Wos

Work Order System

EQUIPMENT

MATERIALS LABOR LABOR

Management Planning Systems

MPS Work Order System

© 2003, ACR Updated 1/1/2003 ACR Publications 1298 Elm St. SW Albany, OR 97321 541-928-6199 www.acrp.com [email protected]

Contents Description...................................................................................................................... 1 Installing the Work Order System ................................................................................ 2 Setup............................................................................................................................... 3 Support Files and Code Tables ...................................................................................... 5 Personnel Table...................................................................................................... 8 Crew Table ............................................................................................................. 8 Facility Table........................................................................................................ 10 Equipment Table.................................................................................................. 10 Meter Data........................................................................................................... 11 Contractors Table................................................................................................ 12 Materials Table .................................................................................................... 12 Kits ....................................................................................................................... 13 Other Cost Table.................................................................................................. 16 Customer Data............................................................................................................. 16 Code Tables................................................................................................................... 19 Activity Codes ...................................................................................................... 19 Priority Codes...................................................................................................... 19 Status Codes........................................................................................................ 20 Account Codes..................................................................................................... 20 Problem Codes..................................................................................................... 20 Develop a Work Order .................................................................................................. 21 Standard Functions............................................................................................ 21 New Work Order - Data Input ............................................................................ 23 Create a New Work Order - Example ................................................................. 24 Work Order Types......................................................................................................... 30 How to Setup a Customer Work Order....................................................................... 38 Reports.......................................................................................................................... 42 Blank WO Forms.......................................................................................................... 45 Working with the Data................................................................................................. 46 Viewing in a Different Format ............................................................................ 46 Change Work Order Type ................................................................................... 47 Finding Data........................................................................................................ 48 Sorting Data........................................................................................................ 51 Making Changes to Work Orders....................................................................... 54

How to Use the Work Order System Description Stand Alone System

This Work Order System is an integrated system containing information for work orders, equipment, facilities, personnel, materials, and customers. The system does not require nor is it in anyway dependent upon the Asset Management System or MPS Scheduler.

FileMaker Solution

This Work Order System is a shareware product produced using FileMaker Pro. Products developed with FileMaker Pro are called solutions.

Function

This solution was designed to provide a means of producing work orders and maintaining a history of the results. This solution provides the opportunity to utilize one or all of fifteen different work order formats. This work order system includes files for equipment, facilities, personnel, crews, materials, and customers. In addition, considerable customizing is built into the solution.

Copyright

The Work Order System was developed by Management Planning Systems of Eugene, Oregon, who own the rights to the system. The files may be copied and used for up to 30 days on a trial basis demo to determine if you would like to purchase this system. However, the system may not be routinely used without the written permission of Management Planning Systems. The system is distributed and used in accord with the standard MPS Software License as shareware for $39.95. Management Planning Systems PO Box 1968 Eugene, OR 97440 541-484-1004 [email protected]

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Installing the Work Order System Be Familiar with FileMaker

To be effective with the use of this data base the user should be familiar with functions of FileMaker Pro.

Install

The program is installed following the install procedure found in the How to Install.pdf document on the CD.

Files and Folders

The install places a folder on the computer titled mps. Inside this folder are four additional folders. The data files are placed inside of the data folder. A copy of this manual is placed in the Documentation folder.

Start the Program

The work order program may be opened from the Start Menu. Go to MPS Shareware, select MPS Shareware and then chose Work Orders. The MPS Shareware menu will appear. Once the MPS Menu is on the screen, select Work Orders and the screen below will appear.

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Setup Select Work Order Type

After opening the file go to the Setup screen. Notice that there are 15 types of work order forms: Work Request, Repair Order, Service Installation, PM Work Order, Estimates, Actuals, Service Order, Construction, Automotive, Spa Service, Irrigation, Pumps, Water Conditioners, Backflow, and Customer Trouble Calls. Identify which work order(s) you want to use by clicking on Yes or No under the activates column. Up to nine work orders can appear on the main menu.

Preview Work Order

A work order form can be viewed by clicking on the Preview button on the right.

Set Number Prefix

After deciding which work orders are to be used, set the Prefix, Fill, Length of the next number and select the type of year, if any, to be included in the number. An example of the number appears under the Sample Work Order Number column.

Installation Fee

In the lower right corner of the screen is a field for the base fee collected for new service installations. This fee is used in the New Installation report to calculate profit or loss from new installations. This field is for those organizations that charge a base fee rather than actual time and materials.

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Changing Title

If you want the title of the work order changed, for example some utilities identify the Service Order as a Trouble Call, simply click on the button and type in the new name.

Company Name

Type in the Company Name and Division. They will appear on the top of the work orders, input screens, and reports.

Screen #2

Setup screen on page 2 allows formatting of the work order reports. The top portion of the screen allows the selection of the status for the work orders which are to be included in the report. The bottom portion of the screen allows the selection of fields to appear in the report. Select the status codes and report fields by clicking on the radio button or check box.

Change Report Names

The names of these three reports can be changed by typing a new name into the appropriate box. The new name will appear on the appropriate button in the report menu and on the top of the report.

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Support Files and Code Tables After initial setup the next step is the input of data into the tables. Click on the “Tables” button at the bottom right of the Work Order Main Men. Fourteen Tables

There are fifteen tables. With exception of the kits, crews and equipment tables, all tables can be filled in any order. The kits table should be filled after the materials table is completed. The equipment table should be filled after the facilities table has been completed. The crew table should be filled in after the personnel table has been completed.

Table Layout

The layout of all of the tables is nearly identical, except for meters, Personnel, Crews, Contractors, Materials, Kits, Activity Codes, and customers. The row of buttons just under the title bar (Return, New Record, etc.) perform the functions described. The next row of buttons, when clicked sort the column. Not all columns are “sortable”. For example in the personnel table only name and rate can be sorted.

Print Tables

Each table contains a print button. Clicking on this button will print the contents of the information showing on the screen. The print layout is similar to the screen layout. When print is selected a print screen will appear. To the left of the print screen is a “Continue” button. Clicking on this button will bring up the print menu. Select print to print the data as seen on the screen, or cancel to return to the table.

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Spell Check Information

The data input into any of the tables or work orders can be spell checked using the built-in spell checker. Select Spelling from the Edit menu. Then either select check record or check all.

Once selected a second spell checking dialog box will appear allowing the option of skipping the word, checking the word, or replacing the word. The learn button will only work after you establish a user defined dictionary.

User Dictionary

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A user defined dictionary can be developed by selecting Spelling from the Edit menu and then selecting Select Dictionaries. A new dialog box will appear. Select New, set the location of the dictionary and give it a name. You can now enter special words in the dictionary.

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Personnel Table Type in the persons name and billing rate in the personnel table shown below. If the work order is used to track internal costs be sure to include all payroll costs (salary and benefits). The five sets of radio buttons to the right are used to select which pop-up menus this person will appear on. When general is selected this person's name will appear on the labor pop-up menu in all work orders.

Crew Table

New Crew

To develop a crew click on the new record button and a blank crew record will appear. Give the crew a name and select a crew leader from the pop-up menu of personnel.

Assign Crew Members

Assign crew members by clicking in the crew member column. A pop-up menu of the personnel will appear. Select the individual and their rate will automatically be entered into the rate field.

Place on Pop up Menu

When the Assigned To, Yes button is selected this crew will appear in the assigned to pop-up menu. The selection allows you to add or remove crews from the

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pop-up menu without removing them from the database. Sorting

This table can be sorted by Crew ID and by Crew Leader.

Deleting A Crew

To delete a crew, place the cursor in the crew name field. Note that a black line will appear along the left side of the screen. This indicates the record has been selected.

Now click on the Delete button in the menu bar. A new dialog box will appear asking if you want to Permanently delete this ENTIRE record? Select either Delete or Cancel.

Deleting or Changing Personnel

To change a crew member, delete the old member and then add a new member from the pop-up list. To delete a crew member, place the cursor in the small space to the right of the rate field and click. This will turn the record black, indicating it has been selected.

Select Delete from the Menu Bar. A new dialog box will appear asking if you want to Permanently delete this one related record? Select either Delete or Cancel. Deleting a crew member does not remove the record from the personnel table. It only deletes the association of the person with this crew.

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Facility Table Description

The facility table is a simple two column table containing the facility ID and description. For the purposes of this work order system, a facility is defined as any type of area or physical structure. For example a facility could be a plant, business, type of asset (rolling stock, portable pumps, etc.), lift station, and so on.

Equipment Table Description

The equipment table contains the equipment ID and equipment description. In addition, if a piece of equipment is related to or part of a facility, this relationship can be established by clicking in the Facility field and the pop-up list of facilities from the facility table will appear.

Select Facility

Select the appropriate facility and the facility ID and description will be automatically filled in.

Remaining Fields

The Rate field is used to indicate the charge rate when this piece of equipment is used on a job, such as a backhoe or dump truck. The “Work On” and “Work With” fields are used to select which pop-up menus the equipment will appear on. When the “Work With” is selected as “Yes,” this equipment will appear in the Equipment Use pop-up menu.

Without Facility

Equipment may be entered into this table without selecting an associated facility. For example you may want to place a backhoe into the equipment field but it is not part of a facility.

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Meter Data Description

Meter data entry is accomplished by first selecting “Meters” from the Work Order Tables Menu and then selecting “New Record”. When “New Record” is selected a blank record will appear with an identical number in the Service ID and Number fields. These are default numbers and can be changed to reflect actual conditions.

Select Meter Type

Next, place the cursor in the Class field and select either the Water or Electric meter form the pop-up menu.

Go to Meter Layout

Then click on the small green icon to the left and the meter data screen will appear.

Service & Meter Numbers

In this screen or on the list view the customer service number and the true meter ID number can be entered. The program design assumed the service number to represent the physical location of the meter not the customer account. In addition, the design assumed the

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meter number was the serial number of the meter. The meter data card is referenced to the customer with the service number not the meter number. This allows the exchange of meters without making major changes to the program data. Equipment List

When entering work order data, the meters will appear in the pop-up equipment list. This allows the selection of a specific meter in a work order.

Contractors Table Description

Contractors are often a vital part of an organization. This Table allows you to enter basic contractor information to be used in making estimates or tracking actual cost. The table can be sorted by contractor name, contact, and phone.

Materials Table Description

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The materials table is used to store information on consumable materials associated with assets or used in the work orders. The “On WO pop-up” column located on the far right allows the user to add or remove materials from the work order pop-up material lists. This table file can be sorted by part number, description, or price.

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Kits Unique Feature

One of the many unique features of this work order system is the ability to develop kits of repair materials. To develop a kit, enter the kit ID and description. Then click on the detail button at the right of the screen.

Details

When the detail button is selected the following screen will appear.

Optional Fields

The Notes, Date Released, and Date issued for Construction are optional fields and are designed for situations where the kits become construction specifications.

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Drawings

Drawings can be entered into the Picture field using the import function under the File menu. Click in the picture field to select it before clicking on the file menu and then clicking on “Import/Export” followed by “Import Picture.”

Drawing Formats

Drawing formats that can be imported include, PCT (PICT), BMP, GIF, EPS, CGM, PCX, WMF, DRW, PLT, MAC (MacPaint), PIC (Lotus Picture), SLD (AutoCAD Slide) and TIFF.

Enter Materials

The kit parts are selected from the materials file using a pop-up menu. Click in the Part Number field and the pop-up menu will appear. Select the part, the part number, description, and price fields will be filled in automatically. The Item ID refers to the item in the drawing, enter quantity and the cost is automatically calculated.

Labor and Equipment Cost

The labor and equipment costs are estimates for making a new installation using this kit.

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Print Kit

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The print button on the kit screen produces another screen showing an 8.5 X 11 inch page of the contents of the kit, including the drawing, ID number, and description.

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Other Cost Table Descriptions

The other cost table is used to maintain a file of additional costs that do not fit into the personnel, equipment, contractor, or materials tables. This may include shipping, phone charges, and purchase of materials not in the materials file. Click the ID code field to sort the table by code.

Customer Data Description

The customer screen contains detailed information about the customer and the owner of the property or building and thus the owner of the service connection. There are three different customer screens, utility, business, and tribal. Management Planning can assist you in selecting the correct screen.

Customer Screen Access

The customer screen can be accessed from the tables menu or by clicking on the Customer button at the bottom of the main menu.

Form View

There are two views of the customer data, form view and list view. The screen shown below is in the form view and provides access to all of the customer data. Selecting the List button from the menu will bring up the list view.

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List View

Below is an example of the list view. This is a good screen to use to view a group of customers. The Equipment count field to the right is automatically filled in for the business customer screen. Clicking on the small green icon on the far left brings up the form view of that record. In addition, placing the cursor into one of the fields and then clicking on the Return button in the menu bar will do the same thing.

Two Key Numbers

There are two key numbers used in the screen, the Account ID number - found in the upper left corner of the Customer Information section, and the Service number located in the upper right corner of the Owner Information section. The account number is obtained from the customer billing system. The service number is assigned to the service connection.

Account No. and Service No.

It is assumed the Account Number references a customer and the Service No. references a location. When a customer moves they keep their account number and obtain a new service number. This allows a history to be developed for the customer and for the meter location. Clicking on the buttons in the middle of the screen selects the appropriate work orders for viewing in the list at the bottom of the screen.

Viewing Existing Work Orders

Clicking on the Detail button to the right of the work order will take you to the work order screen showing all available detail.

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New Customer Work Orders

New service installation work orders can be created from the main menu or from the customer screen. If in the Customer Data screen, the “New WO” button located to the right of the meter is selected the new service installation work order will appear with all of the customer data in place. This method should only be used when developing work orders associated with the meter or the service connection.

New Work Orders

When in any of the work orders that show customer information, (Repair Order, Service Installation, Trouble Call, Customer TC, Spa, Irrigation, Pumps, Water Cond., and Backflow), the customer data can be selected either from the account or from the service number. When placing the cursor in either field a pop-up menu will appear providing a list of the appropriate data.

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Code Tables Activity Codes Description

The activity codes are used in the PM, Automotive, Construction, Pumps, Irrigation, and Spa work orders. Routine maintenance activities are developed in order to standardize work and speed the production of PM work orders. Activities can only be sorted by the activity ID code field.

Priority Codes Description

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The priority codes table allows the user to customize priorities used to schedule work orders. The information typed into this table will be observed in a pop-up menu in the work order. Priority codes are sorted by code ID only.

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Status Codes Description

The status codes are used to identify the status of the work order. In addition, these same codes are used to select which work orders appear in the backlog, scheduled, and completed reports. Eight status codes are provided as a default. These can be changed, reduced or new codes added. Status codes in this table will appear in a pop-up menu in the work order. Status codes can be sorted by Code ID.

Account Codes Description

Account codes provide a means of classifying cost. These codes can be typed directly into the table or imported from a text or Excel file. The account codes in this table will appear in a pop-up menu in the work order. Account codes can be sorted by code ID and/or description.

Problem Codes Description

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Problem codes are used to classify work by type of problems. Problem codes typed into this table will appear in a pop-up menu in the work order. This table can be sorted by code.

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Develop a Work Order Standard Functions New Work Orders

To develop a new work order or view an existing work order, select the type of work order you want from the main menu. When a work order type has been selected it will open to the last work order produced of that type.

Navigation Buttons

Along the right hand side of each work order is a column of buttons. The top row of buttons moves you back and the second row of buttons moves forward through the work order records. The button on the top right takes you to the first WO of this type. The button on the second row at the right takes you to the record. The center two buttons move forward and back in 10 work order steps. The two buttons on the left move forward and back one work order at a time.

Record Information

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The text at the top right of the screen provides information on the number of records found, which record is being viewed, the date the record was entered and the last date it was changed.

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Remainder of the Buttons

There are ten remaining buttons that provide the following actions: • Return - Returns to the Work Order main menu. • Print Kit Desc. - This is a toggle switch to turn on and off the printing of the kit description - specifications page. • Print Parts List - This toggle switch turns on and off the printing of the complete parts list. • Print - Clicking on this button sends the work order directly to the printer. No intermediate screen will appear. • New - This allows you to create a new work order with a new WO number. • Change To - This allows you to change this work order to any of the other work order types. • View As - This allows you to view the work order in any one of the selected work order layouts. • Sort - The sort button provides eight different sorts plus a cancel sort option. • Find - The find button allows the use of all of the standard FileMaker Pro find functions. These are explained in the Using the Data section of this manual. • Help - The help button does not provide any functions at this time.

Field Limitation

As you view the various work orders notice the number of viewable entries in the labor, materials, equipment, and contractor fields is limited. The limitation is only what is viewed on the first page of the printed work order. All additional labor, materials, equipment, and contractor cost will be printed on additional pages.

Scroll Bar

As the viewable area is filled, the scroll bar to the right of the entry will become highlighted showing a navigation box. The data below the viewable area can be seen by either clicking on the bottom arrow or moving the navigation box to the bottom of the scroll bar.

When the last piece of data in the viewable area is input, a new blank data entry line will appear at the bottom on the window.

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New Work Order - Data Input New Work Order Button

To generate a new Work Order, go to the work order type you want and click on the New button. The buttons will change giving you an opportunity to select any of the work orders (a maximum of nine) you have identified during the setup procedure.

Select Type

Select the work order type you want and a screen will appear with the next work order number displayed in the upper right corner of the work order form. The work order is now ready for data input.

Place the Cursor

Place the cursor in the “Requested by” field and start entering the required data. Many of the fields contain pop-up menus. These menus reflect the data that was input in the codes and tables.

Pop-up Menus

The following fields contain pop-up menus: • Requested By - the menu reflects the individuals selected by a “Yes” in the Requested by field in the personnel table. • Equipment (worked on) - the menu reflects the equipment placed in the equipment table. • Problem - the menu reflects the problem codes and problem descriptions from the Problem Code table. • Account # - the menu reflects the accounts from the account table. • Facility ID - the facility menu reflects the data from the facility table. • Priority - the priority menu reflects the priority codes. • Status - the status menu reflects the status codes.

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• Assigned To - the menu reflects the individuals and crews with a “Yes” in the “Assigned to” selection in the personnel or crew table. • Customer - the customer menu reflects the customers listed in the customer database. • Crew - the crew menu reflects the crews listed in the crew table. • Labor - the labor reflects the individuals with a “Yes” in the General selection field in the personnel table. • Equipment (worked on) - the equipment menu reflects only the equipment that was marked a “Work With” in the equipment table. • Materials - the materials menu reflects the material listed in the materials table.

Create a New Work Order

- Example

Work Request Selected

The work request form is used for this example. This form is designed to be used when the job is large enough to require an estimate prior to work. The form allows the user to compare the estimate for labor, materials, and equipment with the actual labor, materials, and equipment.

New Work Order

Select New from the menu to the right of the work order form.

The button names will change reflecting the types of work orders selected in the setup. Notice you can select any one of the work order types that were designated in the setup. Select Work Request. While all work order types can be selected, only nine (9) will appear on this set of buttons. If a type other than the work request is selected the screen will automatically change to the type selected.

A blank work request form will appear with a new work request number in the upper right corner of the form. Requested By

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Place the cursor in the “Requested by” field and the personnel list will appear. Select the individual from the list and press enter. If the individual is not on the list you can either go back to the personnel table and enter the person, click “Yes” on “Requested by” for a person in the personnel table or clear the pop-up menu by clicking again the “requested by” field and typing in the name of the person who requested the work. (Typing the person’s name into the work request will not place the person on the pop-up menu or into the personnel table.)

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Tab Order

After selecting the “requested by” person, the cursor will move to the equipment field. The cursor may be placed in any field using the mouse or move from field to field by pressing tab. (Shift Tab will back the cursor up to the previous field.) The tab order set in the work orders is from the top down starting with the requested by field. Then through the estimated fields and finally the actual fields.

Moving through the Pop-up Menu

To move down a pop-up menu, either use the box and/or arrows to the right or type the first letter of the desired item. For example the typing the letter “C” will move the cursor down the list to the first item that begins with the letter “C.”

Clearing the Pop-up

In any field, the pop-up menu may be cleared by double clicking in the field. This will allow you to type any item in the field you wish.

Equipment Pop-up

With the cursor in the equipment filed, select the desired equipment from the list and press enter.

Typing the Equipment Number

The equipment may also be selected by clearing the popup menu and typing the equipment number directly into the equipment field. If the equipment is in the equipment table, the equipment name, facility number, and facility name will automatically be entered in the proper fields.

Selecting a Facility

The facility field will be entered automatically as a result of selecting the equipment. However, there are times when you may wish to select a facility rather than the equipment in the facility. To do this, just place the cursor in the facility field and select the facility from the pop-up menu or type in the facility number and the facility name will appear. Once selected the cursor will

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move to the problem code field. You are not required to enter an equipment item. Problem

If typical problems have been entered into the problem codes table they can be selected from the pop-up menu.

Edit Problem Description

Once selected, the problem code will appear in the small box just under the word problem and the description will appear to the right. The description can be expanded by placing the cursor into the description box. (This edit does not change the description found in the problem code table.)

Dates, Priority , Status, etc.

The requested completion date, priority, status, assigned to, and account numbers are entered next. The assigned to field has a pop-up menu of the personnel table and the account number field has a pop-up of the account code table. Notes are used to supply any additional information that may be useful to the crew.

Scheduled Data

The scheduled start, scheduled completion, and actual completion dates are entered at the appropriate time. When the work is scheduled, the status should be changed from Requested to Scheduled.

Account Numbers

The account Number pop-up list contains the account number and account name or description. However, only the account number will be entered into the work order.

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Crews

The labor information can be input using one of three methods. 1.

Select the crew by placing the cursor in the crew field and then selecting the desired crew. This selection will only place the crew name in the field and will not place the crew members in the labor fields.

To place the crews and their rates into the labor fields click on “Get Crew Member.”

Then type in the estimated (or actual) hours and the total labor cost will be calculated.

2.

The individual crew members may be selected by placing the cursor into the labor field and selecting from the pop-up menu.

3.

The labor field may be cleared of the pop-up menu by double clicking. The name of any individual or crew can then be typed into the field. After the crew personnel are entered into the labor fields the hours can be entered for each person and the program will automatically calculate the cost for each

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individual as well as provide a total estimated and actual labor cost. Materials

Materials can be entered using the pop-up menu, which will display the materials with a “Yes” checked for “On WO Pop-up” in the materials table. Materials not on the list may be entered directly into the work order. However, this will not place them into the materials table.

After selection, the quantity can be entered and the program will automatically calculate the cost and provide a total for the estimated and actual materials.

Equipment

Equipment can be entered using the pop-up menu, which will display the equipment with a “Yes” selected for “Work With” in the equipment table.

Select the equipment using the same technique used for labor and materials.

If the equipment you wish to enter is not on the list you can either go back to the equipment table and add the equipment or clear the pop-up menu and type in the equipment. (This will not place the equipment into the equipment table.) The number of hours the equipment is to be used can now be entered and the program will

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calculate the equipment use cost as well as a total of the estimated and actual equipment cost. Totals

The total estimated and actual cost are automatically calculated and placed at the bottom of the work order.

Approval and Completion

The field for “approved by” contains a pop-up menu of those individuals with a “Yes” selected in the “Approved By” column in the personnel table. The completed by field contains a pop-up menu of those individuals with a “Yes” selected in the “Completed By” column in the personnel table. Dates for the approval and completion must be entered manually.

Print the Work Request

The Work Request can be printed by selecting “Print” from the menu bar column at the right of the screen.

When this button is selected the work request will print automatically.

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Work Order Types There are 15 different work order types. Most are designed for general utility work. Five: Spa, Irrigation, Pumps, Water Conditioners, and Backflow, were designed for a service company providing contract service on this type of equipment. Below are examples from 15 work orders with a brief description for each. Work Request

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The work request was designed for jobs large enough to require an estimate prior to performing the work. The work request does not provide fields for a description of the solution, customer information, or contractor cost.

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Repair Order

The repair order was designed to be used when no estimate of cost is required. The repair order also contains customer information fields.

Service Installation

The service installation is very similar to the Work Request except it contains customer information. In addition, the New Installation report uses information only from this form.

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PM Work Order

The PM work order is designed to work with the activity table and the events defined in the MPS Scheduler program.

Estimates

The estimate work order was designed to obtain estimated cost. It includes fields for a description of the solution and contractor cost. An estimate can be converted to a work request.

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Actuals

The actual work order is the companion to the estimate.

Trouble Call

The trouble call work order was designed to catalog customer trouble call information. The trouble call does not provide a field for cost.

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Construction

The construction work order provides fields for estimates and actual cost. This is the only work order that provides contractor cost fields.

Automotive

The automotive work order provides additional fields for entering materials. In addition, this work order utilizes the customer and activity tables.

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Spa, Irrigation, etc.

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The spa service, irrigation, pumps, water conditioner, and backflow work orders were designed for a service company and all contain detailed equipment data as well as customer information.

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Customer TC

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The customer TC or trouble call was designed to provide cost information related to problems identified by a customer and thus contains customer data. The fields are similar to the Repair Order and thus allow calculation of cost.

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How to Setup a Customer Work Order

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1.

Start by making a meter card – either electric or water. This is accomplished by going to the Tables menu and selecting meters

2.

Select “New Record” and a new record will appear with a number inserted in the Service ID and Number fields. This is the same number. You can change these numbers to anything you want just as long as there are numbers or text in both fields.

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3.

From the “Class” field select a water or power meter.

5.

If a power and water meter are both to be installed at the same service location, just make two records, select the electric meter for one and the water meter for the second and change the service ID number so it is the same for both records.

Write down this number as you will need it later. 6.

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If there is additional information on the power or water meter. Click on the green icon to the left and the appropriate card will appear. Fill in the available data.

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7.

Go to the customer screen and select “New Record”. A blank screen will appear with a number in the “Account number” field. This field can be changed to any name or number.

8.

Place the customers name in the “Occupant/Customer” field. This field must have at least one word or number in it or the record will be lost.

9.

Fill in the service #. When finished the meter information will appear in the meter fields in the middle of the screen.

10.

The last step is the development of the work order. Click on the “New WO” button to the right and the service work order will appear with the customer information in the appropriate fields.

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If a customer billing and information system is being utilized, new service applications usually are initiated through this system. If so a number such as a customer service order or service order will be issued. The new service work order has a field (Service Order # to allow the input of this number. This provides a means of tracking and tying the two systems together. If this number is part of the process, then fill in the Service Order # in the upper left along with any other appropriate data.

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Reports Selecting

The Work Order Reports menu can be selected from the main menu. When selected the screen below will appear.

Nine Selections

Nine reports can be automatically run by clicking on the appropriate button. The List Equipment and List Customer reports allow you to select and print in a list format. The list reports can be used to select a specific set of records for other reporting. In addition, when these reports are selected only the records found by the action completed prior to coming to this screen are viewed.

Backlog, Scheduled, Completed

Reports for backlog, completed work, and scheduled work are obtained by selecting the identified status codes. The status codes used to develop each report are identified in the Setup menu. The contents of each of these reports can also be customized by using the find function when viewing the report.

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Field Names Go Blank in Find

When performing a find in the Backlog, Scheduled, or Completed reports the titles of most of the columns will go blank. The fields are still active. The titles just go blank. This is a FileMaker problem. While this does make it difficult to identify which field is which, it does not interfere with the find process.

Current Found Set

The Cost by Account, Work History, Work Status, and Work by Problem reports can be altered by adding or removing fields from the report using the radio buttons shown below the report. The contents of these reports is determined by using the find functions in the List, Backlog Report, Completed Work, and Scheduled Work reports.

All records Selected

All other reports select the entire contents of the data file. To develop a report that includes specific data, use the find function by selecting Find from the menu bar.

Develop Understanding

To develop an understanding of the various reports and work order formats, we suggest you enter data and experiment.

Samples

Here are some samples of typical reports.

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Blank WO Forms To print any of the work order, work request, trouble call, etc. forms; select “Print” from the File menu. When the print dialog box appears, select Blank Record, “Showing Fields”. Click on Continue and the form will be printed.

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Working with the Data There are four common actions utilized in working with existing work order data: • Viewing a work order as a different type • Changing the work order type • Finding data • Sorting data

Viewing in a Different Format There are times it may be desirable to change a work order from one type to another. For example a repair order may have been issued but, after viewing the job, a decision is made to obtain estimates before performing the work. Because there are 14 other work order types to chose from, it may be desirable to view the data in another format before actually making the change. This can be accomplished by selecting “View As” from the menu bar to the right of the work order.

When selected, the menu bar will change to show all of the work order styles selected in the setup menu. (In the example below only five work orders have been selected in the Setup menu.)

Select the desired type and the data will appear as that type. Special Note: The original work order number is not changed, even though you are viewing the data in a different format. This preserves the identity of the work order which was assigned when the work order was created.

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Change Work Order Type To change a work order from one type to another, select the “Change To” button and the menu bar will change to show all of the selected work order types.

From this new set of buttons select the work order type you wish to change to. The data will be transferred to the new type but the work order number will not be changed.

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Finding Data From the Work Order A find button is included in the work order menu to the right of each work order.

When this button is selected, the menu bar changes to give three options, Cancel Find, Also Find, and Find All.

In addition the status bar along the left side of the work order is opened.

Perform a Find

To perform a find, type the information you want to find into the field that contains the information and then press Continue, Return, or Enter. Notice all of the pop-up menus are available to assist in the find.

Words or Letters

It is not necessary to type in all of the information. For example, if you wanted to find a name starting with a “C” you would only need to type “C” and the program will find all of the work orders that were assigned to a crew with a name that started with a “C.”

Multiple Fields

To clarify a find, type information into as many of the fields as is necessary to clarify the find. For example you can select the name of a crew, requested completion date, and equipment ID or name.

Multiple Finds

There are times when you may want to find items with more than one value in the same field. For example, you may want to find work orders performed by two different crews. To do this select the first crew. Then press “Also Find” and select the second crew. Then press the Continue button, or press the return, or enter keys. Notice the request number in the upper left changed from “1” to “2” and the top of the book has changed to

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indicate more than one page. The previous request can be viewed by clicking on the upper portion of the book. This allows you to go back and forth through the various requests to determine if they are correct before you press Continue. Status Bar

The status bar located to the left of the screen, can be displayed at any time by selecting the status bar icon located at the bottom left of the screen.

Omit Data

To omit work orders with specific information from a find, click in the Omit box, located in the status area to the left of the screen, after setting up the find. The result will be all of the work orders that do not match the omit criteria. To view the omitted use “Find Omitted” from the Select menu at the top of the screen.

Find Symbols

Once the find function has been selected, the status bar will open. Clicking on the small arrow next to the word “Symbols” will bring up an additional dialog box providing various symbols used to clarify finds.

Two Most Common Symbols

Two of the most commonly used symbols are the Range (...) and Exact Match (=).

Range

The range symbol can be used to select a set of work orders performed between any two dates. Type in the first date followed by three periods (...) or select that symbol from the status area at the left of the screen and then type the second date; then, press the continue button, return or enter keys.

Exact Match

The exact match symbol is useful for finding work orders where a specific field is blank. To find work orders with no information in a specific field, type a “=” into a field or select “=” from the symbol menu. Then press the continue button, return or enter keys.

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From the Reports Which Reports

The list by equipment, list by customer, backlog, completed and scheduled reports all contain two find buttons located at the top of the screen.

Selecting the Find button will open the status bar allowing the use of the symbols and omit functions as described above. Multiple Finds

To perform multiple finds press “Control N” for New Find. Notice a second row appears in the list. The first find is shown on the first row and the second find in the second row. Below is an example where the user is finding all work orders charged to two different accounts.

Find All

When the “Find All” button is selected, all of the work orders will be displayed. They can be sorted using the sort buttons located at the top of the page.

From the Menus The find function can be invoked from the Mode menu, from the keyboard by typing “Control F”, or from the Mode Pop-up menu located at the bottom left of the screen.

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Sorting Data From the Work Orders Sort Button

Several predefined sorts sequences are available when viewing a work order. To sort, start by selecting the sort button from the menu to the right of the work order.

Select the Sort

When the sort button is selected, the buttons change to a new set showing eight different sorts. Select one of the sorts by clicking on the appropriate button.

From the Reports The title bars at the top of each report are buttons that provide sorting by the name on the title bar. Below is an example of the buttons from the Equipment List report.

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Advanced Sorts The sort function can be obtained from the keyboard by typing “Control S” or selecting “sort” from the Mode menu. This procedure should only be used by those who have knowledge of FileMaker Pro.

Dialog Box

When the sort command is invoked, a dialog box will appear allowing you to select fields and the order of fields for a sort.

Select Fields

Select the field from the list on the left and then either double click or click “Move” to move the field to the right.

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Rearrange Fields

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Once the fields have been moved to the right, they can be rearranged. Place the cursor on the double arrow to the left of the field and the cursor changes to two lines with arrows. When this occurs click, hold, and drag the field to the new position. When completed click the “Sort” button.

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Making Changes to Work Orders Changing Data

Making changes to most of the fields within a work order can be accomplished by placing the cursor into the field, backspacing the old data out and typing in the new data. In addition, the data in most of the pop-up fields can be changed by placing the cursor in the field and selecting the new data from the pop-up list. The exceptions to this process are the following fields with pop-up fields: • The material name and number fields

• Labor names field

• Equipment number filed

The quantity field can be changed at any time using the standard backspace and retype method. To change the data that would appear in the pop-up list, the old data should be deleted and then the new data selected from the pop-up list. To Delete Old Data

To delete old data, place the cursor to the far right of the field and click. The field will turn black when the cursor has been placed in the correct location.

Press the delete key from the keyboard. A dialog box will appear asking if you want to Permanently delete this one related record.? Either delete or cancel to return to the work order

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