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Synthesis-enabled applications allow you to create and track actions to ensure that appropriate progress is being made. Actions are resources that are available for use throughout the project in FMEAs, the DFR planner and My Portal. This means that:
When you edit an action, either through the FMEA, the DFR planner, the Resource Manager or My Portal, changes made in one place are reflected anywhere else the action is used.
While you can delete an action from an FMEA or DFR planner, it is still available as a resource and can be used for other analyses in the project as long as it remains in the Resource Manager.
Deleting an action in My Portal, like deleting an action in the Resource Manager, deletes the resource entirely. Resources that are in use cannot be deleted.
The software will display a warning if you try to save an action with the same description as another action that already exists in the project.
If the current action should be identical to one that already exists (same description, same due date, same person responsible, etc.), it is recommended to use the Add Existing Action or Replace with Existing commands to place another instance of the existing resource into this location. You can also copy/paste an action from one location to another.
If any of the properties will be different (e.g., different person responsible, different due date, etc.), you must use a separate resource. In this case, it is recommended to use a more specific description that will be unique within the project, but it is not required.
What's Changed? In Version 8, the ability to treat actions as resources that can be shared throughout the project replaces the Linked Actions functionality that was used in previous versions. The new approach makes it easier to create and maintain actions, as you can do so even when you are not working in the FMEA. You can also remove an action but still have it available for use in other places without having to recreate it.
To create an action from the Actions page of the Resource Manager, choose Home > Edit > New.
To create an action via My Portal, you must first specify the project that it applies to. To do this, open the filtering drop-down list at the top of the Actions page of My Portal and then select the project from the Project drop-down list. You can then choose My Portal > Actions > Create Action.
To add an action to an FMEA, the option must be enabled in advance by selecting the Enable Actions for Causes check box in the FMEA > Actions page of the Interface Style window.
When the check box is selected, you can return to the FMEA and create an action and add it to the FMEA by selecting the cause with which it is associated or by clicking the Actions node under that cause, and then choosing FMEA > FMEA Records > Actions.
To create an action and insert it above the selected action, choose FMEA > FMEA Records > Actions > Insert Action.
To create an action and add it to the DFR planner, select the gate with which it is associated and choose DFR > Action > Add Action.
IMPORTANT: As with other resources, if you edit/update any instance of the resource, all instances of that resource will be updated automatically.
To edit an action from the Actions page of the Resource Manager, select the action and choose Home > Edit > View or double-click the action.
To edit an action that you are involved with from My Portal, double-click the action or select the action and choose My Portal > Actions > Edit Action.
To edit an existing action in the FMEA, either edit it directly in the worksheet view or use the Action window. To open the Action window, either double-click the action in the hierarchy or filtered view or select the action and choose FMEA > FMEA Records > Actions > Edit Action.
To edit an action in the DFR planner, either double-click the action or select it and then choose DFR > Action > Edit Action.
To add an existing action resource to a specific place in the current FMEA, select the cause with which it is associated and then choose FMEA > FMEA Records > Action > Add Existing Actions to open the Select Resource window, where you can select any existing action(s) in the project.
You can also replace an action with another existing action resource by choosing FMEA > FMEA Records > Actions > Replace with Existing to open the Select Resource window and selecting an existing action.
To add an existing action to a gate in the DFR planner, select the gate and then choose DFR > Action > Existing Actions to open the Select Resource window.
The appearance of the Action window varies depending on where the action is used and where the window is opened from.
For actions used in FMEAs:
If you open the Action window from an FMEA, it will have the Ribbon used in FMEA record properties windows.
If you open the Action window from My Portal, the action window that is opened will have the Ribbon. In addition, the FMEA will be displayed in the Analysis panel with the action selected.
If you open the Action window from the Resource Manager or the DFR planner, no Ribbon will appear.
For actions not used in FMEAs, no Ribbon will appear regardless of where the window is opened from.
Note: The fields that are enabled in the interface and the options available in configurable drop-down lists will depend on the interface style settings that have been defined for the current project. You can choose Project > Management > Configurable Settings > Interface Style to open the Edit Interface Style (This Project) window and change the settings for the current project.
The Action Status is displayed at the top of the window (below the Ribbon, if it appears. The status of the action is determined automatically based on the dates defined for the action. The following statuses may apply:
Overdue: An action is overdue if its Due Date is prior to today’s date.
Not Started: An action is not started if its Start Date is later than today's date.
In Progress: An action is in progress if its Start Date is today's date or earlier and its Due Date is today's date or later.
Completed: An action is completed if a Completion Date has been entered and no approver has been assigned.
Pending Approval: An action is pending approval if a Completion Date has been entered and an approver has been assigned.
Approved: An action is approved if an Approval Date has been entered.
The Action properties consist of six sections:
Action: This area comprises the basic action properties. Note the following:
Recommended Action: The actions that could be taken to reduce the risk associated with the issue, usually by reducing the likelihood that the problem will occur or increasing the likelihood that the problem will be detected before it reaches the end user.
Short Description: A shortened (50 character maximum) version of the action description. You are not required to enter any text in this field; if you do not, the system automatically enters text based on the Recommended Action field.
Person Responsible: The person (or department) responsible for completing each action. You can either type a user name or you can select a user from the drop-down list. The list displays a list of users who have access to the database (if you are working in a non-secure database, any user who has ever opened the database will have an account created automatically and will be shown in this list). You must assign the action to a database user if you want the software to put action records into the portal and to generate e-mails to the person.
Action Taken: The actions taken (or result) for each action.
Estimated Cost: The estimated cost to perform the recommended action.
Actual Cost: The actual cost to perform the recommended action.
Action Category: The category that the action belongs to.
Action Priority: The priority for the action.
Timeline allows you to specify when the action should start and end.
Planned Start Date: The date when the action was originally planned to be started. You can type a date or you can click the calendar icon to select a date. This date is not used in determining status, but is present for bookkeeping purposes.
Planned Due Date: The date when the action was originally planned to be due. This date is not used in determining status, but is present for bookkeeping purposes.
Start Date: The date when the action started. You can type a date or you can click the calendar icon to select a date.
Duration: The amount of time that the action will take.
Due Date: The date when the action must be completed.
Completion Date: The date when the action was completed. This will change the action's status from due/overdue to complete.
Approval allows you to enter information about when the action was completed or reviewed and approved, and by whom.
Approver: The person who will review and approve the action after it is complete. You can type in a user name or you can click the Assign to Database User icon to open the Select User window. This window displays a list of users who have accessed the database or, if you are working with a secure database, users who have access to the database.
Approval Date: The date when the action was approved. This will change the action's status to approved. This date is entered automatically when the approver clicks the Approve button at the bottom of the Action window.
Review/Approval Comments: Comments related to the approval of the action. This field becomes available when the approver clicks the Approve button at the bottom of the window.
User-Defined includes all user-defined record-specific fields. Each record may contain up to five user-defined text fields, two user-defined date fields, two user-defined number fields and two user-defined drop-down lists. This area is displayed only if there are user-defined fields enabled for the record in the interface style.
Action Status Updates allows users to post information on the progress of the action. You can add as many or as few updates as desired (including none).
E-mail Notifications allows you to specify if and when e-mails will be sent about the action, and to whom. See the E-mail section of this topic for more information.
History displays information about the creation and last modification of the action.
If Microsoft Outlook is installed on your computer, you can create a calendar event based on the action on your own Outlook calendar. To do this:
For non-FMEA actions, click the Outlook button.
For FMEA actions, choose Home > Tools > Add to Outlook.
By default, the event will be scheduled for the action's due date, but you can make modifications to the event in the properties window that appears.
When working with actions, you can send e-mails to users both automatically and manually. Use the E-mail Settings window to enable e-mail notifications for actions in the database. Once these notifications are enabled, you can:
Use the remaining settings in the E-mail Settings window to specify that automated e-mail notifications will be sent for certain types of action activities (i.e., upon action creation, action modification and/or action completion).
Use the E-mail Notifications area of the Action window to specify any users, in addition to the action creator, person responsible and assigned reviewer, to whom e-mails will be sent about the action. Click the View/Edit icon to open the Action Notifications window.
Manually send an e-mail about the action:
For non-FMEA actions, click the E-mail button.
For FMEA actions, choose Home > Tools > E-mail.
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