Delays

The Delays tab enables you to review a history of all work delays processed for a work order and to record new begin and end work delay times. You can also use this tab to transfer work orders from one shop to another (use the Work delay ID, Begin, and End fields). For more information about the actions performed when a work order is transferred, refer to linear work order transfer functions.

While a work order is in work delay, you cannot use the Data -> Shop Activity -> Employee Labor Capture screen to post labor charges to it. To see a list of all screens from which you can post charges to work orders, refer to Posting charges to work orders. Charges are posted in the same way from each screen.

The primary purposes of work delay tracking are:

To collect information about the real costs, in terms of lost linear asset availability, suffered as a result of inefficiencies in shop operations. These include too few technicians and insufficient investment in parts inventories.
To account for the time periods between the date and time a work order is opened and the date and time it is closed.

Your policy regarding the recording of work delays could range from tracking every work delay to not tracking them at all. Although work delay tracking requires additional effort, it also provides information that you cannot obtain by any other means. It can help you justify the need for a capital expenditure or staff increase.

A suggested policy is to establish a minimum time limit (such as 30 minutes) for any work delay that you record and to ignore delays that are anticipated to be shorter than the minimum. In conjunction with this policy, it would be advantageous to have a means of changing a particular delay from ignore to track if it becomes apparent that it will last beyond the minimum time established for tracking.

Tip: If you are performing an update that requires a calendar to calculate hours but the calendar has not been generated for that time period, a warning message appears. You will be allowed to process the update, but the hours will not be calculated properly because the calendar has not been generated. If you receive this warning message, ask your system administrator to generate the calendar.
Tip: To limit the display of information in the grid and maximize performance, use the filter. The list of searchable fields on the filter is extensive; use the scroll bar to view them all. You can sort on work order information, from/to open date, equipment ID, repair reason, segment ID, to/from marker ID, and to/from offset, among other values. If you specify a range, any record that crosses any part of that range will be displayed. You can also use the sort button to arrange the order in which work order IDs are listed. If you do not specify a sort sequence, IDs are listed in descending order by the Date and time in service field (specified on the Basic Info tab).

More General Delays Information

To learn how to reverse work delay entries, see Reversing Incorrect Work Delay Entries.
Retention information for functional areas is specified on the Retention Levels tab of the System Mgmt -> Setup -> Table Management screen.
To streamline data entry, you can copy work orders using the Copy button. For a list of the data items that are copied and not copied, see Work order data items copied. Remember that behind-the-scenes functionality specified on the Linear Work Order screen also applies to linear work order actions performed through the Shop Activity Portals in Web Modules.
The Linear Work Order screen supports location level access control, so you must belong to a user group with the applicable authorization to make changes or updates. In addition, the option specified in the Require match between work order location and equipment access rights location field on the Options tab of the Data -> Shop Activity -> Setup -> Options screen indicates whether users can open work orders on this screen.
You can use the % wildcard character to filter the results of choice lists on this screen.

Detail View Header

The fields in the top section of this tab are display only from the Basic Info tab.

Work order ID

Identifier of the work order currently selected in the grid.

Equipment ID

Identifier of the linear asset.

Job status

Job status of the work order. The statuses are as follows:

OPEN: The work on the work order has not yet been completed.
WORK FINISHED: Shop personnel have completed the work and placed a check in the Date and time finished field on the Basic Info tab.
CLOSED: The work order is no longer open.
PENDING: Work has not yet started on this work order.

Current work delay

Identifier of the reason for the current work delay, if any, on the work order. This field has a list box. The work delay description displays to the right of the ID.

Note: If the work order’s location ID has a default work delay ID for new work orders, a check displays in the Begin field automatically and a work delay starts with that work delay ID. You can override the start of the delay three different ways: (1) remove the check in the Begin field, (2) change the work delay ID or the beginning date and time, or (3) place a check in the End field before processing the insert. Default work delay IDs for new work orders are defined on the Work Orders - Defaults tab of the Data -> Setup -> Organization Structure -> Locations -> Primary Information screen.

Detail View

The fields in the bottom section of the tab provide more information about the work delay. Unless otherwise indicated, these fields are optional.

Begin

A check in this field begins a new work delay. You cannot begin a new work delay on a work order if a delay is already in progress.

Date and time

Date and time of the beginning of the delay (this field uses a 24-hour clock). When setting up a new work delay, this field displays the current date and time. You can change it. It must be the current system date and time or earlier.

End

A check in this field stops the work delay time period. If the Work delay ID field specifies TRANSFER - SHOP RESPONSIBILITY or TRANSFER - USER RESPONSIBILITY, work order transfer functions are performed automatically.

Date and time

Date and time of the end of the delay (this field uses a 24-hour clock). This field displays the current date and time, but you can change it. It must be the current system date and time or earlier.

Work delay ID

Identifier of the type of work delay. This field has a list box. A description of the work delay displays to the right of the ID.

If you choose TRANSFER - SHOP RESPONSIBILITY as the work delay ID, you must enter information in the Transferee shop location ID field.
If you choose TRANSFER - USER RESPONSIBILITY as the work delay ID, the assigned repair location ID for the linear asset is inserted.

Work delay IDs and the types of work orders that they apply to are specified on the Data -> Shop Activity -> Setup -> Work Delay Codes screen.

Transferee shop location ID

Location identifier of the shop to which the linear asset is to be transferred. This field has a list box. The shop name displays to the right of the ID. Required only if the work delay ID has been assigned a delay type of AWAITING TRANSFER. Work delay IDs for work delay types are assigned using the Special Items tab on the Data -> Shop Activity -> Setup -> Options screen.

Note: The choice list is not limited by location security.

Comment

Text field in which you can enter comments regarding the delay. Maximum field length is 600 characters.

Delays Tab Screen Group Data Table

The remaining fields in the bottom section of this tab are presented in a screen group that lists closed work delays processed for the work order. All fields are display only. A screen group can display up to 200 rows of information. To view more than 200 rows, use the Queries/Reports -> Query/Report Generator screen to create and run a report that includes the information. You can also use Web Modules Reporting or any other reporting tool sold separately (such as Microsoft Access) that can attach to the database. Refer to the related documentation for these products.

Work delay ID

Identifier of the type of work delay.

Work delay ID description

Description of the work delay ID.

Begin date and time

Date and time of the beginning of the delay (this field uses a 24-hour clock).

End date and time

Date and time of the end of the delay (this field uses a 24-hour clock).

Elapsed hours

Length of the work delay, to the nearest tenth of an hour. If the end date and time are earlier than the begin date and time, this field calculates and displays negative hours.