Maintenance Guide
Version 3.7.0 brings an entirely new maintenance module to the web platform. There is a host of new functionality for keeping your fleet properly maintained and running smoothly. Some of these features include:
- Individual Task Creation per Vehicle
- Average Daily Usage Calculations
- Custom "Due Soon" Threshold
- Highly Customizable Task Alerting
- Historical Maintenance Record Keeping
- Grouped Historical Records for Repeat Tasks
- Audit Logs for Task Creation/Edits/Completion
Version 3.7.2 has added more functionality to our maintenance module, see the New! sections below for details on:
- Maintenance Service Cost Tracking
- Attachment upload
- Bulk task assignment/creation
To be able to track Maintenance across your fleet of vehicles and assets we've broken it down into individual tasks based on different service types. Tasks can be created with Repeat Frequency for maintenance or as One Time services.
The Maintenance table sorts your Upcoming tasks by an Average Daily Usage calculation for both mileage and engine hours to determine the approximate number of days until due. The Average Daily Usage is calculated by looking at the past 180 days of data. You have the ability to set your own threshold for "Due Soon" (Orange tasks) so you can easily know what's upcoming based on your own schedule.
In addition to Upcoming tasks, there is also the Completed maintenance tab. This summarizes all of the tasks that have been completed with important information about when, at what mileage and who the service was performed by.
- To create a new task start by clicking the 'Create New Task' button in the top right hand corner of Maintenance page.
- Select the vehicle the task applies to.
- Give the task a name, select a service type and choose whether the task is to be a One Time or Repeat task.
- Depending on whether you're creating a One Time or Repeat task you'll then be ask to enter certain information about when the task should be Due At/On
- For Repeat frequency tasks you will enter the the Last Performed odometer or engine hours value (and/or date if you select that option) and then enter the interval of how frequently the task should occur (i.e. 5000 miles, 100 engine hours, 90 days)
- For One Time frequency tasks you can select the odometer or engine hours value that the task will become due and/or you can select a specific date.
- You can also add a note about the task at the bottom with any important details (e.g. Use 5W-30 Oil)
- Once you've added in all the details click Save and the task will be created. You should now be able to see or search it in the maintenance table.
Once a task has become due and the service has been completed you'll want to make sure it is Marked as Completed.
- To mark a task as Complete either hover over the task in the table and a 'Mark as Complete' option will appear in the Actions column or while viewing/editing a task (by clicking the on the Task Name) use the 'Mark as Complete' option in the bottom left.
- You'll then be asked to enter information regarding the completion of the task:
- Date Completed
- Odometer at Service
- Engine Hours at Service
- Performed By
- Any notes about the task/service that was completed
- If this is a Repeat task then it will show a checked box next to 'Repeat Service' and the intervals that are set for this task. If you wish to edit these you can do so at this stage. If you want to end this Repeat task then you can uncheck the box; it is unlikely that you'll want to do this for most Repeat tasks.
- A Repeat task's Due On/At will be updated based on the Odometer/Engine Hours at Service or Date Completed entered during the Mark as Complete process. It will remain on the Upcoming tab but based of the new last performed at record. On the Completed tab a record that this Repeat task has been completed will show.
- A One Time task that is marked as complete will no longer show on the Upcoming tab and a completed record will show on the Completed tab.
- To edit a task simply click on the Task Name blue hyperlink in this first column.
- Here you can edit the following fields:
- Task Name
- Last Performed
- Due Every or At/On fields
- Task Notes
- It is not possible to edit the asset the task is for, the service type, or the frequency. If you need to adjust any of these fields you'll need to create a new task and possibly delete the task you were trying to edit (i.e. if it is wrong or no longer serves a purpose).
- Once you've made the necessary adjustments, click save in the bottom right.
- The deletion of a maintenance task should be a rare occurrence and generally avoided unless totally necessary.
- Deleted tasks cannot be recovered.
- To delete a task, locate it in the maintenance table and clikc on the three dot menu button in the actions column on the right hand side.
- This will give you a few different options including 'Delete Task'.
- Deleting the task will permanently remove it from the system and all notes, attachments and alerts will be deleted.
- If you are deleting an a Task from the Upcoming maintenance table this will only remove the upcoming task. If it is a One Time task, it will simply no longer be an outstanding or task to be completed. If it is a Repeat task it will only delete the upcoming version of the task, historical records of a repeat task being completed will still be stored under the Completed tab.
- However, if you wish to delete all records of this repeat task then you can do so by completing the same steps while on the Completed tab, here the option will be Delete Task Record. Again, the need to complete this action should be rare, deleted historical records cannot be recovered, proceed with caution.
- Maintenance alerts are highly customizable so that you can notify the right people via email or SMS text message regarding specific vehicles tasks or service types.
- Maintenance alerts can either be created by navigating to the Alerts page on the left hand side and selecting Create Alert in the top right hand corner; or by using the three dot menu button in the actions column of the maintenance table (this method will prefill some of the fields based on the task you select from).
- Maintenance alerts run hourly, the system will check each hour if the thresholds that you've set have been met and if so the alert will fire. You can set the time before the alert can fire again in the Options section of the alert creation, explained below.
- On the Create Alert modal window start by entering in the Alert Name (e.g. Oil Change - Service Trucks)
- Next select whether or not you want this alert to be specific to a Vehicle or Group (e.g. the Service Trucks group).
- If you have selected that the alert be specific to a Vehicle you can then choose whether the alert is for one Specific Task or for a Service Type.
- If you have selected that the alert be specific to a Group, you will then select which Service Type the alert is for.
- Next, enter the Alert When fields to set the parameters of when the alert should fire. There are a number of different options here which will change depending on your previous selections about vehicle versus group and a specific task versus service type alert. In general though your options are as follows:
- Alert when the task has become due (when the set odometer, engine hours or date is 'now')
- Alert X days before the task is due (this is "based on the Average Daily Usage" or "ADU", i.e. set X to 3 days, for a vehicles and ADU of 50 miles this will fire when the remaining odometer interval is 150 miles)
- Alert when one of the intervals is at the exact threshold you set (i.e. 500 miles, or 10 engine hours, or 10 days before task is due).
- The final step on the Alert Details section is the Options section which allows you to set how frequently the alert can fire. "After alerting, disable this alert for" allows you to set how long until the alert will fire again while a task remains 'due'. (i.e. if you want to be reminded every day, set this to 1 day, if you don't want the alert to fire again until next week, set it to 1 week).
- Once you've entered all your preferred settings, click next to go to the Notify section. Here you can enter in the email addresses and/or phone numbers that should receive the maintenance alert. You can add multiple emails and phone numbers.
- Two check boxes at the bottom of this step will allow you to choose whether the 'Current Vehicle Metrics' and/or 'Task Note' should be included in the alert.
- The Current Vehicle Metrics are the last known Odometer and Engine Hours values.
- The Task Note is the current note that is saved on the related Maintenance Task.
- Again, click next to go to the Finalize section. You will be shown a summary of the alert you're creating. If everything looks good, click Save.
- The should see the new alert populated in the table. If you need to edit anything about the alert just click on the Alert name and make the necessary adjustments.
If you're looking for a summary of upcoming or completed maintenance tasks there are a few ways this can be accessed. One of the most useful ways will be to navigate to the Reports section of the platform using the primary navigation on the left hand side.
Here, search for Maintenance, and you should see two results for 'Completed Maintenance' and 'Upcoming Maintenance'.
Completed Maintenance - This report allows you to select a specific time range to view what maintenance tasks were completed during a period. You can run the report for just one vehicle or a group of vehicles and either all Service Types or one specific Service Type. Additionally, you can choose whether to Format the report as Order by Date or Group by Vehicle.
Upcoming Maintenance - This report allows you to see any of the upcoming maintenance tasks for a specific asset or group of assets. You can choose whether to run it for a specific Service Type or for all Service Types.
Both of these reports can be scheduled so they are emailed to you on a regular basis. Just click the 'Schedule Report' link to the left of Run Report to set this up. To see all schedule reports just clck on the 'Scheduled Reports' button at the top of the reports list, above where you search for a report.
Release 3.7.2 brings new functinoality to make the creation and assignment of maintenance tasks quick and easy across your fleet.
To utilize this feature, start by creating one task with a specific service type for one of your vehicles or assets.
Once you've created the first one - which will be used as a 'template' for other vehicles or assets across your fleet, click the three dot menu button in the action column. then select 'Apply Task to other vehicles'
You'll then be taken to a new page where you'll have the option to select multiple vehicles or assets that you want to make the task for. The same Service Type and Interval will then be applied to the vehicles or assets you select from the section on the left hand side.
You will also want to ensure that the Last Service odometer, engine hours or date has been updated correctly for each asset.
If you need to make any changes to the task that you are bulk applying, you can edit that original/template task in the top left hand corner.
Once you're happy with the vehicles you've selected and all the information about the task is correct, click the 'Create All Tasks' button in the top right hand corner.
Release 3.7.2 also brings the ability to enter the Cost of Service and upload Attachments when completeing maintenance tasks.
To access this feature, navigate to a maintenance task that has recently been completed because the vehicle was serviced.
Select 'Mark as Complete' from the Actions column.
You'll see that the pop up window has been updated to include fields for entering the Parts, Labor, Other and Total costs associated with the service that was completed.
Additionally, attachments such as a service invoice, notes or photographs can be uploaded and stored in the platform to be associated with the completed work.
Now, when you navigate to the Completed maintenance task record you'll be able to view the Costs of Service and any attachments that were uploaded.