Let's assume a technician needs to take 120 meter readings in the same small geographic area (e.g. a neighbourhood), all in the same timeframe (e.g. a single day, single afternoon, etc). Each of the 120 tasks are only a minute or two in duration, the "travel" between each job is minimal (walking from one property or set of meters to the next). Schedulers want to be able to define and create a single task that consists of the 120 child-tasks that can be scheduled once, with a single duration (2-3 hours in this example) and executed as the assigned technician sees fit (order or job execution does not necessarily matter).
Bundled Tasks provide the ability to group multiple individual Work Tasks into a single piece of work. A Task Bundle can be both scheduled and executed as one, saving both time and effort for Dispatchers and Field Technicians, while still respecting the constraints and planning on each individual task.
A Bundle Task can include tasks from Work Orders or Request Scopes.
It is possible to connect existing work tasks to a Bundle Task. The bundle is created from the Work Tasks and Request Tasks overview screens. It is possible to add additional tasks to an existing Bundle as long as the Bundle Task status in below Work Done.
When Work Tasks are bundled, the duration will be calculated automatically based on the duration of each individual task included. Let's assume you include 3 Work Tasks, each with a duration of 15 minutes, the task bundle duration would be 45 minutes. The calculated duration can be adjusted if required.
Each task included in a bundle will be excluded from scheduling.
When a Bundle Task has been created, it is possible to define resource demands for person, crew and tool, a bundle task address and planned start and finish dates. The Resource Demands from the individual tasks are not inherited and will be excluded from demand planning and scheduling. The bundle can then be assigned to a resource for execution. Once assigned, it is possible to transfer the bundle to mobile for execution.
Work Assignments are created for the resources that are allocated to perform the task bundle. These assignments can be executed in IFS Cloud Web or be transferred and executed in the mobile clients.
The Bundle Task status drives the status of the included tasks. Work Assignments in the connected work tasks will be cancelled when bundled. More detailed information about Status Handling.
Time reporting on a Bundle Task will create work task transactions on
the Bundle Task, which will be the reference to the work task
transactions created on the connected work tasks. The Bundle Task
Transaction will however not have accounting lines and will not be
transferred to finance. Time reporting can be done from IFS Cloud Web or
from the mobile clients.
It is possible to decide how reported time
should be distributed to the connected work tasks. Three options are
available:
The default distribution method is controlled by setting the Object Property BND_TASK_COST_DIST to either EQUAL, MANUAL or PERCENTAGE.
Already planned material requirements and returns on connected work
tasks can be issued or returned on the Bundle Task.
Transactions will
be created directly on the connected work tasks, the same as on an
individual Work Task. Material issue can be done from IFS Cloud Web or
from the mobile clients.
Expenses and External Cost must be reported on the individual tasks included in the bundle, and not from the bundle itself.
Once a bundle has been executed it is possible to view a summary of transactions which include:
It is possible to disconnect work tasks from a Bundle Task if the Bundle Task status is below Work Done and no Time transactions exist. Once disconnected, the disconnected Work Task will be treated as any other individual task.