EXPERT TRACKING AND MAINTENANCE SYSTEM

 

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

 

This chapter briefly compares the advantages of using the database approach over the traditional approach for software development and reviews some of the system developed by developers including some of the solutions used by actual companies.

2.1     Database approach

In traditional software development utilizing file processing, every user group maintains its own files for handling its data-processing applications (Elmasri and Navathe, 2000). For example, two groups of users in a university database system might be the course registration personnel and the accounting office personnel.  In the traditional approach, each group independently keeps files on students. The registration office keeps track of student courses and grades while the accounting office also keeps data on registration and related billing information. Much of the data is stored twice: once in the files of each user group.  Additional user groups may further duplicate some or all of the same data in their own files. The redundancy of storing the same data multiple times leads to several problems. The first problem is duplication efforts where the same data is recorded twice or multiple times to different user group files. The second problem is wastage of storage space. Due to storing the same data repeatedly this problem becomes much serious if it involves large databases. The third problem is inconsistency of data. This may happen following an update of data applied by one user group to it own files where files belonging to the other user groups are not similarly updated.

In a database approach, the views of different user groups are integrated during the database design. A logical data item shall be stores in one place in the database for consistency. However, in some cases, controlled redundancy may be useful for improving the performance of queries.

          When multiple users share a database, it is likely that some of the users are not authorized to access all information in the database. For example, financial data is often considered confidential, and hence only authorized personnel are allowed to access such data. In addition, some users may be permitted to retrieve data, whereas others are allowed both to retrieve and update the data. Hence, the type of operation, retrieval and update must also be controlled. A DBMS should provide a security and authorization mechanism to specify account restrictions. Besides that a DBMS must also have the capability to represent a variety of complex relationships among the data as well as to retrieve and update related data easily and efficiently. A DBMS shall also provide capabilities for defining and enforcing integrity constraints. A DBMS must also provide facilities for recovering from hardware or software failures. The backup and recovery subsystem is responsible for recovery.

          In addition, there are other advantages of using the database approach that can benefit most organizations. First, the database approach has the potential for enforcing standards. It permits the Database Administrator (DBA) to define and enforce standards among database users in large organizations. This facilitates communication and cooperation among various departments and users within the organization. Standards can be defined for names and format of data elements, display format, report structures, terminology and so on. The DBA can enforce standards in a centralized database environment more easily than in an environment where each user group has control over its own files and data. The second advantage of using the database approach is reducing application development time. Development time using a DBMS is estimated to be one-sixth to one-fourth of that for a traditional file system (Elmasri and Navathe, 2000). Others advantages are flexibility, availability of up-to-date information and economies of scale.

A lot of efforts have been taken by companies to develop a system that fulfills their customer requirements and to develop an enterprise model that fulfills their industry’s business requirements. The following is a discussion of the systems developed by some software developers and reference data models that have been developed in different industries.

2.2    NSi Equipment Tracking System (ETS)

The NSi Equipment Tracking System (ETS) is a powerful, easy-to-use tool that assists in archiving, tracking and locating equipment assets. It can help create an active archival system for storing and retrieving information related to computers, desks, lamps, chairs, shelving, tools and any other equipment or assets. ETS allows for the quick retrieval of individual assets or groups of assets. Bar code technology provides the ability to track the asset as it moves through and outside an organization.

ETS is highly flexible and provides for searching and tracking by using a single search criterion or any combination of search criteria. Features include multiple databases for comprehensive descriptive information, maintenance and service history, asset location and borrower history, custom bar code and descriptive label generator and data import/export capability. All text is searchable either by keyword, multi-keyword, wildcard or cross-reference searches..

Equipment Tracking System have the following features

a) Searching and Tracking Inventory

·        Keyword, multiple keyword, wildcard and cross-reference search capabilities

·        Any combination of search criteria can be used

·        Bar code system for identification and location tracking

·        Combine individual assets and tracks integrated groups and bar codes.

·        Create and track shipment records

·        Text retrieval engine for fast text searches

b) Maintenance and Service History

·        Keep history on all maintenance and service activity

·        Include free-form text descriptions with each service record

·        Store an unlimited number of service records per asset

·        View and print custom reports

c) Management Reports

·        Asset list by Location, Owner, Borrower, Type, Department, Category and many more reports

·        Custom report generation

 

2.3     Asset Expert System (

Applied Innovation Management)

 

Since 1992, Applied Innovation Management, Inc. (AIM) has been developing Enterprise Management Software solutions. AIM has harnessed the power of the web to provide customizable Customer Relations Management (CRM) and IT tracking software solutions.

Over one million users in more than 50 countries are using AIM software worldwide. Their enterprise management software has been successfully deployed in many Fortune 500 and high tech companies.

 

Asset tracking software is a completely web-based asset management system, allowing company to manage its assets and keep the staff informed from anywhere, 24 hours a day. The Combination of a HTML user interface with a sophisticated relational database back-end, allows information to be shared across multiple corporate locations regardless of operating system or platform.

An optional Barcode plug-in permits barcode labels to be attached to physical assets and scanned for quick, accurate data gathering and entry.

 

Features of the Asset Expert System

                    i.            Web Based and Platform Independent - Using web technologies, it works like any web page. It doesn’t use cookies or any technology that locks you to your desktop. You can access the system from any computer with a browser, independent of operating system or location and simply login and go ahead with your business.

                  ii.            No Learning Curve - anyone who can use a browser will easily master the system. This means no time-consuming or expensive training.

                iii.            E-mail, Paging Notification - It makes sure no asset information goes unnoticed. Staff members can be paged and/or e-mailed to ensure asset problems are taken care of up-front.

               iv.            Charts & Reports - It generates accurate, powerful charts and reports on the number, type, status and value of your assets.

                 v.            Discovery Modules (Barcode Option) - Asset Expert™ Barcode Reader Option allows assets to be accurately recorded and tracked with vinyl-destructible barcode labels and a scanner. This significantly minimizes time spent cataloguing assets.

               vi.            Track Contracts and Support Agreements - Tracks all of your asset vendors' contracts and support agreements for compliance and updates

             vii.            Scalability - Web-based technology allows all locations of your company to be able to fully access your company's asset resources. Unnecessary and expensive purchasing can be eliminated if you know what you have. Trends in product reliability can save your company from making a purchasing mistake.

           viii.            Flexible Workflow - It uses a flexible scheme to accommodate medium to large organizations Workflow.

 

2.4     Equipment Maintenance Tracking System (Holmes Industries)

Holmes Industries Software Development is a Custom Software Development company specializing in broadcast equipment maintenance tracking software solutions. In 1994, they designed and developed an Equipment Maintenance Tracking System computer program for the Broadcast Industry.

The critical issues discovered by Holmes industries are:

1.     Users sometimes, simply complained that equipment does not work, and wonder why someone does not do something about it.

2.     Sometimes the user actually writes a trouble report describing the problem that they are having with a piece of equipment and leave the report in the engineering shop· And it gets lost or thrown away; (Nothing is done about it).  

3.     Some users like to simply tell a Service Technician about a problem, and simply refuse to make a written report (Nothing is done about it). These users can be later heard saying, "I told, so and so, about it and nothing was done.

Holmes Industries, wanted to make sure the correct people, Technicians, Users, and Managers, know about their facilities equipment problems. The answers to the above problems are:

1.     You need to have a common reservoir for equipment problem reporting. 

2.     All problems must be written to a common, shared database, which can be seen by all via the Broadcast Equipment, Maintenance Tracking System Workstation. Following these procedures, reported equipment problems cannot be ignored, lost, or forgotten.

 

The Equipment Maintenance Tracking System (EMTS) consists of several "Real Time" computer workstations, placed in strategic locations, around your broadcast facility, where users can go, to write up or report equipment problems.

Workstations write all problem reports to a common, shared, database located on a File Server, on the company's local area network (LAN). The "Real-Time" Equipment Maintenance Tracking System guarantees that Within 30 seconds of reporting any problem, Everyone, from the Stations General Manager, News Director, Chief Engineer, Maintenance engineers, and other users, that have access to an Equipment Maintenance Tracking System Computer   Workstation, will know that there is a problem with a particular piece of equipment in a particular location and exactly what the reported problem is.

Benefits realized by using The Equipment Maintenance Tracking System are

·        Provides instantaneous and accurate knowledge of your equipment's maintenance status in "Real Time", all the time.

·        Assures that problems will be reported fully and accurately. User-friendly entry, with "pointing, flashing finger" to show users step by step guide on how to report problems, assures that problems will be reported fully and accurately.

·        Provides knowledge of current usage and operating location of all broadcast equipment. Assures knowledge of spare equipment availability. The System shows the equipments available to be used as spares when a piece of equipment has to be removed from service for repair.

·        Allow you to track new vehicles for maintenance history or to view and share "Site Survey logs". Tracks SNG truck and ENG van's daily safety and operations check.

·        Prevents your having to use multiple applications to get your work done. Parts suppliers and other vendors are an integral part of the Equipment Maintenance Tracking System database and they all share data with appropriate data sources and form fields.

·        Alerts you of rising parts cost. The parts database automatically inserts prices in the service records and shows the last price paid for a part when a new parts request is generated. The parts database is fully searchable and includes a small sampling of parts photos.

·        Your less experienced technicians will be able to make Expert maintenance decisions due to systems "Mega Technician·", which automatically suggest parts to replace based on hour meter times when these times are entered in the service report during servicing.

·        Allow less experienced technicians to repair problems, by searching accumulated knowledge base for key words used to describe similar problems and their solutions, in the database.

·        Provides tracking of the repair history of individual equipment by: model, serial number, parts used, date of repair, date of failure, reported by, repaired by, project interruption, description of problem, nature of work performed, or equipment location with a simple click of the mouse.

·        Facilitates assigning, managing, and tracking task of service technicians.

·        Provides facilities schedules for the latest information on equipment status.Increases equipment up time by prioritizing work orders.

·        Facilitates tracking and reporting lost or stolen equipment.

2.5     Lawry’s Restaurants, Inc.

Lawry's Restaurants, Inc. is one of the premier fine dining establishments in the United States.  Lawry's is most famous for their mouth watering prime rib and excellent service.  Most of their reporting was done manually with Excel spreadsheets.  Whenever they needed a new report they would take the numbers from other spreadsheets and re key the information into a new spreadsheet. The critical business issues are to:

·        Eliminate duplicate data entry, especially when creating new reports.

·        Track meal turn around times especially in their busier restaurants.

·        Control their food costs, especially prime rib costs.

·        Leverage the information generated by their point of sale system (POS).

·        Help the Corporate office become a "service bureau" for the restaurants.

The solutions are: 

·        Perform a need analysis to determine the critical issues facing Lawry's. 

·        Install Local Area Networks at all of the restaurants to allow the restaurants to work more efficiently.  

·        Install ISDN lines to connect the restaurants to the corporate office. 

·        Develop a Financial Analysis system to balance their daily sales, import labor information and upload the data to Corporate office.

·        Install Microsoft SQL Server at their Corporate Office to provide data warehousing of the sales and labor information.

·        Run the Management Reports from the data warehouse at the Corporate office

By leveraging the information already generated by their POS and labor tracking system, Lawry's can concentrate on the analysis of the numbers, rather than the generation of those numbers.  They are able to generate and analyze reports that were difficult, that are otherwise impossible to generate from the manual system.   They have plans to open additional restaurants in the future (ADS Consulting Group LLC, 2000).   

2.6     Summary

In this chapter we have analyzed several solutions taken by different companies to smooth their company routine and performance with examples of the usage of the data model in several industries. As we can see, there is no system that has the capabilities of combining Equipment maintenance, assign system for user request and Inventory management. This system model is important in order to save the time, effort, energy and resources in specifying, creating, and implementing an Expert Tracking and Maintenance System.