Preventive maintenance, inspections, audits and other categories of pre-planned, scripted activities are one of the fundamental components of operations and maintenance projects. InfraLink provides support for this kind of work under the common name Preventive Maintenance, Inspections and Testing, also referred to as "PM work" for short. Regardless of the name, InfraLink capabilities support any work activities that share the following characteristics:
- The work consists of tasks that are predefined (e.g., work steps, data to be collected, etc.) in a template, which InfraLink refers to as a Work Form.
- Each task is associated with a System Element (e.g., device, component, or even an entire system)
- The tasks are executed on a set schedule (e.g., one-time, weekly, monthly, etc.)
InfraLink's Preventive Maintenance, Inspection and Testing tools and data are accessible from the main menu, via the PM, Inspect, Test stack.
This article introduces these concepts and configuration steps associated with the management of Preventive Maintenance, Inspection and Testing work in InfraLink.
- Define Work Procedures via Work Forms
- Create a PM and Inspection Plan
- Define and Schedule Preventive Maintenance and Inspection Work via PM Groups
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Define Work Procedures via Work Forms
The first step in configuring PM work is to define standard work procedures via Work Forms. InfraLink Work Forms allow project leaders to author and manage interactive scripts that embody work procedures and data collection requirements, enabling consistent work execution and reliable capture of work completion evidence.
See Managing Work Forms to learn more about InfraLink Work Forms.
Create a PM and Inspection Plan
Once work procedures are defined via Work Forms, project leaders must document when and where these procedures should be utilized. A PM and Inspection Plan offers a high-level planning capability that is focused on proactive compliance management for large-scale maintenance and inspection programs. PM and Inspection Plans are defined per applicable Contract within the Instance. Users with adequate Permissions can:
- Define scheduled maintenance and inspections for each applicable System Element Type or otherwise defined collection of System Elements
- Review the number of System Elements covered by the plan
- Determine if the System Elements covered by the plan are maintained/inspected in accordance with the schedule
- Identify coverage gaps (i.e. System Elements requiring maintenance/inspections but omitted from existing PM Groups. These coverage gaps may occur due to incorrect or incomplete configuration of PM Groups.)
Each PM and Inspection Plan is associated with a single Contract and a defined group of System Elements. Multiple PM and Inspection Plans can be associated with a single Contract, and an InfraLink instance supports any number of PM and Inspection Plans.
The PM and Inspection Plan, consistent with its name, is a planning tool. It does not schedule or create maintenance work (i.e., PM Cases) in InfraLink. PM Groups perform those functions, and PM Groups should be created in accordance with accurate and complete PM and Inspection Plans.
PM and Inspection Plans can be modified at any time by Users with adequate Permissions. However, changes made to the PM and Inspection Plan should be followed by the corresponding updates to PM Groups, as the latter is the mechanism by which PM Cases are created.
Define and Schedule Preventive Maintenance and Inspection Work via PM Groups
While the PM and Inspection Plan allows project leaders to define Contract-specific plans for future PM work, PM Groups are the mechanism by which PM Cases are generated and work is scheduled for completion. That is, the PM and Inspection Plan outlines the plan for PM work and the associated PM Groups, once activated, implement the plan. To take full advantage of InfraLink's Preventive Maintenance, Inspections, and Testing capabilities, PM Groups should be created in accordance with accurate and complete PM and Inspection Plans.
It is important to note that a PM Group is configurable for only:
- one (1) schedule interval;
- one (1) Case Category;
- one (1) Priority; and
- one (1) Contract (Note: The Contract association will apply to all Cases and Work Tickets, that result from the PM Group.)
Each unique combination of the above attributes requires creation of a separate PM Group.
When a PM Group is placed in Active status, the InfraLink PM Generator will automatically create PM Cases according to the PM Group definitions and scope. Each PM occurrence (i.e., the recurring activity to be performed per schedule) is represented by one PM Case record, and that Case will include individual PM Tasks for the System Elements that fall within the PM Group scope. All PM Tasks must be completed before the associated Case can be completed.
Note: Before a PM Group can be created, the following need to exist:
- At least one PM-Type Case Category and the associated Case Workflow
- Necessary Work Forms with applicable System Element Type associations
- The default Priority configured at the Contract Details
Work Forms are the records which connect PM and Inspection Plans and PM Groups.
- PM Cases are generated from PM Group definitions, which associate Work Forms ("PM Tasks") to a defined set of System Elements. Those PM Cases are assigned to Users who complete the associated PM Tasks.
- InfraLink continuously scans for completed Work Forms per the PM and Inspection Plan(s), allowing the project team to monitor performance and coverage according to plan(s).
Note: While InfraLink can generate PM Cases according to PM Group definitions without a PM and Inspection Plan in place, that approach would undermine the oversight capabilities offered via the PM and Inspection Plan grid view.