.

Defining Tool Resource Requirements for a Work Order Task

Click the Tools link in the Requirements page.

Tool Requirements - Details

Select the Details tab.

Asset Type, Asset Subtype, Manufacturer, and Model

Select the asset characteristics that identify the type of tool that you want to use to perform this work order task.

Quantity

Enter how many of these tools are needed to perform this work order task.

Hours

Enter the total number of hours you need to use this tool to perform this work order task.

Estimated Usage

Enter the method that is used for calculating the usage of a tool. For example, a truck may be rented out on a per day basis. If a truck is rented for 1 day (estimated usage) at 20.00 USD/ day, the estimated cost would be 20.00 USD, even though it was only used for 2 hours.

UOM (unit of measure)

The default unit of measure value that determines the usage cost is derived from the shop's tools rate or the asset subtype definition. For example, per day or per week are valid units of measure. If there is a default unit of measure set up, then the unit of measure field is not available for selection. Otherwise, the unit of measure field is blank and available for entry.

Note. This behavior also applies to the Tools Schedule grid on the Schedules page of the work order.

See Understanding Work Order Task Resource Requirements.

Tool Requirements - Timetable

Access the Tool Requirements - Timetable grid.

Required Start, Start Time, Required End, and End Time

Enter the start and end dates and times for the usage of this tool. The default dates and times are based on the required dates for the work order task.

Tool Requirements - Estimated Cost

Select Estimated Cost tab.

Cost Rate and Billing Rate

These default rate values are derived from the rates specified in the shop's Tool Rates page and asset subtype page in the Asset Management. The rate specified at the asset subtype level can be overridden by a rate specified at the shop level.

Billing Amount and Cost

Click the Save button to calculate these amounts. The cost and bill rates are multiplied times the tool's estimated usage and the quantity to determine the cost and billing amount.

Important! You can review a summary of the estimated costs for all the task requirements on the work order's Cost page.

Commit	Displays one of the following values: Committed Indicates that the item in Inventory has been committed and Inventory is aware of the demand for this item by the work order. Not Committed Indicates that the item has not yet placed demand on Inventory. In most cases committing the item happens when the item is scheduled in the work order. See Inventory Resource Scheduling.
Inventory Unit	Displays the inventory default business unit value, which is derived from the value entered in the work order business unit's Integration page.
GL Business Unit	Displays the GL business unit that is associated with the work order business unit.
Item SetID	Display the setID value that is associated with the Inventory business unit specified in the work order business unit's Integration page.
Supplier Reference	Supplier reference is only populated if the row was copied from an EPL in which the EPL row had a defined supplier, otherwise it is blank.

Unit Cost	Enter a cost per unit, if the resource is not an item selected from the Item Master table. If this is an item selected from the Item Master Table, a default unit cost value appears, if a cost exists, based on the setup of the item. Costs for non-inventory items are derived from the Purchasing Attributes Standard cost in the Item setup component.
Estimated Cost	The system multiplies the planned quantity times the unit cost and displays the resulting value in this field.

Asset Type, Asset Subtype, Manufacturer, and Model	Select the asset characteristics that identify the type of tool that you want to use to perform this work order task.
Quantity	Enter how many of these tools are needed to perform this work order task.
Hours	Enter the total number of hours you need to use this tool to perform this work order task.
Estimated Usage	Enter the method that is used for calculating the usage of a tool. For example, a truck may be rented out on a per day basis. If a truck is rented for 1 day (estimated usage) at 20.00 USD/ day, the estimated cost would be 20.00 USD, even though it was only used for 2 hours.
UOM (unit of measure)	The default unit of measure value that determines the usage cost is derived from the shop's tools rate or the asset subtype definition. For example, per day or per week are valid units of measure. If there is a default unit of measure set up, then the unit of measure field is not available for selection. Otherwise, the unit of measure field is blank and available for entry. Note. This behavior also applies to the Tools Schedule grid on the Schedules page of the work order. See Understanding Work Order Task Resource Requirements.