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Scheduling 71

CHAPTER 9

SCHEDULING

cheduling is the method by which shop person-nel are firmly committed to work orders suffi-ciently in advance of accomplishment to assurethe timely coordination of personnel, material

and equipment. This is necessary to achieve maximumefficiency of work performance.

GENERALScheduling is a carefully prepared advance plan of

action that has taken into consideration the availability of manpower, materials and equipment; the proper sequenceof the crafts necessary to perform the tasks and the most

economical force to be assigned to the various tasks mak-ing up the complete job. Work orders are generally sched-uled in the order in which they are received, by priority orthe requirements of the customer.

The exact order in which work orders are scheduled iscontingent upon the need for the work in relation to themission of the plant; the availability of manpower, mate-rial and work sites; firm starting dates that have been es-tablished or committed in the pre-authorization stage; and

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Copyright 2002 by The Fairmont Press.

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the seasonal characteristics of the work.Effective scheduling, when properly performed, pro-

vides for the orderly and economical accomplishment of

work and the orderly introduction of work into the vari-ous shops.

PROCESSING WORK ORDERSAll work orders should be processed in the following

manner.

I. Determining Material ActionThe planner/estimator should review the bill of mate-

rial to determine if the materials in the quantities requiredare available from the supply stocks or if special procure-ment action may be required. This action is performed to

provide a preliminary determination for a starting date of the work order. If it is determined that a procurementaction will have to be accomplished, a realistic materialrequirement date will be entered on the bill of material forscheduling purposes. If procurement of materials isneeded, the work order should be placed in Suspenseuntil all materials are on-hand and ready for issue.

II. Determining Work ActionUpon determination that all required material is avail-

able, the maintenance supervisor should take the follow-ing action.

A. Minor work orders

1. IssueThe minor work order is logged out to the shopin a minor work order log. The log can be any


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record which will show the basic informationpertaining to the work order to include the work order number, a brief description of the work, the

total estimated cost, the total man-hours and thescheduled dates of issue and completion.

2. BacklogThe minor work order is entered in the backlogrecord and filed in numerical order with theother work orders in the backlog file. The tenta-

tive scheduled starting date is entered in the backlog.

B. Specific Work OrdersSpecific work orders are usually backlogged untilthey can be scheduled into the shop(s) for accom-plishment. An exception to this rule would be urgentwork that must be accomplished immediately or by aspecified date. In this case, all efforts should be di-rected to obtaining the necessary materials so thework can be scheduled.

Issue and backlog action for specific work orders is asfollows.

1. IssueThe work order is entered on the master scheduleshowing the hours allowed (by craft) and thecraft sequence for work accomplishment. Work isnot started at this time.

2. BacklogThe work order is entered in the backlog recordand then filed in numerical order with the otherwork orders in the backlog file.


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III. Scheduling the WorkAll minor and specific work orders are scheduled

according to the classification of the work, its urgency and

nature. Scheduling is discussed below.IV. Work Completion

When the work specified in the work order has beencompleted, the lead shop gathers all shop copies, dates thelead shop copy and returns all copies to the maintenancesupervisor. The supervisor will ensure that the work has

been accomplished in a satisfactory manner by assuringthat all the job specifications have been completed, thatthe work site has been cleaned and excess material has been returned to supply. The supervisor then assembles allthe completed copies of the work order, clears his recordsand closes the work order.

MASTER SCHEDULE METHODS

Master scheduling is the application of shop loadingtechniques at various component levels to ensure that theworkload is balanced with the workforce and that an ad-equate backlog exists to assure a constant and steady flowof work to the shops.

I. Master Schedule

A. PurposeA master schedule is the visual focal point for themaintenance supervisor and is a visual tool for boththe maintenance supervisor and management. It pro-vides a centrally located place where management


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can review the status of all specific work orders inprogress.

B. ScopeThe master schedule schedules all specific work or-ders and those minor work orders for which it has been determined that scheduling controls should beapplied.

C. Method

The master schedule is prepared on a weekly basis fora period of four to six weeks in advance. The specificwork orders scheduled will generally be taken di-rectly from the backlog or from requests at the time of receipt, depending upon the nature and urgency of the work.

1. The schedule is prepared based upon manpower,material and equipment availability during theweek or weeks concerned. The maintenance su-pervisor should assure that the materials andequipment required are available when the work starts.

2. Committing Work Of the total man-hours available for minor andspecific work, the maintenance supervisorshould commit 70%-75% of the man-hours tospecific work orders. The 25%-30% allowed forminor work will provide a cushion to absorburgent work or unforeseen problems occurringduring the work week. In arriving at the per-centage of labor committed to the two types of


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work, a labor analysis should be performed(see page 46).

3. Adjustments to the Master ScheduleThe master schedule is a firm commitment of themaintenance department to specific work ordersin accordance with the planned schedule. Oncethe plan has been accepted and agreed upon,adherence to the schedule is mandatory. This willassure that the work progresses in the most eco-

nomical manner. The master schedule should not be adjusted to meet minor changes in work con-ditions or actual performance deviations. Itshould be changed only when there is a majorchange in the scope of the work, when majordelays occur or when the entire schedule is dis-rupted by emergency conditions.

4. Determining Manpower AvailabilityThe maintenance supervisor should determinethe man power availability far enough in ad-vance to allow accurate scheduling. To determinethe manpower availability, the supervisor mustknow the current strength, any anticipated man-power changes and the total man-hours commit-ted to overhead, emergency and service work,and standing work orders. The computed man-hours available for minor and specific work or-ders is then committed according to the percent-age factor allowed for each type of work. Theman-hour figure allowed for specific work should not be exceeded in scheduling the work orders.


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D. ApplicationThe master schedule reflects, in addition to data per-tinent to the work order, the actual man-hours that

were expended against the scheduled man-hours forthe week and the overall job progress.

II. Shop ScheduleThe shop schedule is for the individual shops to plan

the accomplishment of all work except for emergency andservice work. It provides the daily work assignment of

shop personnel for a one week period.

A. ScopeThe shop schedule schedules all work for accomplish-ment to include standing work orders, PMI, minorand specific work orders.

B. MethodThe shop schedule reflects the daily assignments for aone week period. The schedule is based on the masterschedule manpower commitments and the man-hourscommitted to standing work orders with the remain-ing man-hours allotted to other work requirements.Priority work scheduling for the shop schedule is asfollows:

1. Standing work orders are a continuing firm com-mitment of shop man-hours. Personnel thus em-ployed cannot be scheduled for other work.

2. Specific work orders as scheduled on the masterschedule are a firm commitment of shop person-nel. Unless there is a major change in the scope of


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the work, a major delay or an emergency condi-tion which disrupts the schedule, compliancewith the schedule is mandatory.

3. Emergency and Service work is provided for byallowing sufficient man-hours uncommitted toother work. The man-hours allowed are based onhistorical data.

4. Minor work orders are scheduled based upon theman-hours available for this category of work.They are also used as fill-ins if additional work isneeded for the shop personnel.

C. ApplicationThe shop schedule will reflect, in addition to datapertinent to the work order, the actual man-hoursexpended against the scheduled man-hours for eachday and the overall progress of the job by the shop.The daily assignment of personnel on the shop sched-ule will give the shop supervisor better control of hispersonnel and will also eliminate delays caused inassigning personnel to particular jobs.

MATERIAL COORDINATIONOn work orders requiring the procurement of materi-als from outside sources, the maintenance supervisorshould accomplish the following.

Backlog the work order until the materials and man-power are available and it can be issued for accom-plishment.


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Monitor the processing of the material requirementsto the degree necessary to assure delivery at the timerequired.

Upon delivery of the material, he should process thework order in accordance with his established sched-ule.

REPORTS

The following reports are essential elements of masterscheduling as well as a source of accurate date for man-agement.

The work order backlog report provides a compre-hensive listing of all authorized work orders that have

been backlogged due to manpower, material or equip-ment requirements.

The work status report provides accurate informationpertaining to the status of scheduled work orders.

The shop variance report is used to make any neces-sary adjustments or revisions to the master schedule.

It is prepared weekly on all scheduled work inprogress.

MANAGEMENT REPORTS

The following weekly reports of the previous weeksmaintenance department activities should be forwarded tothe plant management no later than Tuesday of each week.


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Work order backlog report with the- reasons for back-logging each work order.

Work status report will inform the plant managementof work orders completed in the previous week andthe status of work in progress. The report will alsostate the reasons for work orders not being completedas scheduled, and the new scheduled completiondates.

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