Labor and Tool Resource Matching
When you schedule either labor or tools for a work order task in PeopleSoft Maintenance Management, you can click:
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The Recommend Labor button, after clicking the Labor link on the work order's Schedules page.
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The Recommend Tools button, after clicking the Tools link on the work order's Schedules page.
Clicking either of these buttons invokes the Resource Matching engine for either labor or tools resources. The Resource Matching engine:
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Assesses all labor resources based on their availability and qualifications to perform a work order task.
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Assesses all tools resources based on their availability and qualifications for use in a work order task.
The Resource Matching engine evaluates various factors, such as crafts, accomplishments, competencies, experience, and availability to assess how various labor resources in the resource database match with the qualifications specified for a work order task resource. A fit score is calculated based on these factors, which is used to recommend resources for the task.
To use resource matching, you must:
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Follow the setup procedures for labor and tools.
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Define and schedule the cache administration processes that will refresh the eligible resources and resource schedules cache and update the search index that will be used in the calculation of the qualification and availability scores.
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Review and modify the Resource Search, Search Configuration.
PeopleSoft Maintenance Management Search Types
Before you can use the Resource Match engine to search for and identify labor and tool resources that match your specifications for a technician or a tool in a work order task, your organization needs to decide on the importance of each of the factors used to compile the fit scores. You can do this by accessing the two search types defined specifically for PeopleSoft Maintenance Management in component. Each search type specifies the search settings and the factors that are used to determine the factor fit score.
The Resource Match engine uses the Search Framework search engine to quickly calculate the fit scores for labor and tool resources. The index process extracts information from the specified database and loads it into formatted files on the Process Scheduler server. The Search Framework indexing application transforms the labor resource or the asset data files into an index that is used for searching.
When you select one of the two PeopleSoft Maintenance Management search types in the Resource Search - Search Configuration component, the two pages in the component include the:
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Search Framework Settings page.
You can enter the Buffer Result set Size (in rows) field to specify the number of rows you want returned from the Search Index.
You can also specify the number of days to store the resource schedules. For example, if you specify 30 days, the cache administration process will store the resource schedules for 30-day periods in the cache record.
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Factor Weights page.
You identify the importance you place on each of the qualification factors.
There are two search types predefined for PeopleSoft Maintenance Management, which include:
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WASRC.
This search type is used to identify assets that are flagged as tools in the asset repository for a work order task. It only uses one factor, configurable fields, which includes ASSET_TYPE, ASSET_SUBTYPE, MANUFACTURER_ID, MODEL, and AM_BU.
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WMSRC.
This search type is used to identify labor resources for a work order task based on the importance of the weighting of these qualification factors:
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Accomplishments.
The Resource Match engine compares resource accomplishments specified for the selected craft in the work order task labor schedule to the accomplishments of the resources included in the search.
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Configurable fields.
The configurable fields for WMSRC are CRAFT, SHOP_ID, and BUSINESS_UNIT_WO.
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Competency proficiency.
The Resource Match engine compares the competency proficiencies specified for the selected craft in the work order task labor schedule with the competency proficiencies of the resources included in the search.
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Competency experience.
The Resource Match engine compares the years of experience specified for the selected craft in the work order task labor schedule with the years of experience of the resources included in the search.
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You can specify how important each of these factors is to your organization in terms of finding resources that meet the qualifications necessary to perform a work order task.
Resource Matching Fit Score Calculations
The Resource Match engine requires separate algorithms for each match factor. Fit score calculations for PeopleSoft Maintenance Management are based on the:
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Accomplishment factor.
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Competency Proficiency and Competency Experience factors.
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Configurable fields.
Resource Availability
When the scheduler enters a resource group ID and clicks the Recommend Labor (or Recommend Tools) button, the match engine determines a resource's availability based on a precise calculation. The availability calculation uses the date range and duration of the resource request, the resource's calendar, and the shift associated with the resource. The match engine then determines the resource's availability based on these two calculation methods:
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Continuous availability.
In certain scenarios, a work order task must be completed in a single block of time. For example, when a work order task requires that production equipment must be brought down to perform the task. In this case, the availability of the resource is 100 percent as long as the resource is available for a continuous time period of at least sixty minutes. If you select the Continuous Scheduling check box for either labor resources or tools, and click the Recommend Labor or Recommend Tools button to run the Resource Match engine, the engine searches for all resources that are available for a continuous time period.
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Discontinuous availability.
If a resource is available for at least 60 minutes, even though the 60 minutes are not in a continuous time period, the availability is 100 percent. For the Resource Match engine to search for resources with discontinuous availability, you must deselect the Continuous Scheduling check box for labor or tool resources.
For example, if an organization needs to schedule twelve hours of work between Monday and Friday, the following table describes the how the availability of the resource is determined based on discontinuous versus continuous availability calculations:
| Resource Schedules | Discontinuous Availability Calculation Results | Continuous Availability Calculation Results |
|---|---|---|
|
Resource #1 works Monday - Friday from 8 a.m. – 12 p.m. |
100% available given that this resource can be assigned Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday from 8 a.m. - 12 p.m. |
33% available given that the largest continuous block of time available for this resource is 4 hours out of the 12 hours required. |
|
Resource #2 works Monday - Friday from 8 a.m. - 2 p.m. each day and already is assigned to work on Monday from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. and is free the rest of the week. |
100% available given that this resource can be assigned on Tuesday from 8 a.m. – 2 p.m. and on Wednesday from 8 a.m. – 2 p.m. |
50% available given that the largest continuous block of time available for this resource is 6 hours out of the 12 hours required, from 8 a.m. - 2 p.m. on either Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday. |
If conflicts arise in the creation of an assignment and the resources can be overbooked, then PeopleSoft Maintenance Management allows the scheduler to create the assignment and changes the status to assigned. The scheduler receives a message indicating that conflicts exist and that the resource is overbooked. If overbooking is not automatically allowed, then PeopleSoft Maintenance Management issues an error and indicates that the resource does not have enough available hours to perform the assigned task. The assignments are set to a status of pending approval if assignment workflow is enabled in the Work Order Options component. Once the assignment is approved, the status changes to assigned.
Note:
Unless you indicate that overbooking requires manual override in the shop associated with the work order, the system automatically allows overbooking of a resource. Even if overbooking is allowed for a resource, you cannot assign a resource to a date past the work order task's scheduled end date and time.
An assignment status is changed to complete based on the date when the work order task is set to complete and the resource's calendar is updated based on the Update Resource Calendar option specified at the shop and business unit level. The labor resource's work history is updated only if the Update Work History check box on the resource schedule grid is selected in the row when the assignment is created. If an assignment is canceled as of a specified date, the system deletes the current and future entries on the resource's calendar and the removes the assignment from the resource's work history in the resource profile.
Example 1:
For example, a work order task (WO 2 /Task 1) is scheduled from 10:00 a.m., January 3, 2005, to 05:00 p.m., January 4, 2005, and the duration is 10 hours.
John Doe works shift form 8:00 a.m. - 12:00 am and 1:00 p.m. to 5 p.m. with an hour off for lunch from noon to 1:00 p.m. John is free all day from 01/03/2005 - 01/04/2005. He is scheduled to other tasks for the rest of the week. The scheduler wants to schedule John to WO2, Task 1 and creates these assignments for John:
| Date | Time | WO/Task |
|---|---|---|
|
1/03/2005 |
10 a.m. - 12 p.m. (2 hrs) |
WO2/ Task 1 |
|
1/03/2005 |
1 p.m. - 5 p.m. (4 hrs) |
WO2/ Task 1 |
|
1/04/2005 |
8 a.m. - 12 p.m. (4 hrs) |
WO2/ Task 1 |
Example 2:
The scheduler wants to assign Jennifer Brown to WO2 – Task 2 for a duration of 16 hours on 1/3/2005 and 1/4/2005. Jennifer's shift is 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon, lunch from 12:00 noon - 1:00 p.m. and 1:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. Jennifer has already been scheduled from 10:00 a.m. - 12 noon on 1/3/05 to another task. She also is scheduled to other tasks for all of 1/5/06, 1/6/06, 1/7/06. The scheduler assigns Jennifer to:
| Date | Time | WO/Task |
|---|---|---|
|
1/03/2005 |
8 a.m. - 12 p.m. (4 hrs) |
WO2/ Task 2 |
|
1/03/2005 |
1 p.m. - 5 p.m. (4 hrs) |
WO2/ Task 2 |
|
1/04/2005 |
8 a.m. - 12 p.m. (4 hrs) |
WO2/ Task 2 |
|
1/04/2005 |
1 p.m. - 5 p.m. (4 hrs) |
WO2/Task 2 |
Since Jennifer is already assigned to work on a different task on January 3, 2005, from 10:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. If overbooking is not allowed, the scheduler will receive an error message that Jennifer is already assigned to a task on 1/3/2005 from 10 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. and the assignment will not be created. If overbooking is allowed, the scheduler will receive a warning message stating that the assignment has been created with a conflict, but the assignments will be created.
Note:
The system updates the resource scheduled start and end dates and times based on the work order task start and end dates listed for the previous scenario.
The system also creates an assignment exception based on Scenario 1 indicating: From Date: January 2, 2005 and To Date: January 2, 2005, Hours: 1, Start Time: 12:00 p.m.
The system updates John Doe's calendar with the task assignment.
In another example, a work order task requires a resource from September 16, 2004 09:00 a.m. – September 16, 2004 1:00 p.m. (Duration = 4 hours).
Whether the task is continuous or discontinuous, if overbooking is allowed, the system does not consider the available date ranges returned. Instead it creates the assignment provided that the resource works enough hours between the scheduled start date and time and the scheduled end date and time based on the resource's shift. If overbooking the resource is not allowed and the resource is not 100% available, the system issues an error and creates no assignments.
The Overall Fit Score
After the matching process calculates an overall fit score by taking into consideration each match factor, it calculates factor family fit scores by applying the relative factor importance settings in the Search Configuration's Factor Weights page. Finally, the process averages the family scores according to the relative factor family preferences that are selected during search time. This overall fit score is not visible to end users.