Introduction to IFS Service MWO and IFS Maintenance MWO

The new IFS Cloud Mobile apps introduce a new user experience for Mobile, based on the IFS Cloud Web framework. With the new IFS Cloud Mobile Apps, two apps are delivered for work execution.

IFS Service MWO targeting the Enterprise Service Management market
IFS Maintenance MWO focusing the Enterprise Asset Management market.

The apps supports the following processes:

Work Task Execution

In mobile this refers to processing Work Assignments and Pool Tasks.

In addition there are a set of supporting processes:

New/Additional Work Initiation
Material Handling
Asset/Object Information Handling
Additional Data capture with Eforms
Give/Receive Remote Assistance
Shift and Break Handling

What are the IFS Service MWO and IFS Maintenance MWO Mobile Apps?

The IFS Service MWO and IFS Maintenance MWO apps are two apps tailored to the demands of the Service Management and Enterprise Asset Management industries.

The IFS Service MWO app supports both Work Order and Request based Service Management solutions while IFS Maintenance MWO app only supports Work Order based Asset Management solution.

The apps are available for download via the public stores i.e. Appstore, Google Play and Microsoft Store

Windows App requires Windows 10 or later
Apple App requires iOS 12 or later
Android App requires Android 6 or later

Functional Dependancies

IFS Mobile Work Order is integrated with the following components and product areas within IFS Cloud:

Mobile Work Order

IFS/Mobile Client - This component is necessary to synchronize data, process transactions and manage failed transactions.

Resource Management

IFS/Resource Management - This component is necessary to set up resources for work task processing, to set up resource as a mobile user and to
use My Miscellaneous Resource Allocations

Parts Management

IFS/Part Catalog - This component is necessary to be able to work with parts and part assortments.
IFS/Inventory - This component is necessary to be able to work with inventory parts, warehouses and issuing materials.

Documents and Media

IFS/Application Services - This component gives the ability to view and add pictures and videos that are connected to a Task or eForm (pictures only) via Media Library.
IFS/Document Management - This component enables downloading, viewing and creating of documents attached to a Work Task.

Service and Maintenance

IFS/Basic Data for Maintenance - This component is necessary to set up and to define basic data required for task processing.
IFS/Equipment - This component enables the connection between objects and the mobile user.
IFS/Work Order Management - This components enables the mobile user to view, process and create Work Tasks and Work Assignments.

Concepts for IFS Service MWO and IFS Maintenance MWO

A mobile user executes Work Assignments or Work Tasks in task pool
Work Assignments and Pool Tasks are created in IFS Cloud and transferred to mobile users
Status of Work Assignment cannot be updated in IFS/Work Order Management once it is transferred to Mobile. Any other updates and operations are allowed on Work Task and Work Assignment.
A mobile user can create new work in the mobile
- To report a problem
- To prepare work
- To be performed
- To report in work the user has already performed
The mobile app works both online and offline, but some features are limited to online only

Data Setup in IFS Cloud for IFS Service MWO and IFS Maintenance MWO

User and Permission Sets

A Permission Set must be created to grant access to IFS Service MWO and/or IFS Maintenance MWO features and functions.

All the projections belonging to the component MWO should be granted to the permission set in Solution Manager > Users and Permissions > Permission Sets > Permission Set > Projections. The projection access is needed to send transactions from the apps to the server.

The abovementioned permission set must have access to the functional role permission set MOBILE_APP_RUNTIME, which controls the ability to log into IFS Cloud Mobile. This is granted through Solution Manager > Users and Permissions > Permission Sets > Permission Set > Grant Structure.

Once the permission set has been created, the required Security Groups for each app must be added to the permission set. This is done in Solution Manager > Mobile Apps > Administration > Security Grants and Entity Filters > Security Grants By Permission Set. The Security Group access is needed to allow the app to retrieve the data synchronized from the server, and to view the data in relevant screens in the mobile apps.

To administrate IFS Cloud Mobile apps from the IFS Cloud Web client, an end user role permission set MOBILE_APP_ADMIN has been created that will give administrator full admin access to the Solution Manager > Mobile Apps features.

Mobile Resources

In order to work with IFS Service MWO and IFS Maintenance MWO, resources need to be defined as mobile users. This is done in two parts. First, you need to define whether the user will use mobile work order in Resource Detail > Maintenance/Service. Secondly the resource is defined automatically as a mobile user when corresponding user is activated on a mobile client.

When generating automatic time transactions for Work Assignment, mobile work order uses primary parent group defined in Resource Detail > Connections for work time transactions and/or a travel resource group for travel time transactions defined in Resource Detail > Maintenance/Service/Company Settings

Mobile Maintenance Basic Data

Mobile Object

All objects on the site(s) that the user is connected to, are sent to the device using group push. Group Push requires that the system user running the background job for group push has full access to all required sites. The system user of "MaintEngApp" and "ServiceEngApp" are "IFSMAINTENGAPP" and “IFSSERVICEENGAPP" respectively. The objects can however be limited by using permission set filters. The maximum number of sites that can be connected to a user is 80. If this exceeds 80, no objects will be synchronized to mobile device.

Mobile Part Basic Data

The parts which are required to be synchronized to mobile client should be registered in Mobile Part Basic Data. It is possible to connect a mobile user to an assortment so that all parts in the assortment will be available in the mobile application. In addition, all parts registered in warehouses connected to the mobile user and spare parts registered for equipment objects will be synchronized to the mobile device.

Once Part Basic Data has been set-up, Refresh All Inventory Parts Scheduled Task must be run to generate part data that is used to filter inventory parts to be synchronized to the mobile user. It is recommended to configure this scheduled task to run according to the frequency of changes to inventory parts. It is recommended to run it overnight so that the scheduled task does not affect system performance during normal operating hours.

Mobile Integration

It is possible to configure integrations with IFS Mobile Work Order and third party apps (on Android platform) or Web pages. These can be registered in Mobile Integration and it is possible to specify whether the integration should appear on the Home screen or as a Work Task Action.

On calling an App or Web page screen a set of parameters are outputted containing mobile user and work task information depending on where the integration is being called from. These parameters can consist of any field listed in the entities MobileUserInfo, ActiveWorkOrder and JtTaskAddress.
For e.g. https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=${MchCode}+manual as value in the field Uniform Resource Locator will search for the Object value and the text Manual.
Launching web URLs are supported in all platforms. For Android platform, it is also possible to launch another app (APK) on the device optionally passing data to the app.

Workflow Configuration

Workflow Configuration is a way to enable or disable actions and processes available for mobile users. It is possible to hide some actions (e.g. Returns or Media) or make them mandatory (e.g. signature must be provided before work assignment can be completed).

A workflow configuration will be applied only when the workflow criteria is met. For e.g. when Object Type of an Object is "Boiler" ,when Work Type of a task is "Corrective" or when Maint Org of an Employee is "Electrical Department". On Filter criteria, Exclude Task Leader is a Filter that can be used to differentiate work task assignee from Task Leader, when applying workflow configuration.

Action Flow Configuration

Action flow can be defined in a sequence in Workflow Configuration in IFS Cloud Web client such that mobile user is guided through that predefined workflow. Action flow configuration is enabled for Workflow Configuration type Configured Work Task.

There is a flexibility to define action flow with many combinations of actions in IFS Cloud Web client and there are only a few client validations. Therefore, it is up to the administrator to define the action flow in a correct and sensible way to suit own work flows.

Maintenance Survey/eForm Setup

Maintenance surveys are configured in IFS Cloud Web under Maintenance Survey

Data filters can be specified to identify when an eForm should be triggered:

Work Assignment statuses - You can define the eForm to be triggered when a work assignment is set to Accepted, On Route, Waiting at Location, Started, Pause, Pending Completion, Complete, Incomplete or Cancelled..
Work Assignment - The Work Assignment. These eForms are available under the Work Task Actions.
Employee - The Employee. These eForms will be connected to the employee and available on the Home screen.
Object Information - The Object Information. These eForms are available on the Object Actions screen.
New Work - eForms defined with integration to New Work Order/Service Request and New Task will be triggered in when creating new work in mobile client.
Configured Workflow - eForms are available only for Action Flow configuration. It can be set for statuses and eForms actions in Actions Flow.

Before an eForm can be used in IFS Service MWO and IFS Maintenance MWO, it must be published. It can be changed at a later stage by using the Replan option.
Once published, the eForm needs to be connected to a workflow in order for it to be transferred to relevant mobile users as part of batch synchronization.

Transfer Work Tasks and Work Assignments to IFS Service MWO and IFS Maintenance MWO

Once the work is planned in IFS/Work Order Management, it can be transferred to IFS Service MWO and IFS Maintenance MWO.

Work Assignment

If Work Assignment has been created for a Work Task, it can be transferred directly to user assigned to Work Assignment. If multiple Work Assignments for Work Task are created, it is possible to transfer all assignments in one action from Task level. If Work Task is planned but no active Work Assignments exist, it is possible to transfer and assign work to a user in one action from Task level. Mobile user must be selected in the process and a Work Assignment for the user gets created.

Pool Task

A Work Task can be transferred to an assigned technician or to a common pool of work tasks . When a work task is transferred to the pool, it will be synchronized to mobile technicians who have access to the task site
Work tasks that are set to On Hold cannot be transferred to mobile.

If Work Task is planned but no active Work Assignments exist, it is possible to transfer it to pool. The following two options are supported on transfer to pool:

Pool : The first technician that accepts the Work Task from pool will be the owner of this work. A Work Assignment will be created for this technician and the Task will be removed from all other mobile user devices.
Pool-Keep: This task can be accepted by multiple users; Work Assignments will be created for all technicians that accept the task. The task is only removed from mobile when a user chooses to do so while completing a work assignment created from a pool-keep task.

Accepting or starting a Work Task while the device offline is restricted by default. If required, it is possible to enable this action in employee workflow configuration. However, doing so carries the risk of a task being picked up by multiple technicians where only one technician is needed for the job.

While accepting a Task from Pool, the user has possibility to set Allocated Start and Finish dates of the Assignment created.

Note: If a site is scheduled by Planning and Scheduling Optimization (PSO), it will not be possible to transfer tasks in this site to the common pool of work tasks.

The Transferred Tasks/Work Assignments page in IFS Cloud Web allows users to review all Work Assignments transferred to mobile users as well as Work Tasks that have been transferred to pool. It is possible to cancel selected Tasks and Work Assignments directly from this page.

Execute Work assignments IFS Service MWO and IFS Maintenance MWO

Only the Work Assignment status can be updated in Mobile Client; Work Task status cannot be updated in mobile directly , but it can get updated automatically as a result of changes to the Work Assignment status. Some Task information such as Reported Object, Work Type, Priority etc. can be modified by mobile user. The user can also re-plan the Assignment by modifying Allocated Start and Allocated Finish dates. The mobile user executes the work assignment by processing the assignment through the status chain of the Work Assignment.

Work Assignment Status

Assigned: This is the initial status of a Work Assignment transferred to mobile.
Accepted: A technician starts the work flow by accepting an assigned task or by picking a task from Task Pool.
On Route: If the technician needs to travel to the work site to perform the work, the work assignment should be set On Route.
Waiting at Location: If the technician arrives at the work site, but is unable to start work immediately, the work assignment can be set to Waiting at Location
Work Started: Once the technician is at the work site, the work assignment can be set to Work Started.
Pause/Continue: The Work assignment can be paused if a technician/engineer needs to take a break, or work has to stop temporarily. Once the pause is over, the Work assignment can be resumed by using the option Continue.
Pending Completion: The Work assignment can be set to Pending Completion when the technician has completed work but is not yet ready to pick up their next assignment.
Completed: The Work Assignment can be set to Completed when all work is done.
Incomplete: The Work Assignment can be set to Incomplete when work has not been successfully finished.
Cancelled: If the technician is unable to process the Work Assignment while it is in Assigned or Accepted status, it can be cancelled.

Manual Time Reporting

There are three types of Person Resources that can execute a Work Task

Normal Resource, having an employment
Seconded Resource, having an employment in another company
Resource Only, no employment

All three types can Report Time for the logged on resource and for other resources that could work on the same Work Task

Auto Time Reporting

If automatic time reporting is enabled in workflow configuration, time transactions (or Clocking records) will be created automatically on following status changes on Work Assignment:

On Route : Travel clock in

Pause Travel : Travel clock out

Continue Travel : Travel clock in

Waiting at Location : Travel clock out and work clock in
Start Work : Travel clock out and work clock in (if waiting at location has not been used)
Complete/Incomplete/Pause Work : Work clock out
Continue Work : Work clock in

Actions

Following main actions are available to the mobile user during work execution:

Time reporting
Expense reporting
Material handling
Document & media handling
Object handling
Workflow configuration
eForms
Map support
Work initiation
Pool work
Material Returns

My Work Calendar IFS Service MWO

In My Work Calendar , the following types of information can be displayed:

Work
Break
Absence
Training
Project
Shift
Resource Misc. Allocation

The data can be presented using different views

Day
Week
Work week
Month
Agenda

Work can be handled in the same way as in My Work list. The most common command buttons are available directly in the calendar card. From the Work calendar card there is a navigation button that opens the Work Detail form. Breaks can also be handled directly in the calendar. It is possible to start and end breaks. Absences, Trainings, Projects, and Misc. Allocations are also displayed in the calendar but have no action buttons.

Shifts are displayed using different background colors: Off-shift time is displayed as a grey background while on-shift time is displayed as a white background

My Work Calendar is enabled by default . Setting the Application Parameter CALENDAR_VIEW to FALSE will disable it in the menu.
The following two Application Parameters for fetching Absence, Training and Projects have been added.

CALENDAR_FUTURE_LIMIT : Defines the number of days to sync events in the future
CALENDAR_HISTORY_LIMIT : Defines the number of days to sync historical events

Create New Work in IFS Service MWO and IFS Maintenance MWO - Work Order Solution

The new work and additional work process can be initiated from different places in the apps:

Home Screen
Work detail page (with the possibility to copy the task information)
Task Steps (with the possibility to copy the task step/task information)
Objects (will fetch the object info into the assistant)

The new work process creates a new work order with a task, a resource demand and an assignment. Creating new work should be used if the user wants to create new separate work, not included in the current work scope. .

Following options are available when creating a new Work Order:

Report a problem: A new work order is created including a task. This will automatically be returned after finishing the assistant.
Request Work that needs to be done: A new work order, including a task with a resource demand is created. If the user needs to plan this work further, the user can select the option to keep the task on the device for planning.
These tasks can be found in the Home Screen, under the tile Work to Prepare.
Create work that I will perform / Report work that I have done : These two options create a new work order, including a task and an assignment that belong to the user.
With the option Create work that I will perform, the user gets the option to start the assignment at the same time. Depending on the option selected , the Work Assignment can get the status Accepted or Work Started.
The option, Report work that I have done creates a Work Assignment in status completed. In the last step of the assistant , user gets the option whether to keep or return the Work Assignment.

When selecting the Additional Work assistant, the executor will have almost the same user guidance but the outcome differs compared to New Work.
In Additional Work, a new Work Task is created for the current work order. This means the current work (order) scope is extended.

Following options are available when creating additional work:

Request additional work that needs to be done : This creates an unassigned task for the current work order including a resource demand . If the user needs to plan this work further, the user can select the option to keep the task on the device for planning.
These tasks can be found in the Home Screen, under the tile Work to Prepare.
Create additional work that I will perform / Report additional work that I have done : These two options create a new Work Task on the current work order and an assignment to the user.
With the option Create additional work that I will perform, the user gets the option to start the assignment at the same time.
The option, Report additional work that I have done creates a Work Assignment in status completed, and in the last step of the assistant , user gets the option whether to keep or return the Work Assignment.

The Additional Work assistant can be launched from following places in the mobile apps:

Work detail page (possibility to copy the task information)
Task Steps (possibility to copy the task step/task information)

Create New Work in IFS Service MWO – Service Request Solution

The new work and additional work process can be initiated from following places in the mobile app:

Home Screen
Work detail page (with the possibility to copy the task information)
Task Steps (with the possibility to copy the task step/task information)
Objects (will fetch the object info into the assistant)

The new work process started from Home Screen and Object creates new Request with Request Scope and Tasks. Creating a new Request should be used if the user wants to create completely new work not connected to any currently assigned work.

The process creating new Service Request creates a Request in status New with a Scope. Tasks and Resource Demands are created based on the Service selected by the user.
New Service requested is intended to be prepared and scheduled by back office and mobile user has no option to create a new Request for her/himself.

The new scope process started from Work Detail and Task Step pages creates a new Scope within the current Service Request as well as Task(s) and Work Assignment(s). Creating a new scope should be used if the user wants to create new work that is separate but connected to current work.

When adding new Scope, the user is presented with following options:

Create a scope and add to My Work : This creates new Scope in status Released together with Tasks based on selected Service and Work Assignments assigned to the user. The actual process happens in back office and resulting Tasks/Assignments are transferred to the mobile user. They will be available in mobile client after synchronization is completed; This means that if mobile device is offline or in an area of weak connection, the Tasks will not be immediately available to the user for processing.
Prepare a scope for dispatching : A new scope is created in status New and includes tasks based on Service selected in the process. The Scope and Tasks are not available for mobile user.
Plan a scope for reviewing : A new scope is created in status New and includes tasks based on Service selected in the process. The Scope is available in mobile client with price summary. User can modify the created scope, if needed. Based on the customer decision after reviewing the price of the scope, the scope can be processed further or rejected. This option can be used only when the device is online. This option can be disabled through Person Resource type Workflow Configuration.

In Additional Work, a new Work Task is created for the current Request/Scope. This means that the current work scope is extended. Following options are available when creating additional work:

Request additional work that needs to be done : This creates an unassigned task within current scope, including a resource demand.
Create additional work that I will perform : This results in a task added to the current scope and assigned to the user. If a new task is created using a Standard Task then the actual process is done in back office and resulting Task/Work Assignment are transferred to the mobile user. They will be available in mobile client after synchronization is completed; This means that if mobile device is offline or in an area of weak connection, the Work Tasks will not be immediately available to the user for processing. The assignment in this scenario can be in accepted or work started status depending on options available within the assistant.
Report additional work that I have done : This results in a task added to the current scope and assigned to the user. The assignment in this scenario is in status Completed and the user will have an option to either keep the Work Assignment in mobile client or return it immediately. There is no option to use Standard Task in this process.

Request Quotations for New Work

It is possible to create a Request Quotation for new work. The technician can create and view new Request Quotations from New Request Quotation and Request Quotations tiles in the Home screen. Creating a new Request Quotation can also be initiated from Objects page for a service required for an object .
Request Quotation is removed from mobile device after it is sent for approval. This is an online only feature.

Ad-hoc Purchasing in IFS Service MWO

Ad hoc purchasing is a quick way of purchasing parts from a registered supplier and performing receipt over the supplier's counter. This is applicable for service technicians working with Work Tasks originating from Work Order or Service Requests in IFS Service MWO. This is an online only solution.

This purpose of this function is mainly to support ad-hoc (unplanned) purchasing demands of service technicians who execute Work Tasks.

Ad-hoc Purchasing Basic Data

Following basic data must be defined in Ad-hoc Purchasing Basic Data page in IFS Cloud Web.

Users: Registering users per company for ad-hoc purchasing is a mandatory step in order to enable ad-hoc purchasing feature in MWO Service Management.
User Groups: Defining user groups is optional. This is mainly used to define common restrictions for Amount in Maximum Purchase Amount tab
Maximum Purchase Amount: Define Amount Limit per user/user group for suppliers. This is an optional step and if defined, the system will warn the user if the maximum limit exceeds in Ad-hoc Purchasing process.
Note: This is not a hard restriction.
Ad-hoc Prefix: This is a mandatory step. The prefix is defined for a supplier and used in generating a unique reference for an ad-hoc purchasing instance. The same reference will be used as the purchase order number for administration in back office.

Initiation and Execution of an Ad-hoc Purchase Request

A service technician can initiate an ad-hoc purchase in mobile by registering an Ad-hoc Purchase Request header. New Ad-hoc Request command is available in Ad-hoc Purchase action on Work Assignment. Request header is created with a registered supplier and a system generated Order Reference is created with the supplier prefix . This is the reference number that can be produced to a trade counter when actual purchasing takes place. Saved request header facilitates user to add Part and Unregistered part to the request or to retrieve purchase part records to the pending request through EDI (Electronic Data Interchange) or someone else (e.g. a Service Manager) to add Part and unregistered part to the request at a later stage.
While registering parts, if the total order amount exceeds the maximum purchase amount defined for the user/user group for supplier, this is indicated by the Limit Exceeded badge in the request header. However, this is not a hard restriction and user will be allowed to keep the pending request and to continue later.
The request can be completed after entering part records. Upon completion, a Purchase order is created . The purchase order is then set to closed in back-office and the work task gets updated with the relevant purchase cost.

Mobile user can access pending and completed Ad-hoc purchase requests which are connected to the tasks in user device through Ad-hoc Purchase (Task Action) or through Purchase Handling (Home Screen).

Read-only view of a completed purchase request is also available in mobile to view details.

Execution of Ad-hoc Purchase Requests created in back-office

Mobile user can find Ad-hoc Purchase requests created by someone else in back-office (e.g. Service Manager) for a task that is assigned to him.

Pending request can be found in Purchase Handling (Home Screen) or Ad-hoc Purchase (Task Action) in the IFS Service MWO client. A technician can make the purchases by producing the order reference to the trade counter. Then either the technician can add part lines or retrieve part records through EDI or a person in back-office can enter part records and complete the request.

Handle Material in IFS Service MWO and IFS Maintenance MWO

The Mobile technicians can perform various actions in mobile such as issue and return material, maintain their own stock, move and receive stock.

Material Actions:

During work execution, the technician can issue and unissue materials required for the Work Task.

Add Material: Possible to add new material requirements that were not created when Works Task were planned.
Issue All Reserved: Issue all reserved material for the Work Task
Manual issue: Issue each individual required material line.
Quick Issue: Issue unplanned material. This does not create a material requisition line for the Work Task.
Scan and Issue: Scan and issue the part.
Handle Unused Parts: Unreserve any unused parts and either leave them in current location or move to Central warehouse with Transport Task

Find Part

This feature is only available in IFS Service MWO. If the required part for a service work is unavailable or deficient in technician's van, the technician can use Find Part to locate the part from nearby warehouses. Those warehouses can either be another technician's van (mobile warehouse) or a warehouse in a fixed location. In order to have this feature available in the mobile client, GPS settings on User-Device level should be enabled in back office. Device Location setting should be ON, Device should be Online and Location tracking Enabled in Application level.
This feature is supported only when the device is online.

Eligibility of a warehouse for Find Part

Eligibility of a warehouse for Find Part should be predefined. It should be defined in Warehouse Set up for Service page in IFS Cloud Web which is based on Warehouse Type that is defined in Warehouse Basic Data. Therefore it is a pre-requisite to have a Warehouse Type for a warehouse in Find Part. This feature is supported for following types of warehouses:

Remote-Movable Warehouses ( Vans )
Fixed Warehouses ( Central )
Remote-Fixed Warehouses ( Depots )

Warehouse Set up for Service in IFS Cloud Web (example)

AboutMobileWorkOrder

In Request based service solution: Consider the list connected to Service Organization of the resource and search in user allowed logistic sites
In Work Order based service solution: Consider the list connected to Maintenance Organization site of the resource and search in user allowed sites

Criteria for locating warehouse in Find Part:

Following three criteria are used to locate warehouse in Find Part

Vans - Technician's last synchronized location
Central warehouses - geolocation of the warehouse address which is defined in Site > Maintenance > Warehouse Address
Depots - geolocation of the address which is defined in Remote Warehouse tab in Warehouse

Find Part can be accessed through,

Material Header - This allows searching for any part required through Search Assistant. It is possible to modify the search parameters Range, Quantity, Warehouse Type and Maximum Hits as required. If quantity is not apecified, default value of Quantity Required would be 1, Range would be 10, Warehouse Type would be ALL and Maximum Hits would be 10 (Tab is located on Material Header).
Material Demand Line – Search for a specific part with No stock/Limited stock from material requirement. In Search assistant, default value for Quantity Required would be the Deficient material quantity of the requirement or it can be changed according to user preference. Other search options are given as above.

Following Application Parameters are used in Part search.

Unit of Measure - EMBEDDED_MAP_UNIT : Defines the UOM for range in part finder Km/Miles
Range - EMBEDDED_MAP_RANGE : Defines the Embedded Map range
Green Limit - FIND_PART_GREEN_LIMIT : Limit for green results in hours/4

Maximum Hits

If a technician wants to locate nearby warehouses out of all valid warehouses in a search, the results can be filtered using Maximum Hits. If Maximum Hits is set as X, the full result set is ordered by the distance from the technician's location to warehouse locations and only the nearest X number of warehouses on the map are shown. The default value for Maximum Hits is set as 10. User can still modify the value to any value >0 or value can be null. When there is no value set (null), then it will show all warehouses which satisfy the rest of the search criteria.

Status of a warehouse in Find Part

Statuses of warehouses (either Central or Depot) are based on the calendar connected to the location of the warehouse address. If the search is performed during operational hours of the calendar, the statues is shown as Open or else as Closed.

Results are displayed on Map, with Green/Yellow pins indicating,

Vans - Green results are recently synchronized locations while yellow results are locations which are not synchronized within the time frame defined in application parameter

Fixed warehouses - Green represents currently opened warehouses while yellow results represent closed or status unknown warehouses.

Results have a card view with following information:

Van - Technician's name with contact, last synchronized time, ID, Part Number and Available Quantity

Fixed Warehouse - ID, Status, Working Hours, Part Number, Available Quantity and Address

It also connects to an external map which can be used as a navigation guide

Material in Service Location (Direct Material Sourcing)

During the execution process the service technician can receive and use material that have been delivered directly to place of service – i.e. to Service Location. Material can be delivered by an external supplier (on Purchase Order) or by the service organization (on Shipment Order).
The Material Order Receipts page under Work Task actions shows all parts that have been delivered directly to service location. The feature is available in IFS MWO Service app only.

The following actions are possible.

Receive materials from Purchase Order and/or Shipment Order: Material will be placed in temporary warehouse (Service Location) and reserved for the task. These parts are listed under Reserved Materials
Issue received material from service location: All directly received and reserved material can be issued using material action Issue All from Service Location in the header. The action Issue from Service Location is available on single lines under Reserved Material to be able to issue individual parts
Receive and issue: It is possible to receive material and issue it at the same time from Material Order Receipts page
Handle Unused Parts: parts that have not been used for the job can be unreserved and move either to user stock or central warehouse with Transport Task
Return from Service Location : Unused parts that have been left behind in service location from previous completed jobs can be moved either to user stock or central warehouse with Transport Task

Use of Service Location imposes some restrictions on the material flow:

Issued material cannot be unissued. If it is not required, it needs to be returned
Material sourced from Direct Purchase Order or from Shipment Order can only be issued from service location

It is also possible to receive Non-Inventory Purchase Parts and No Part lines from Purchase Order with Direct Sourcing flow.

My Stock

During and in between execution processes the user will also be able to keep track of their stock and stock levels

Information shown in My Stock:

Parts in all user connected warehouses
All parts in all warehouses if no user connected warehouses.
Information about the part to show if the part is Lot and/or Serial tracked and/or if Condition Code is used.
Locations where the part is in stock.
Orders: Material Requisitions and Purchase Requisition for the part.
Whether parts are planned or reserved to the user’s assignments.

In addition user can perform following action :

Move unreserved parts directly to main (central) warehouse

Move Stock

During work execution processes, the user will be able to perform following actions related to moving stock:

Add a transport task and execute it.
View and receive incoming transport tasks to user connected warehouses. Both for parts in transit and direct move to inventory.
View and execute outgoing transport tasks to user connected warehouses.
View planned incoming transport tasks.
Receive reserved parts.
Add unplanned incoming and outgoing stock.

Stock Counting

During work execution processes, the user will also be able to view and update stock count reports in mobile which are generated in IFS Warehouse Management. This is implemented as an online only feature in IFS MWO Service and following actions are available during the process.

View relevant count reports and count report lines along with the current status.
Update counted quantity on count report lines
View and confirm counted part quantities in batches or once per report

Handle Object Information in IFS Service MWO and IFS Maintenance MWO

In terms of handling Object Information the user can view object information as well as update information about objects and report in measurements etc.

In Objects, the user can view all objects that are associated with work received into mobile device and all objects connected to their site(s). Object related information can also be accessed by navigating to the object from a Work Assignment.

Once the Object has been identified, the user can initiate following actions from object:

Initiate New Work
Navigate out to map
Create or Update Map Position
Handle Type Designation
Handle Technical Data/Requirements
Report in Measurements
Meter Setup
Meter Change
View Spare Parts
Execute eForms for Objects
View Customer data
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Give/Receive Remote Assistance in IFS Service MWO and IFS Maintenance MWO

From time-to-time, remote workers require assistance from an expert to complete their task. The capability to give/receive Remote Assistance has been embedded within IFS Cloud Web and IFS Cloud Mobile Work Order Apps (MWO Service & MWO Maintenance).

Provided that the end user is configured as an active Remote Assistance user, the option to make/receive Remote Assistance calls will always be available.

By design or by configuration, it is possible to pass context information regarding the business object the calling user is viewing when requesting help (Note: context viewing is only available in IFS Cloud Web).

Call Logs are visible in both IFS Cloud Web and IFS Cloud Mobile. Video recording of the call is attached to the Call Log and can be viewed in IFS Cloud Web.

Shift and Break Handling in IFS Service MWO and IFS Maintenance MWO

Shift Handling

Mobile users can start and end shifts in the mobile client. This is done via a side out menu option labeled “Work Status”. If current shift status is “Off shift”, user can go “On shift”. Likewise, if current shift status is “On shift”, the user can go “Off shift”. All shifts for a configurable number of days are synchronized to mobile using the Application Parameter “SHIFT_BREAK_LIMIT”, which is set to 10 days by default.

The status of the last transacted shift will appear for the user once logged in to the mobile application. The status of the shift is graphically visualized by an icon placed at the top right corner of the mobile client.

Shift status updates in mobile are used by the automated scheduling and dispatch services to make decisions around scheduling and dispatch of work for the resource. These shift statuses are critical in order to allow the scheduling engine to make the best possible decisions.

Mobile users can start and end the same shift multiple times during the shift period in mobile client, but in back office, only the first start and end transactions are considered when log onto or off of the shift. Subsequent “on shift” or “off shift” transactions will not consider additional shifts unless another valid shift exists for the same day.

Starting the shift can be enforced via an Employee Workflow Configuration. If it is enforced, the user will not be allowed to start travel or start any existing work in mobile until starting their shift. If it is not enforced, a warning will appear if the user starts travel or work prior to starting their shift. This warning will only appear once per session.

Start and End Shift Check List

When a shift is started or ended, a check list may be triggered in order to allow the mobile user to record important start or end of shift information. This is enabled via Maintenance Survey and Employee Workflow Configuration. There are two types of surveys

Once connected to an active Employee Workflow Configuration, these surveys are triggered when mobile user starts or ends their shifts. These check lists are triggered once per shift. The user is required to complete the survey in order to successfully start or end their shift. If that is not done, the user’s work status will not be updated and, depending on the system configuration, the user may not receive assigned work.

Survey answers are stored in back office in Survey Answers and will contain the respective Shift ID value.

Break Handling

The user can start and end breaks in a list of breaks. This list is started by clicking on Show Breaks in the header of My Work. The breaks and shifts for a configurable number of days is fetched using the Application Parameter SHIFT_BREAK_LIMIT . This is by default set to 10 days.

Only breaks for the current shift and breaks not ended are displayed. If a break is not ended and a new break is started, the break not ended will not be displayed. When a break is started, the status is changed to On Break and the user can see when the break was started.

If on break and the user ends the break, it will be removed from the list. When on break and the user starts to work again ( for e.g. presses Work Start, Travel, Continue or Continue Travel), the break is automatically ended and it is also removed from the list.

Update Task or Object Map Position in IFS Service MWO and IFS Maintenance MWO

The assets (objects) can move over time. In addition, mobile technicians may often find that the location given in a task is not totally accurate. In such scenarios, mobile technicians can update the position of tasks and assets (objects) that they are working on while they are at work location. The default map position of the task or the object is set by retrieving current mobile device location.