The integration of Work Management to GIS
Design
Facilities Work Requests can be broadly categorized into three groups:
- Non-Construction – those requests that involve major facilities planning work and
require coordination with developers, contractors, and all the other utilities. The
preliminary design would be done in GIS, and WMS would track the effort and
business flow for approvals.
- Design – these Works Requests that involve major facilities work and require
detailed drawings and specifications regarding the placement, size and
configuration of the facilities to be installed. Detailed drawings are needed to
show where facilities cross major streets and the location of switches, fuses and
transformers. In most cases, this type Work Request would require some level of
approval.
- Pre Design – these Work Requests do not require detailed design drawings or
specifications since the crews know how to perform the work and only need a few
instructions. In these cases a design is not needed and would be inefficient since
crews can perform their job best by basing it on local conditions and on-site
discussions with customers. In most cases, this type Work Request would not
require any approval.
Many Utilities are moving to authorize crews with greater authority and responsibility for
Pre Designed work. Work crews often do not need or use detailed drawings or
specifications for routine work. Templates can also assist in eliminating the design step
for many Work Requests by using rules to automate the function and enable customer
service representatives to perform designs that were typically done in the engineering
department. For many Work Requests a few simple questions are all that is necessary to
specify the work that is needed.
Pre Designed Work Requests need only specify the components to be installed with a
rough sketch of the location. The use of pen-based software with a graphic sketching tool
is best in these situations, especially if the designs will be performed on-site in the field.
Estimate & Scheduling
Another use of Compatible Units is to enable estimates to be quickly generated for the
cost and effort associated with a Work Request. This feature is very valuable if several
design options are available and the designer wishes to compare these options from cost,
and network performance perspectives. As Utilities move to become more cost conscious
and customer service focused, designers may develop several options for a customer and
then negotiate any differences in cost, such as overhead versus underground.
In order to generate cost and resource estimates for multiple Work Request designs, there
must be a mechanism for associating labor, material, and equipment costs to the
compatible units specified on the Work Request. If a Utility wishes to generate accurate
estimates based upon current labor, material and equipment costs, then a method must be
in place to extract these costs from the appropriate corporate systems, such as the payroll,
materials and vehicle management systems. To extract actual material costs it is
necessary to determine the stock codes that are associated with the Compatible Units
used in the Work Request. This relationship is also necessary to automatically generate a
materials requisition and pick list from the bill of materials on the Work Request.
Compatible units can also assist in determining the resources that will be required for a
Work Request by including the skills and estimated effort associated with each unit. This
information is valuable during the planning and scheduling of resources, to maximize the
utilization of resources.
