The Installation Schedule program can be accessed from both the Installation System menu or via the Order Entry/Maintenance module. In addition to keeping track of labor totals for a given day, week, month, etc., this module will also allow you to assign Installers to Labor Lines on Jobs, based on User permissions, set up multi-day installation schedules, and update Job Status and installation information on Jobs, without leaving the program. A “Refresh” button will allow you to update the module with new Install Dates that have been added while you’ve been working in the module.
Accumulator Code Maintenance
In order to maximize use of the new program, you must first set up and add special codes, called Accumulator Codes, to your “principal” labor catalog items. For example, a typical residential remodel job may have three or more labor lines on a job, just for carpet installation. However, only one of the carpet labor lines should be considered your “principal” labor catalog item. That will be the line that tells the program the total yardage/footage to be installed. The other labor lines, such as rip up, stairs, haul away, etc., should not be considered “principal” labor items in the system or the result will be an over-estimation of the total labor required for a given day. More than one “principal” labor line on a job is fine, but it must relate to another installation service, such as tile or hardwood, or a different carpet installation. For example, a Job may have four Labor Lines consisting of 100 yards of installation, 100 yards of rip/up, 100 yards of disposal, and 12 steps. The Accumulator Code should only be tied to the 100 yards of installation, so the system only counts 100 total yards, not 312, which would be inaccurate from a scheduling standpoint.
The first step is to create your Accumulator Codes, if none currently exist. You will find the setup in one of two places. Either in Product Code Maintenance as one of the items under the Functions menu as follows: Accumulator Code Maintenance, or as a separate module located in the Sales Processing Setup Programs Menu. From either option, the system will prompt an Accumulator Code Maintenance screen as follows:
The items in the above screen are typical installation descriptions. The Accumulator Scheduling Limits option will be explained below at the very end of this section. To add a new Accumulator Code, click the Add button. The system will prompt the following:
At the Code (1) field, type a one character code to represent a labor item. At the Description (2) field type a longer description for the Code. Click the Save button to save your new code and return to the previous screen. When you double-click on a highlighted Code, the system will prompt the following:
You can add/edit text in the Description field at any time. Click the Save button to save your changes and exit the screen above. In the main screen, if you right-click on any existing Codes, you can call up the Accumulator Code Maintenance screen above, or you can remove any unwanted codes by using the Delete Accumulator Code option. Once your Codes have been added, the next step is to access items in your Labor Catalog via the Catalog Maintenance module and add these Codes to each applicable “main” installation Labor Item. An example appears below:
At the Accumulator Code field, use the drop down arrow to select an applicable Code. Continue until all main Labor Items have been assigned an Accumulator Code. Also, on each Labor Catalog Item, to assist with not over-scheduling, there is a Percentage field next to the Accumulator Code field that appears as follows:
Consider this field a percentage value of the duration of an installation. A percentage of 100% would be a normal or average setting for a typical type of install. Any increase in percentage would indicate that extra time is needed for the Labor Item, and a lower percentage would indicate less time is needed. For example, typical stretch-in carpet would be set at 100%. Patterned carpet installation would then need to be at about 125% or higher, and rip up could be set to 50% or lower. Just below the Percentage field, you will see a checkbox as follows: Ignore Additional Installation Days. When checked, the system will ignore any setup requiring this particular item to need additional days to install.
Another change you will note in the BMS System after this setup is completed, is in the Install Dates tab when scheduling installation. It will take into account the Capacity Limits set (explained below), Percentage field, and the Ignore Additional Installation Days checkbox to calculate a suggested number of days required to install when scheduling. When you click the Add button to schedule a Labor item, the Add New Install Dates box will still prompt, but you will now see a Total Days Required message, as in the screenshot below:
INSTALLATION SCHEDULING CAPACITY LIMITS:
The system allows for setting Installation Scheduling Capacity Limits on Accumulator Codes. This feature is designed for setting “Hard Limits” that cannot be exceeded when scheduling installation for a particular day. It also allows for blocking installation dates entirely, as in the event of holidays, and will allow key Users to raise or lower capacity limits for a particular day. The setup starts with accessing a Company Control 4 screen option that appears as follows: Company Accum Totals (R, B, C). This control determines at what level capacity is met for each type of installation: Region, Branch, or Company. There is also a User Control 6 screen option that allows key Users to override these limits. That control option appears as follows: Allowed To Override Installation Limits. Set to “Y” to enable this ability.
Once the Company and User Control items are set, you will move on to the Accumulator Code Maintenance feature in Product Code Maintenance module to determine installation scheduling capacity limits for each Code. As a reminder, this feature is accessed from the Functions menu in that screen. From the Accumulator Code Maintenance screen, you will now see a new option at the top left as follows: Accumulator Scheduling Limits. When you click on this option, an Installation Scheduling Limits By Accum screen will appear as follows:
Prior to any Limits being scheduled, the default for all Codes is all “9’s” in each field. This is so that no limits can be met until they are intentionally set by the installation scheduling department. To Add or Edit Limits, click the Add New button at the bottom right, or you can highlight and right-click on an existing line. If accessing from a line, the system will prompt the exact Branch and Code to edit, whereas the Add New button will prompt a screen allowing you to select the Branch (1) and Code (2) as follows:
At the Max Qty Per Job/Day (3) field, type in the total feet or yards that can be installed per Job for the Day. For example, 200 yards of carpet or 500 feet of tile. The Additional Installation Days (4) field should be used for Accumulator Codes that typically require an extra day to complete, such as tile. For each day of the week in the Max Jobs/Day (5) section, type in a max number of Jobs that can be scheduled in a Day based on the Accumulator Code selected. For example, 5 carpet jobs, or 2 tile jobs. This will be individual to each company based on the number of crews you run on a given day. To block an entire Day, enter “0” in that field.
The feature to Block Install Dates can also be found in the Installation Scheduling Limits By Accum screen. At the top left, you will see that option as follows: Block Installation Days. When you click on this option, a Block Installation Days screen will appear as follows:
This screen will display any current blocked days. You can use the Block Day For All option at the top left to block an entire day for all Accumulator Codes. That screen appears as follows:
Select the Branch and the Date To Block and click Save to continue. To block only certain Accumulator Codes, or to revise the Qty Per Job or Max Jobs for a Day, click the Add New button to prompt the following screen:
Make your Branch, Accumulator, and Date To Block selections in the screen above. To leave the day blocked for the selection, click Save, leaving the remaining two fields set at “0.” To Revise the fields, enter an applicable Qty (1) and Max Jobs (2) prior to clicking Save.
SCHEDULING FROM ORDER ENTRY:
Once the setup is complete, you are ready to begin using the program. From the Order Entry/Maintenance module, the system will prompt the Sales Processing module screen where you will see a View Installation Schedule button at the top left of the screen, next to the Print Job Report button. Please note: You will see this same screen when you access the program from the Installation Schedule and Installation Schedule (Short Version) modules. The View Installation Schedule button will appear in the screen as follows:
Prior to clicking the View Installation Schedule button, you must use the Select Filter option and choose “Install Date” to begin as follows:
The system will then prompt a new default filter as follows: Enter Beg and End Install Dates, as in the screenshot below:
The Beg. Date and End Date fields will default to the current date. Use the drop down arrow menus in the date fields to select a different Install Date or range of Install Dates. Next, click the Add Filter button to prompt the new date range in the box below. You will then need to click the Filter button to sort the list of Jobs in the display area below to match the Filter criteria. Now you are ready to click the View Installation Schedule button to call up the Installation Schedule screen as follows:
All Jobs with the Install Date(s) selected in the previous screen will appear in the screen above. You can filter the Jobs by selecting a specific Accumulator Code using the drop down menu in the Filter By Accumulator Code (1) at the top of the screen. Based on your selection, the Jobs will sort by that Code and you will see Totals (2) for each Code in the Accumulator Code Totals box at the bottom of the screen. If you click to highlight a specific Job, clicking the Totals (2) button will return the view to the Accumulator Code Totals box. If you select a different Accumulator Code, you will need to click the Refresh (3) button to update the screen. You can also click the Refresh (3) button to update the screen with any new installation data that has been added in the system for the selected date range since entering this module. Another option is to click in the box next to Short Version (4) to switch to that version prior to printing or exporting. Be sure to click the Refresh button after clicking the Short Version box.
You can sort the Jobs in the Installation Schedule screen by clicking on any of the Column Headers to sort by that data. The default sort is by the Date / Time columns; click on any column header to reverse the sort display. When you highlight a specific Job, the screen at the very bottom will prompt job-specific data as follows:
In the screen above, you can add/edit Job Location Notes (1) using the icon at the far left, add/edit Job Number Notes (2) using the icon in the middle of the screen, and make changes to the Install Date (3), Time (4), and Status (5) fields using the drop down menus in those fields. Be sure to click the Save Changes button to ensure your changes update these fields on the Job in the Order Entry module.
When a Job is highlighted, if you right-click on the line, the following options are available, based on User permissions:
Most of these items you will already be familiar with from using them in other areas of the system. Please Note: When assigning an Installer, the system will check the Preferred/Excluded Installer list against the Customer/Ship To and pop up a warning where an Excluded Installer has been selected. One new feature is the View Full Installation Details option. When you select this option, the system will display the following:
The Installer column is updated via the Select Installer option mentioned above. If an Installer ID appears in the box at the bottom of the screen, that indicates the Labor Lines have been scheduled for payment in the Job Labor Mtc./Installer Payments module. You can right-click on any of the Labor Lines in the screen above to prompt the following options, based on User permissions:
The Select Installer option is User controlled. When enabled, a User can select an Installer ID for the entire Job by using this option in the Installation Schedule screen, or assign different Installer IDs to each line by selecting this option in the screen above. Assigned Installer IDs will appear on the system Work Order and flow through to the Installer Payables System module.
When you have finished filtering and sorting data and making any applicable changes in this module, you can either print the Installation Schedule Report by clicking the Print menu option at the top left of the first screen, or export the data to Excel by clicking the Excel Icon. When you click the Excel icon, the system will prompt the following:
The default is No, so hit enter to continue or click the Yes button to export all lines. When you select to Print Installation Schedule Report from the Print option, the system will prompt the following:
The default is No, so hit enter to continue or click the Yes button to accumulate labor totals on the report. If you select Yes, the system will then prompt the following:
The default is No, so hit enter to continue or click the Yes button to only print accumulator totals on the report.
If you click the Short Version box prior to printing or exporting to Excel, the system will switch to the Short Version report data. Currently, the only difference between the Installation Schedule and the Installation Schedule (Short Version) is that the Short Version checkbox will automatically be selected when you access this program via the Installation Schedule (Short Version) menu option.
SCHEDULING FROM INSTALLATION SCHEDULE:
As noted above, you can access this module directly via the Installation Schedule and Installation Schedule (Short Version) menu options. When you enter either module, the system will prompt a Must Choose Installation Dates message as follows:
Click the OK button and the system will default to “Install Date” in the Select Filter drop down menu. At this point you can continue using the program as explained above.
MULTI-DAY INSTALLATION SCHEDULING:
If the installation timeline for a Job encompasses more than one day, you can schedule and track multiple install dates from within the Job. You will also continue to schedule single date installs from this screen, as the Install Date field in the Job Details box will no longer be available with the enabling of Accumulator Codes in the system. The Install Dates tab is located next to the Job History tab as follows:
When you click on this tab, an Install Dates screen will appear as follows:
All Labor Lines on the Job will automatically prompt in the top Labor (1) section above. The Sched. Qty (2) column tracks how much of the labor has been scheduled, if any. Please Note: If all Labor Lines on the Job will be installed on a single day, you will not use this Install Dates tab screen. You will continue with the single day method of clicking the Install Date field in the Job Detail box and setting the Install Date from that box. If the Labor Line, or multiple lines, will be installed over a range of dates, you will use this feature. If you right-click on a Labor Line in this section, the system will prompt four options as follows:
When a Labor Line is highlighted in the Labor section, as in the example above, click the Add button to schedule all, or a portion, of the labor, to appear in the Scheduled Lines (3) section above. The system will prompt an Add New Install Dates box as follows:
The Begin Date and End Date (1) fields will default to the current date. You can set a date range or select a new date for the labor. The Time (2) field will allow you to select the preferred time of day to begin the install. The Include Saturday & Sunday (3) fields will become available if you select a range of dates that encompass a weekend. You can then click on one or both of these days if the installation will continue through the weekend. At the Installer (4) field, you can click the Installer button to prompt the Installer Selection box and make a selection where applicable. If an Installer is selected at this field, the data will flow through to the Installer Payables System module. The Work Qty (5) field will default to the balance of the labor needing to be scheduled. You can adjust this amount to reflect what will be installed on this scheduled line, if less than the default.
At the top left you will note a View Install Calendar option. This connects to the BMS Web Install Calendar functionality, available as an upgrade to your BMS System. Please contact info@rmaster.com to learn more or to schedule a demo. Here is a look at the BMS Web Install Calendar:
Returning to the Add New Install Dates box, click the Continue button to proceed. Prior to saving, the system will prompt the following Select Associated Lines box as follows:
This box will currently only be used by customers with the BMS Install Web Calendar functionality, as mentioned above. It allows for viewing of associated material items for the labor line by Installers accessing the BMS Install Web Calendar, essentially serving as a virtual Work Order. In a later update, this box will be used in conjunction with the graphical Work Order. To use for the BMS Install Web Calendar, double-click to select each associated line, or use the Select All button to select all lines. Whether or not lines are selected in this box, you must click the Save button to keep the data in the Add New Install Date box and return to the Install Dates tab screen.
Once a labor line or a portion of a labor line is scheduled via the process above, the system will display that data in the Scheduled Lines section as follows:
If items are selected in the Select Associated Lines box, they will display in the Related Items box as illustrated above. If you right-click on a line in the Scheduled Lines section, the system will prompt the following options: Edit, Delete, Assign Installer, View Catalog, View Job Labor Detail, View Last Price, and Line Comments. The Delete option will remove the scheduled line from that section, provided no labor has been paid. The Assisgn Installer option will prompt the Installer Selection box to add/change an Installer, provided no labor has been paid. The Edit option will prompt the following Select Associated Lines box, but with the additional fields from the Add New Install Dates box:
Any of the fields above can be changed prior to labor being paid on the line.
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