Steps Tab
Use the Steps tab to add, edit, record, instruct, and execute steps in a switching sheet.
Steps tab topics include:
Steps Tab Fields
The steps table on the Steps tab displays the following fields:
• Step # displays the number of the step.
• For a block header row, this column displays the block name.
• For a step row, this column displays the step number (1 through n).
• For a sub-step within an aggregate step, such as Open & Tag, this column displays the sub-step number (a-z). Blocks and aggregate steps can be expanded or collapsed by clicking the + or - sign.
• If you are viewing the differences between this version and another version, this column uses outline numbering (1.1, 1.2, and so on) to identify steps that were added since the previous version. See “Working with Switching Sheet Versions” for more information.
• Version displays the version number of the switching sheet when the step was added. See “Working with Switching Sheet Versions” for more information.
• Operation displays the description of the switching action. When the switching action is associated to a safety document, then the safety document type and number will be displayed in this field after the switching description. This field is editable, but only if the step action is a non-operational action. In other words, if the action for this step does not impact the NMS model in any way and is not tied to another NMS tool or feature, then the text can be edited in this column. Edited text will show up with a yellow background color. To reset the value, see “Resetting Operation Text”.
• Device displays the device alias referenced in the step. If the device is not modeled, then the Device field will have a yellow background meaning that the device does not have a handle or a valid NCG and cannot be focused upon in the Viewer.
• Phases displays the phase that was selected for the step. When obtaining a device through a Viewer device selection, all the phases are selected by default.
• Details displays information about the outcome of the switching step, such as:
• Deenergize a section of the network.
• Energize a section of the network.
• Make a loop.
• Break a loop.
• Make a parallel. (The feeders involved in the parallel will be listed.)
• Break a parallel. (The feeders involved in the parallel will be listed.)
This information is recorded into the step when the step is initially added to the switching sheet, but is not dynamically updated as changes are made to the sheet. You can enter text into this field to replace the text that is automatically inserted.
• PFSummary displays the summary of power flow results with violations count before and after the analysis (VB: #Violations Before; VA: #Violations After). It is visible only when the sheet has power flow results. To show Power Flow details in individual columns, click the Hide/Display Power Flow columns button (); the PFSummary column will be replaced by the following columns:
• Feeders Affected: List of feeders affected by the step.
• Violations Before: Number of violations before the step is executed.
• Violations After: the number of violations if the step is executed.
• Customers Impacted: Summary of number of regular and critical customers impacted if the step is executed.
• Affected DERs: Summary of number of primary and secondary distributed energy resources impacted if the step is executed.
• Status displays the state of the switching sheet step. See “Switching Sheet Step States” for information.
• Crew Ready displays whether the field crew is ready to be instructed or not.
• Ready Date displays the date and time when Crew Ready is populated. Double click to override this value.
• Planned Date displays the proposed date/time when this step will be performed. The Planned Date is used to generate more accurate and detailed Impacted Customer lists and to specify the ERT for the generated Planned Events. This date must be within the Start and Finish Dates specified on the Request tab. This date is automatically updated when the switching sheet's Start and Finish Dates are updated. Thus, if the work is rescheduled, the planned date values do not have to be manually updated as well.
• Executed By displays the user ID of the person who completed the step in real-time mode. This field is automatically populated by the system.
• Completed Date displays the date the step was completed. If this field is blank when a step is completed, failed, or aborted in real-time mode, then the system populates this field automatically. If you enter a date in this field before executing a step, that date is used instead. This allows you to specify when an action actually occurred. (This field is similar to the date field on the Control Tool.) If you attempt to edit this date after the step has been completed in real-time, the system checks to see if the step affects any events. If it does, the system prompts you to confirm that you want to change the affected start date or restoration date, as applicable, based on the event association.
• Instructed By displays the user ID of the person who instructed the step in real-time mode. This field is automatically populated by the system.
• Instructed To displays the IDs of the crews to which the step was instructed. This field is automatically populated if crews are selected in the Crew List on the Steps tab header when you instruct a step. This field cannot be edited manually.
• Instructed Date displays the date and time the step was instructed. If this field is blank when the step is instructed, then the system populates this field automatically. If you enter a date in this field before instructing a step, that date is used instead.
• Address displays the address of the device referenced in this step. This field is automatically populated if you record the step by initiating an action within the Viewer. This field is editable and can be used to update address values of future recorded steps. For more information, see “Save all device addresses to the database”.
• Comments displays any additional information associated with this step. You can enter free-form text in this field.
• Hidden Columns: The following columns are hidden by default from view.
• Cond Cls displays the step's associated condition handle class.
• Cond Idx displays the step's associated condition handle index.
The Cond Cls and Cond Idx columns display the class and unique condition identifier, respectively, associated to the step. A condition handle is associated to a step when the step manipulates a condition, such as an Apply Condition step or a Grounding step.
To display the Cond Cls and Cond Idx step columns, right-click the Steps table header row and select Select Columns... to open the Select Columns to Display dialog box. Select Cond Cls and Cond Idx and click OK.
Steps Tab Toolbar and Context Menus
The Steps tab toolbar displays buttons for actions that you can perform. If a button is grayed, then that action is not currently permitted. For example, if you are currently in Study Mode, then the Start Study Session button is grayed. Some toolbar buttons, such as the Cut and Paste options, are also available through a context menu that is displayed when you right-click a step row. The context menu contains some options that do not appear on the toolbar.
The following table describes all actions that can be performed on the Steps tab with toolbar buttons, keyboard shortcuts, and/or context menu items.
To perform this action: | Do this: | Comments |
|---|---|---|
Turn record mode on | Click  | Record mode must be on in order to record operations in the Viewer using the Control tool. Before you click Record, the status bar displays Recording Currently Off.  Note: If you shift focus to another event while recording is on and then record steps for that other event (either in the Miscellaneous Log or in the Event Details Steps tab), the recording mode status on the switching sheet will change to Recording Currently Paused (with a yellow background).  |
Turn record mode off | Click  | Before you click Stop, the status bar displays Recording Currently On.  |
Save all device addresses to the database | Click | If you change one or more device addresses in a switching sheet, this action updates the devices' addresses throughout the switching sheet and also updates the device attribute table so that any new switching sheets referencing these devices will use the new addresses. |
Focus the Viewer on the objects referenced in the currently selected list of steps | Click | The toolbar button, when used with single step selections, will focus on a single device and set the environment's selected device to the step's associated device. When multiple steps are selected, the Focus button will force the viewer to display all of the step devices in one view. Note: If you have devices across many feeders, then many maps may need to be loaded to accommodate your request. This multi-device option is similar to the Dynamic View area each switching sheet automatically has associated to it on the View Areas tab. |
Mark the selected step as crew ready for instruct. | Click | This action is only permitted in real-time mode when the plan reaches the Issued state. This button is enabled only when the step state is New or uninstructed. When you click this button, the Crew Ready and Ready Date columns will be populated. |
Instruct the selected steps | Click | This action is only permitted in real-time mode when the plan reaches Issued state. Note that step order execution rules apply when enabling this button (see “Step Order Execution Rules” for details). When you select this button, the Instructed By and Instructed Date columns are populated. |
Complete the selected steps | Click | Once the action is complete, the status of the step changes to Completed (see Switching Sheet Step States on page 10-41). If you are in real-time mode, the Completed Date column is also updated with the current date. Note that step order execution rules apply when enabling this button (see “Step Order Execution Rules” for details). The Complete button is enabled in real-time mode when the plan reaches the Issued state. Note: To complete a step in real-time mode, you must have authority over the device. |
Abort the selected steps | Click | Use this action if a step was never attempted. When you click this button, the status of the step changes to Aborted (see Switching Sheet Step States on page 10-41). If you are in real-time mode, the Completed Date column is updated with the current date. However, the switching action is not actually performed. |
Mark the selected steps as failed | Click | Use this if a step was attempted but failed. When you click this button, the status of the step changes to Action Failed (see Switching Sheet Step States on page 10-41) and the Completed Date column is updated with the current date. However, the action is not actually performed against the real-time data model. |
Clear the Crew Ready status | Use this action to clear the Crew Ready and Ready Date columns. This button is enabled only when the step state is in new or uninstructed state. | |
Uninstruct an instructed step | Click | Use this action to change the state of an instructed step to Uninstructed (see Switching Sheet Step States on page 10-41). If the step has a device and an instruct condition on the device, then the condition will be removed prior to the step transitioning to the Uninstructed state. Steps that are in the Uninstructed state can be instructed again or aborted, failed or completed. Notes: • The uninstruct action is not available for SCADA instructed actions. This option is not available for steps in the SCADA Pending state. • Uninstructed steps may be deleted. • If you are using version controls, uninstructed and deleted steps may be red-lined and not deleted from the database. See “Working with Switching Sheet Versions” for more information. |
Verify steps after model changes | Click | This action is available if model changes have occurred that impact one or more devices in the switching sheet. The Web Switching service checks all the opened switching sheet steps after a model edit has occurred. If a step has a device that matches a device that was directly impacted by a model change, that step will be marked as needing verification. When the sheet is displayed, these steps will be highlighted in yellow. You can either check off each step in the sheet as they are verified or check off the entire sheet. Notes: • Outage Correction sheets are not included in this processing. Outage Correction validates the devices when the correction is made. • While the sheet has verifications pending, step executions cannot be performed within the sheet. • Switching sheets in the Completed or Rework states are not included in this processing. • Any device related field values that are pulled from model or attribute data will be dynamically updated after the model change. This includes the device fields on the Request tab and the device fields for a switching sheet step. Individual Verification • To check off each step individually, right-click the highlighted step and select Model Verify. Whole Sheet Verification • To check off all of the steps in a sheet, click to Confirm all model changes. All highlighted steps will be marked as verified. Once the steps have been verified, step execution can continue for the sheet. |
Reset study session and clear the status of the steps | Click | This action is only available in Study Mode. When you click this button, you are prompted to select either Real-Time, Nominal, or the Save Case Management tool. • Choose Real Time to replicate the real-time device states. • Choose Nominal to reset all devices to their predefined normal state. Note: The Real Time and Nominal options will immediately clear the status of the steps in the current sheet. They will also clear the study step statuses in any other open sheets. • Choose Save Case Management... to display the Save Case Management tool, which allows you to reset to a save case. See “Using the Save Case Management Tool” for more information. |
Switch to current Real-Time Mode | Click | This action is only available when you are in Study Mode. When you click this button, the status bar displays real-time mode in red and Viewer changes to real-time mode. |
Switch to Study Mode | Click | This action is only available when you are in real-time mode. When you click this button, the status bar displays study mode in gray and Viewer changes to study mode. |
Find and replace text | Click | Use this to find and replace all occurrences of a device (see “Finding and Replacing a Device in the Steps”) or text (see “Finding and Replacing Text in the Steps”) in the switching steps. |
Cut steps to the clipboard | Click | Select one or more steps. The selected steps are marked as being cut and are placed on the clipboard. The steps will only be moved after they have been pasted to their new location. Use the Paste option to paste the steps. This option is disabled if the sheet is in view only mode or the sheet state is Completed. Alternatively, right-click and choose Cut from the context menu or press Control+X. |
Move Steps to the Miscellaneous Log | -- | This action moves Real Time Completed, Aborted, Failed or Instructed steps to the Miscellaneous Log. SCADA Pending steps cannot be moved until they have transitioned to one of the states already stated. Steps associated to safety documents are also not allowed to be moved. Any step in a New or Uninstructed state will not be moved as the Miscellaneous Log only displays Real Time steps that are in a terminal or Instructed state. Any attempt to move an immovable step will result in an error dialog box and the steps will not be moved from the switching sheet's steps list. To move steps to the Miscellaneous Log, select one or more steps and select Move Steps to Misc Log from the Actions menu or from the right-click context menu. |
Copy steps to the clipboard | Click | You can select one or more steps. The selected steps are copied to the clipboard. Use the Paste option to paste the steps. Alternatively, right-click and choose Copy from the context menu or press Control+C. |
Copy steps as go-back steps | Click | You can select one or more steps. Reverse steps are created for each selected step and copied to the clipboard. Use the Paste option to paste the steps. Alternatively, right-click and choose Copy as Go-Backs from the context menu or press Control+G. |
Paste steps from clipboard | Click | Steps are pasted after the currently selected step. The operation pastes the steps that were placed in the clipboard during the last Cut, Copy, or Copy as Go-Backs operation. Once the steps have been pasted, the Paste button is no longer available and the contents of the clipboard are cleared. This option is disabled if the sheet is in view only mode or the sheet state is Completed. Alternatively, right-click and choose Paste from the context menu or press Control+V. |
Delete steps | Click | Deletes the selected steps from the plan. This button is disabled if the sheet is in view only mode or if the step has transitioned beyond its initial state (No State). Alternatively, right-click and choose Delete from the context menu or press Control+D. |
Undo the last action | Click | Allows you to undo the last action (Cut/Paste, Copy/Paste, Delete, Add Step). The Undo function returns an error (Undo is not supported across multiple sheets.) when: • attempting to undo pasting steps cut from another switching sheet • the last action was not on the currently active sheet; for example, if you insert a step on Sheet A and then switch to Sheet B and click Undo. Alternatively, right-click and choose Undo from the context menu or press Control+Z. |
Return to Nominal | Click | The Return to Nominal function generates a block of switching sheet steps that contain all the steps needed to switch the affected devices back to nominal. They will be presented in a logic order, will not outage any customers, and are logically grouped. Note: The generated block of steps are not go-back steps. |
Add a Safety Document for a step | Click | The Create Safety Document for Selected Step button creates a safety document for a selected step. If the system cannot determine the type of safety document to create for the step, the Select Safety Type dialog box will open so you may choose the type. If the step selected is not valid for safety documents, an error dialog box will be displayed. An error dialog box will also be displayed if any of the selected steps are already linked to a safety document. Once a safety document type has been determined or selected, the safety document dialog box opens. This option is disabled if the sheet is in view only mode or the sheet state is Completed. See “Working with Safety Documents” for more detail. |
Create a Safety Document | Click | The Create Safety Document button opens a context menu that allows you to choose a safety document type or open the Select Safety Type dialog box. See “Working with Safety Documents” for more detail. |
Remove Links to Safety Documents | Click | Unlinks (removes the association to) a step's device from a safety document's device list. First, select the step with the device operation you want removed from the safety document, then click the button. See “Linking and Unlinking a Step to Safety Document” for details. Alternatively, right-click and select Remove Links to Safety Documents from the context menu. |
Complete all steps up to the selected step in 'silent' mode | Click | Use this action to complete all steps up to and including the selected step in ‘silent' mode, which means that the system will auto-complete the operations without displaying the Look Ahead window. This option is only available in Study mode if you select a single row that has not already been completed. This is useful if you need to get a study session back to a point where you previously left off. Alternatively, right-click and choose Complete to Here from the context menu. |
Launch Feeder Load Management for the selected steps' feeders. | Click | Feeder Load Management may be launched when at least one step is selected. The Feeder Load Management... option is also available on the right-click option menu in the Steps table. This option is only available when Power Flow and FLM are both licensed and configured. |
Run Power Flow analysis. | Click | Displays the Power Flow Analysis wizard. See “Power Flow Analysis in Switching Management” for more information. |
Hide/Display Power Flow columns | Click | This button is enabled if the plan has power flow results. By default, if a plan has PF results, the PF Summary column is displayed and other power flow related columns are hidden. This action toggles the display of PF Summary and other columns. |
Execute the entire plan | Click | Executes the entire plan for FLISR or Optimization switching sheets only. |
Clear all FLISR actions | Click | Clears all FLISR action conditions. Applies only to FLISR switching sheets. |
Show or hide events and crews | Click to show or to hide the header | Shows or hides the Events and Crews pane, which displays crew and event associations. See “Steps Tab Events and Crews Pane”. |
Show Manual Step Addition Form | Click | Shows the Manual Step Addition pane, which allows you to add steps without using the Control Tool. See “Adding Steps Manually”. |
Add a new block header | Right-click and choose Add New Block Header from the context menu, then select the block type | Inserts a new block header of the selected type: Isolate, Fault Location, Maintenance, Restore, Construction, or Custom. If you choose Custom, you are prompted to enter the block header name. See Adding a New Block Header for more information. This option is disabled if the sheet is in view only mode or the sheet state is Completed. |
Rename an existing block header | Right-click and choose Rename Block Header from the context menu, then select the block type | Rename an existing block header to one of the following types: Isolate, Fault Location, Maintenance, Restore, Construction, or Custom. If you choose Custom, you are prompted to enter the new block header name. See “Renaming a Block Header” for more information. This option is disabled if the sheet is in view only mode or the sheet state is Completed. |
Change an instructed date | Right-click and choose Update Instructed Dates... from the context menu. | This option is used to update multiple Instructed Date step fields in one operation. When selected, this option will display the Update Instructed Date dialog box. From this dialog box you can enter in a new Instructed Date for the steps that are currently highlighted in the steps list. Any steps that have not been instructed will not be updated. |
Clear the Planned Date field for this step | Right-click and choose Clear Planned Date from the context menu. | This action is only available if the step has a value in the Planned Date column. Click this button to remove the date and leave the Planned Date column blank. This option is disabled if the sheet is in view only mode or the sheet state is Completed. |
Clear the Instructed To field for this step | Right-click and choose Clear Crews from the context menu. | This action is only available if the step has a value in the Instructed To column. Click this button to remove the crew and leaves the Instructed To column blank. This option is disabled if the sheet is in view only mode or the sheet state is Completed. |
Clear the step's Condition Class and Index fields for this step. | Right-click and choose Clear Condition Indexes from the context menu. | The action will only happen for steps that are not in a terminal state and steps that are not associated to safety documents. Click this button to remove the condition class and index associated to the step. An error dialog box will be displayed if any of the selected steps' condition handles could not be cleared. |
Group steps | Right-click and choose Group Steps from the context menu. | Groups the selected steps and draws a bracket around them in the Steps list. This allows steps to be completed in or out of order within the grouping depending on the switching sheet type. See “Grouping Steps”. This option is disabled if the sheet is in view only mode or the sheet state is Completed. |
Ungroup steps | Right-click and choose Ungroup Steps from the context menu. | Ungroups the selected steps and revises or removes the group bracket. (If you ungroup the third of three steps, the first 2 remain grouped.) See “Ungrouping Steps”. This option is disabled if the sheet is in view only mode or the sheet state is Completed. |
Insert a blank step | Right-click and choose Insert Blank Step from the context menu. | Inserts a new blank step after the currently selected step. This is useful for adding comment steps. See “Adding Comment Steps” for more information. This option is disabled if the sheet is in view only mode or the sheet state is Completed. |
Mark the location where steps should be inserted | Right-click and choose Place Step Insertion Indicator from the context menu. | Designates where newly recorded steps should be added. When you choose this option, a visible marker appears. The next recorded step is inserted after the marker. Each time you add a recorded step, the marker moves down to the newly recorded step, so that steps are added in the order in which they were recorded. This option is disabled if the sheet is in view only mode or the sheet state is Completed. |
Remove step insertion indicator | Right-click and choose Remove Step Insertion Indicator from the context menu. | When you click this option, the indicator is removed and any newly recorded steps will be added to the end of the steps list. This action is only available when the step insertion indicator is showing. |
Link to Safety Document | Right-click and choose Link to Safety Document from the context menu. | When you click this option, all safety documents associated with the switching sheet will be displayed. On selecting any of the safety documents in the submenu, the selected safety document will be associated to the currently selected step. See “Linking and Unlinking a Step to Safety Document” for details. |
Load the associated safety documents | Right-click and choose Load Safety Documents… from the context menu. | If any of the selected steps are associated to a safety document, then that document will be loaded for each step. The document type and number appear in the Operation column of the step when there is an association. |
Move the crew symbol to a new device in the Viewer | Right-click and choose Move Crew from the context menu. | When this option is selected for a step with a crew instruction, the crew symbol within the Viewer is moved to the device specified in that step. This feature is only used to move the crew symbol within the viewer. |
Move a column in the Steps list | Click the column heading and drag it to the desired position. | This allows you to rearrange the order in which columns are displayed. For example, if you want each step's status to display in the first column, click the Status column header and drag it to the left of the Step # column. |
Steps Tab Events and Crews Pane
The Events and Crews pane provides information on the events and crews associated with the sheet. Use the Show Event and Crews () and Hide Events and Crews () buttons on the Steps tab toolbar to expand and minimize the pane.
Events List
The Events List lists all events associated with the switching sheet. If you created a switching sheet from the Work Agenda Event List, the associated event is automatically displayed in the Events list. Use this list to view, add, and remove event associations and to view more information about the events. (For more information about associating events to switching sheets, see “Event Associations”.)
The Events List displays the following fields and buttons:
• The Event column displays the number of the associated event.
• The Association column displays the type of association. The list can have the following types of associations and will be listed in the order of Master, Planned, Forced, Manual and Canceled. Manual event associations are event associations that are added using the Add Event Association button on this window.
• The # Out column displays the number of customers outaged by this event.
• The Status column displays the status of the event, such as NEW, P-NEW (New Planned Event), or W-ASN (Master Switching Event).
• The Device column displays the name of the device.
• The Add Event Association button () opens a dialog box that allows you to enter an event number to associate with the switching plan. The event number can also be populated by selecting an event in the Work Agenda Event List. These events will show up as "Manual" associated events within the Events list. See “Event Associations” for more information.
• The Remove Event Association button () removes the selected event association from the switching plan. When an event is linked to a switching sheet step, an error dialog box will open indicating this and the removal will be canceled. To remove events that have linked steps, the steps have to be moved in order for the event to be removed. This option is disabled if the sheet is in view only mode or the sheet state is Completed.
• The Event Details... button () displays the Event Details window for the selected event.
• The Call... button () displays the Event Details Trouble Info tab for the selected event.
• The Highlight in Work Agenda button () selects the event within the Work Agenda Event List.
• The Show in Viewer 1 button () focuses Viewer 1 on the associated device.
Crews List
The Crews List displays crews that are associated to the switching sheet; they may be directly associated using Crews List Select Crew... function or by virtue of being assigned or en route to an associated event. If you created a switching sheet from the Work Agenda Event List, any crew associations are automatically displayed in the Crews list on the Steps tab header.
The Crews List displays the following information:
• The Crew ID column contains the crew ID of the crew.
• The Event column contains the event number the crew is assigned or en route to.
• The Contact column contains the contact name for the crew.
• The Mobile # column contains the contact's mobile phone number.
• The Mobile Carrier field displays the wireless company providing service to the mobile phone or radio.
• The Alternate Number field displays an alternate number for the crew.
• The Alternate Number Type field displays the crew's alternate number type (for example, home, personal mobile, and so on).
• The Pager # column contains the contact's pager number.
• The Status Date column contains the date and time when the crew was assigned, placed en route, or placed onsite to the event. This column is cleared when a crew is released from all of its events.The Status column indicates whether the crew is assigned or en route to the event shown in the Event # column.
• The Type column contains the crews' type (for example, Trouble).
• The Crew Info button () displays the Crew Info window for the selected crew. This button is enabled only if a crew is selected from the list. For more information, see “Associating Crews”.
• The Update ‘Instructed To' in Steps button () updates the Instructed To column for the selected steps with this crew's ID. This option is disabled if the sheet is in view only mode or the sheet state is Completed. This action will only be applied to steps in the Instructed or Completed states. Any selected step in any other state will be ignored.
• The Move Crew button () allows you to move a crew to the device associated with the selected step. This button is enabled only when the selected crew is en route or on-site to the associated event.
• The Select Crew... button () opens the Select Crew dialog box from which you may select crews or create contractor (foreign) crews to associate to the switch plan. For more information see “Assigning Crews to a Switching Sheet”.
• The Remove Crew button () removes the selected crew from the table if they were added with the Select Crew... () action and are not assigned, en route, or onsite.