Problem Reporting
Problem Reporting is an optional step in the work order process. It is typically used by productions personnel to report a problem, and is then routed to maintenance to review and plan or approve. In GP MaTe, Problem Reports can also be generated automatically or on demand when users are performing PM procedures and note a problem, or when calibrations or inspections find out of tolerance situations.
The Operator Tour Module (TourMate) will also generate Problem Reports when out of limit conditions are noted by the operator making the tour.
Problem Reports automatically route to the designated reviewer for the equipment or process area.
Work Order Planning
Work Order Planning is a central function used by maintenance supervisors or planners to review Problem Reports or initiate work orders. This function pulls together a wide range of capabilities to support this planning process including:
- Review of equipment history
- Modeling of work based upon earlier work orders
- Creation of multiple tasks for different crafts or contractors
- Reservation of spare parts from MPLs or the searching of inventory
- Generation of Purchase Requisitions for non-stock or contractor services purchases
- Scheduling and Assignment of work tasks
- Approval and/or approval routing
Preventive Maintenance Definitions
Recurring maintenance activities are supported through the setup of Preventive Maintenance Definitions. These definitions provide the same functionality as available for the above mentioned Work Order Planning, but include scheduling parameters.
GP MaTe supports three types of scheduling:
- Time Interval – number of days between performance, with this interval based upon the date of last performance or upon a fixed period independent of the last performance
- Meter Reading – some interval based upon a usage meter typically associated with the equipment, but can be derived from process control systems
- Fixed Date Schedule – a schedule based upon a fixed date, usually used for seasonal work
Users can also define a schedule tolerance as a percentage of the interval. This permits some degree of flexibility on the schedule so maintenance can fold the tasks into their schedule without them being overdue the day after being scheduled.
Portable Device Support
GP MaTe includes support for a wide range of portable devices in several configurations that can be used to document work performed remotely. These functions support the lookup of work order tasks, accepting spare part issues and time card entry, as well as feedback on work performed.
Portable devices can be configured in three communications schemes:
- Batch – device is attached to a work station and loaded with tasks for completion
- Wireless – wifi connectivity is used to communicate with device, with support for out of network remote services
- Mobile (Telco) – internet connectivity via telco communications
Spare Part Usage and Time Reporting
There are several approaches for accurately capturing spare parts usage with an EAMS system. To some extent, the approach will depend upon if you have a closed or open storeroom. In a closed storeroom situation, barcodes are often used to issue parts when being picked up (with GP MaTe, you can generate a pick list in advance and have the storeroom pre-pick the items and even deliver to your work site).
In an open storeroom situation, parts being used are typically entered against the work order when the work order is being completed.
When parts are used, GP MaTe will check the stock levels and generate procurement actions automatically as appropriate.
Equipment Failure Feedback
During work order completion, information is captured to help with failure analysis, including failure codes and equipment downtime parameters. This is then used to calculate MTBF and MTTR metrics.