Task Setup Tips:
Tasks are used as templates for creating work orders based on the frequency settings you specify for the task. You create the task once with all instructions and then generate work orders as needed. This reduces data entry and allows you to better categorize and manage different types of maintenance work by task.
1. When are work orders scheduled?
Tasks with a frequency of “Unplanned” or “Alarm” have work orders created (work order number assigned) only when you request them/ report an alarm condition. For other task frequencies the system will automatically calculate work order scheduled dates based on the task frequency options.
2. When are work order numbers assigned?
Work order numbers are not assigned until you run Plan (the Planning Report) to create the scheduled work orders OR you manually create a scheduled work order OR have FastMaint automatically email daily pending work orders. Note: To setup automatic email of daily pending work orders see – Professional edition: Administration menu, Settings; Web/ Cloud edition: Administration tab, System Configuration.
3. The task effective period:
For the task’s Effective Period make sure to select a Start Date that is today’s date or earlier. In general the End option for a task should be “Never Ends“. Otherwise you may not be able to create new work orders from the task template.
4. Use the same task to create different work orders for different equipment/ locations:
In the Frequency tab you define the default frequency for creating work orders from this task. However, by going to the Equipment tab or the Locations tab, you can change this default frequency to a custom frequency for each equipment and location associated with this task. So if you have five different but identical pumps with different maintenance cycles, you can associate them with the same maintenance task but set up different maintenance cycles by modifying the frequency associated with each of them (custom frequency).
5. Check the work order schedule:
Click on the Work Orders button at the bottom left of the task to see what work orders will be scheduled from the task. You will see a column called For in the screen that comes up. This column (For) contains the name of the equipment/ location the work order is being scheduled for based on a custom frequency association between this equipment/ location and the task. Work orders scheduled from the default task frequency will show a blank in the For column.
6. Email/ print work orders:
Use the Planning Report under the Reports tab to periodically generate the work orders. You can email/ text them directly to maintenance technicians or print them out. Alternatively have FastMaint automatically email daily pending work orders.
Email Tips:
1. What email account to use?
The email account setting (Standard/ Professional edition: Administration menu, Settings; Web/ Cloud edition: Administration tab, System Configuration) should contain email account information of an email account that FastMaint can use to send (via POP3 protocol) and receive (via SMTP protocol) email. It should not be someones email account information. It is best that you create a new email account only for FastMaint’s use.
2. Receive work order updates from maintenance technicians:
When the technicians send back a reply updating a work order, FastMaint Professional can receive these updates (Email button on top toolbar) and update/ close work orders. Web/ Cloud editions can automatically receive these updates without your intervention (set in System Configuration) and update/ close work orders. You will need to manually process such responses with Standard/ Basic editions.
3. Text message/ SMS:
Enter an SMS/ text address instead of an email address in the email address field on the Person form. Email will now be sent as text messages to their mobile phones. Their text message replies can be used to update work orders as explained above.
