Resource Planner For Microsoft Dynamics NAV

Transcription

1 Resource Planner For Microsoft Dynamics NAV Introduction to the Basics to be used for Self Study or Instructor Lead Training Distributed by: Cost Control Software, Inc Old Meridian Street Carmel, IN Phone: (317) w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 1

2 Table of Contents Application Description... 3 Installation... 4 Setup... 5 Sequence of Implementation... 7 Daily Workflow... 8 Screen Orientation Tips Summary Test Your Knowledge Bonus Videos from Planner One Student Evaluation Course Evaluation Support This Training Material is designed for the following individuals: 1-2 trainees per company. Trainees are experienced at scheduling We are not teaching scheduling methodologies We are working on one company installation. Trainees will already be trained on setup, workflow and terminology of NAV Jobs. This Basics Training Manual is provided free of charge to companies that have purchased PlannerOne through Cost Control Software only. This manual should have come to you directly from Cost Control Software. Any distribution of this manual and the embedded videos is strictly prohibited. Please report violations of distribution to rick.baxter@costcontrolsoftware.com. w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 2

3 Application Description Objectives of this Class PlannerOne s Resource Planner is a fully integrated and embedded scheduling tool within Microsoft Dynamics NAV Jobs. Resource Planner will take about one (1) day to setup, and one (1) day for learning with this Manual, and 1 to 2 Days of extended Training and Troubleshooting with your Cost Control Software Support Person. Resource Planner is designed to enhance your NAV Jobs with Visual Drag and Drop Scheduling; and it is localized to be used with basic NAV Jobs or Job Manager by Cost Control Software. Key Features Allows users to easily move Activities around with Drag-and-Drop tool. Advanced scheduling features like Move, Align on Calendar, Recalculate Dates, Close Periods, Open Periods, and more. Provides the look-and-feel of Microsoft products for easy usage. Infinitely customizes activity labels on our powerful Resource Gantt and Job Gantt. Shows resource utilization & availability by looking at organized Capacity Plan graph & grid. Highlights problems, like overloads, in red so you ll never miss a scheduling conflict again. Color Coded Activity Stickers Benefits Improved customer service level Visualization of the Plan (By Job/Task or by Resource) Reduced cycle-time and inventory Improved responsiveness through the tight integration into Microsoft Dynamics NAV with Web Services. Monitor your On-Time Delivery Percentage in the KPI Window. Organize your Resources by Resource Groups (Welders, Painters, ) w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 3

4 Installation Installation will be completed by Cost Control Software staff remotely. For the best possible scheduling results and to stay within a reasonable implementation budget we recommend the following: 1. Ensure your SQL Installation meets the Hardware Requirements specified during the sales process. 2. Ensure we are able to work with your IT Staff on a timely basis to expedite the installation. 3. Ensure we have the necessary credentials and instructions to work remotely on your server. (Install and Troubleshoot) 4. After Installation the application will be in the hands of your Resource Planner. Be sure they have access to your Development Database and your live Production Database. 5. This class is designed for an experienced scheduler. It does not teach concepts of scheduling, it covers how to use Resource Planner with Dynamics NAV. 6. We also assume the student of this class knows NAV Jobs or Job Manager. We have a separate Training DVD on how to use Job Manager for Dynamics NAV. 7. We also recommend you watch the all the embedded videos in this manual. Then re-watch and use the pause button so you can try what you see in your Practice Database. 8. Note: The majority of the content of this class is in the Video Presentations. w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 4

5 Setup 1. Calendars Review the Default and add any new ones as needed. Resource Planner s DEFAULT Calendar: w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 5

6 2. Resource Card Select the Calendar to use per Resource. Indicate if you want to Ignore Resource with the Boolean. We call these Non-Scheduling Resources. Check the Base Unit of Measure. HR = HR in Resource Planner. Time units must be the same. We recommend you have general labor resources like LABOR20. Use that resource for your Estimating. Add your People Resources like RALPH. Use that resource on the Planning Desktop as your make your Schedule. (Use the Move function to move the activity from LABOR20 to RALPH) The Publish will show that RALPH is the Scheduled Resource. w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 6

7 3. Ensure the Time Refresh is set on the Server to Server Time Zone. w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 7

8 Basic functionality Test: 1. Select the Job to be tested. 2. Select the Task to be tested. 3. Select the Planning Line to be tested. (ie: LABOR20 for 10 hours) - Add one if none exists. 4. Go to Resource Planner, Job Planning 5. Create Activities for just the testing Job. (Best to test 2 or 3 Planning Lines) 6. Verify the Activities show on the Desktop. 7. From Resource Gantt, test the Move option. 8. Verify the Publish is working 9. Verify the Job Shows the Scheduled Hours 10. Verify the Task shows the Scheduled Hours 11. Verify the Planning Line shows the assigned Resource if it was changed. w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 8

9 Security: Resource Planner has 3 Levels of Access: 1. The Planner (Full Access) 2. The Viewer (View Only) 3. The Collaborator (View only, but access to Tags and Messages) If you only need Planner access then no other action is needed. If you want Viewer and Collaborator, then security must be adjusted: Please contact our office if you need assistance with Security. w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 9

10 PlannerOne Manager: There may be time that you need to re-initialize (re-init) Resource Planner. This is rare, but our technicians may need you to do this. This is what you want to see ALL the time. w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 10

11 Sequence of Implementation Install, Setup, and ensure Resource Planner is operational 1. Cost Control will create a Testing Database with Resource Planner installed. Note: New Dynamics NAV Job installations will take less time than an existing NAV customer with NAV Jobs fully operational. 2. Your Database will now be ready for the learning process to begin. Start the Learning Process with our Warm Up Self Study Manual. (This book) 3. Client will complete this Manual s pre-recorded Warm Up training on their Testing Database. 4. Client will attend a Web Training Session after completing this Study Guide. We will want to confirm that the Warm Up process is complete. This may extend into trouble shooting and Q&A Sessions. 5. Optional: Client can attend a 2 nd Web Meeting to get answers to their questions on the basics. Next is Level 2 training either on premise or via web meetings. 6. We will be asking the Scheduler / Student to demonstrate what they have learned so far. We ask that the Quiz Pages be returned first. 7. Now we start to Apply Resource Planner to your business. With new NAV installations we setup Planning Lines for scheduling. With existing NAV installations we analyze your setup and make recommendations to optimize your scheduling. We recommend you practice with your real data, but in a Development/Training Database. Advanced Training Topics (optional) 8. This is optional: Our Trainer travels to the client s location for a minimum of 3 Days of onsite training and application configuration. This advanced training might also be provided through frequent web coaching sessions. We want to be sure you are properly applying Resource Planner to solve your scheduling needs. On-Going support will always be available to you via web meeting and billed as needed. w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 11

12 Daily Workflow Let s begin by understanding who does what: Your Estimator sets the Estimated Dates, Costs, Resources Assignments Your Scheduler sets the precise Dates and Resource Assignments Your Accountant tracks the Actual Costs This manual is for the person that will run Resource Planner. 1. Start your new Job(s) in Job Manager. w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 12

13 2. Review the dates for reasonableness: Job Start, Job Finish, Task Starts & Finish, Planning Line Start Dates The planning line s Planning Date will adopt the Begin Date of the task to which the planning line is linked. If all resources will not start on the same date, you will need to go to the planning line s and adjust the date. w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 13

14 Adjust the Planning Line dates if you need to, before you create your Plan. 3. If you want to schedule this job in Resource Planner, you just set the Plan in Resource Planner to YES. (Job Card s Planning Tab) Note: This just means it is available to Create Activities in Resource Planner. Also, if you have Job Manager, this can automatically be set to YES upon Order status being set to Order. w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 14

15 4. Now go to the Resource Planner, Job Planner Tab. Your new Job should be shown, but Not Completely Planned. 5. Hover over Job, select the Create Activities for one Job or use the All Jobs function to create Activities for all Jobs. These activities (Stickers) will be/are 1 to 1 to the Job s Planning Lines. Each Job planning line (Type = Resource) will create an activity sticker in Resource Planner. w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 15

16 6. Job should move to the Completely Planned group of Jobs. You are not quite done yet. This just positions the stickers as defined by the Estimator. It is now up to the scheduler to do the precise placement and assignments. (Drag & Drop) 7. Use the Resource Gantt to: Drag, Drop, or Edit Activities. (if needed) The scheduler now has control of the dates and the load hours per Activity. w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 16

17 Double Click an Activity Sticker to open the detail window 8. Go to Resource Gantt to use the Move function. w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 17

18 9. Click the Move icon to activate the functionality. (if not active) Then just use your mouse to Drag and Drop any Activity on the Planning Board. You can move an Activity to a different Start Date or even to a different Resource. Note: You can also leave the Plan as presented by NAV, but most Schedulers like to fine tune the plan. We suggest this becomes a first thing each morning task. Review the Job Planner Window for any new Jobs to be planned. Then Create Activities when you are ready to begin planning the Activities 10. Test again the Move procedure. ( You will use this quite often) Test again the edit in the Activity Box. 11. Note: All changes are made in your Working Plan. (What if Board) This is similar to a NAV Journal, Editable until posted. (Published) w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 18

19 12. Once you are satisfied with your Working Plan, it is time to Publish. Note: This will overwrite the current version of the Published Plan 13. Do you really want to publish this plan? 14. At this stage the Published Plan and the Working Plan are identical. w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 19

20 15. The Publish function writes all the Activity Data to NAV. With Job Manager it is then viewable at 3 different levels: Job Level from the Job Card: Task Level from the Task List: Planning Line Level from the Planning Line List: w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 20

21 16. Note: All the Scheduled Fields are Drillable to the Activity Data that is published. Hours over 8 hours will be carried forward to the next day. (Skips Weekends if that is how you have the calendar set) 17. Here is a summary picture of the Cycle. w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 21

22 Notice that the Activities come from the Job Planning Lines, so it is very important that you setup you Planning Lines in NAV as close to the desired schedule as possible. If you are also using Job Manager from Cost Control Software this is done for you by the Backward Date Scheduling Engine within Job Manager. That is why Job Manager asks for the Target Ship Date when a Job is first entered. 18. For Job Manager users. Job Manager has a function to Change Job Status to Complete. If Resource Planner is installed, then it will automatically remove the Check Mark to Schedule the Job. Hence, this Job is removed from the Planning Board. 19. Note: Resource Planner is very Free Form Drag & Drop. You can easily re-assign Activities to a different Resource. (Move from Labor Pool) w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 22

23 This is a very good thing. The Scheduler takes over from the Estimator. The Scheduler makes the Resource Assignments. The Publish command writes this assignment back to the Activity Table. 20. Concept Review a. Estimator assigns Tasks to Labor10 or Drill Press X. (Generic/Unknown) b. The Scheduler will use the MOVE feature to make the precise assignments. c. Publish will update that decision on the Job Card, Task List, Planning Lines. Hence your Task and Planning Line will show both the original assignment by the Estimator and the current assignment by the Scheduler. Task Level View: w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 23

24 Planning Line View: Notice above the Scheduler has Dragged the Planning Line/Activity to Mary for a more precise assignment. Now use the Resource Sequence to see Mary s Assignments: w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 24

25 OR Use the Resource Task List information & Report on the Resource Card. w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 25

26 Screen Orientation Go To: - Today - Start of Planning - End of Planning - Selected Date Time Scale - Week, Day, Month, Advanced (User Defined) Customization - Hide Non-Working Periods - Activity Colors - Row Height - Activity Labels - Activity Screen Tips Zoom - In, Out, Cancel Display - Auto refresh - Refresh - Restore Defaults Use the Time Scale control to set the Timeline. w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 26

27 Adjust to your typical time frame. Customization Row height You can define the fields that display on sticker: (These 3 are good ones) w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 27

28 You can define what fields are displayed on your Activity Screen Tip [Unable to get a screen Tip sample] w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 28

29 Control your Activity Colors We recommend you normally use the Advance/Delay view to spot late activities. However, you might want to set to Job so all activities on the same Job are in the same color. w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 29

30 Actions: Manage Activities Move Activities Recalculate Activities Manage calendars Markers Filter/Sort Resources Filter Activities w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 30

31 User the Filters tab, Highlight Job Shows all the activities within a Job. w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 31

32 Publication Environments and plans Configure Planning w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 32

33 Help Detailed Help file for Resource Planner Indicators& Details - From an activity sticker, you can Drill Down to the NAV details. ESC will exit back to Resource Planner. w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 33

34 Test the Search Function and view your Job. You will find this very helpful in locating information within Resource Planner. w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 34

35 Add a new View i.e.: Job Gantt w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 35

36 See the Duration of ALL of your Jobs with the Job Gantt. Notice you can click the PLUS button to open up to the Task List. Resource Sequence See all the activities assigned to each Resource. Ability to Re-Sequence from here too. w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 36

37 Design Consideration for your Resources : Are they People or Machines? Do you assign a Task to a Machine or a Person? (Both?) This will impact the number of Planning Lines to be managed. How many Resources do you want shown down the left side? You can control this list length with the option to remove on the Resource Card. See the LOAD Percentage on your Resources. Add in: Load and Capacity for more details. w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 37

38 Tips Find additional views from the Master Files: - Resource Card - Job Card w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 38

39 We recommend you utilize Resource Groups: w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 39

40 Resource Capacity is set up on the Resource Card Resource Planner displays the Capacity with the width of the vertical bars. (Working Periods) We are testing to see if the Default Calendar in Resource Planner eliminates the need for this detailed allocation of capacity. w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 40

41 Scheduled Resources From the Job Card you can view this Job s Scheduled Resources. Plans There are two plans: Working Plan or Published Plan The Scheduler always works in the Working Plan, then it is Published. Viewers can only view. Collaborators can view or annotate an Activity. (Tags& Messages) Custom Fields: Please request our extra documents and video on how to add custom fields. w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 41

42 Summary Real Time Uses web services Interacts with NAV functionalities, enabling real-time communications. Ease of Use Quick and Easy It s more about Re-Scheduling than Scheduling Make the schedule to accommodate real life Graphical planning is easy to understand. Fully Integrated Works right out of the box Simple integration and no data replication Developed using the latest Microsoft technology (Visual Studio 2010,.Net4) Fully integrated into Microsoft Dynamics NAV Key Functionality Visualization for Scheduler and Viewers Bi-Directional Integration Manage Schedule & Exceptions. w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 42

43 Test Your Knowledge: 1. What is a Job in NAV? (In your business) 2. What does it mean when you run the Create Activity function in PlannerOne? 3. Can you save filtered views of the Resource Sequence List? 4. Provide a real situation where filtered views of the Resource Sequence List would be used? 5. What can a Collaborative User do in PlannerOne? 6. When does Planner One get information from NAV? 7. When does NAV get information from PlannerOne? 8. What functional area of NAV does the schedule use for the Gantt charts? 9. Access the scheduler from all 4 places. Did you have any trouble finding them? 10. In the Resource Gantt chart, what is the NAV term for the Group Code column? 11. On the Resource Gantt chart, what is the NAV term for the Resource Code column? 12. How do you adjust the time scale? 13. What is a Sticker? w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 43

44 14. If the sticker contains: What is ? What is 20? 15. How do you change the content of a Sticker s Help Tip? 16. What indicates a closed period? 17. What indicates the duration of an activity? 18. How do you access Indicators and Details? 19. How do you change the colors of the activities? 20. What is the purpose of the Advance/Delay Colors? 21. What happens when I switch from the Advance/Delay Color mode to the Job color mode while on the Resource Gantt Chart? 22. Name two other Color modes? 23. Describe why you would use the Filter Tab? 24. Name all 5 of the Views available in Resource Planner? (1) (2) w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 44

45 (3) (4) (5) 25. What does the + sign next to the view tabs do? 26. How do you adjust the row height? 27. What is your favorite part of the Planning Board? Student Name: (required for evaluation) w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 45

46 Bonus Videos from PlannerOne These additional videos of Resource Planner are provided by the PlannerOne Development Staff: Ctrl + Click PlannerOne Video, Part #1 [2:13] Introduction to Ortems, Developer of Resource Planner Ctrl + Click PlannerOne Video, Part #2 [3:26] General Introduction to Resource Planner Ctrl + Click PlannerOne Video, Part #3 [2:45] Some advanced features of Resource Planner w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 46

47 Student Evaluation Congratulations. You have completed the first steps toward learning about Resource Planner by PlannerOne. Step 1 is this Self Study program providing basic knowledge on PlannerOne Resource Planner. Level 2 training will be a discussion on how you will use PlannerOne in your business. As a prerequisite to beginning Level 2 training, we need you to send to us your responses to the tests on pages 39, 40, and 41. Shortly after receiving the Test your knowledge pages we will setup a 2-hour web meeting to review the self study topics and your responses, to make sure you have a firm grasp of PlannerOne basics. Please sign and return the Question & Responses pages to: FAX - (317) or rick.baxter@costcontrolsoftware.com w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 47

48 Course Evaluation It is very important to us to know what you thought about the self-study program. We feel that there is a certain amount of basic training that individuals can gather on their own time and pace as well as saving the implementation budget for more in depth application topics for instructor lead training. But, we really need to hear from you. Please, take the time to fill out this short questionnaire and fax or it back to us. Sincerely, Julia Baxter, CEO Cost Control Software, Inc. 1. Approximately how much time did it take to go through the program? 2. Did you learn something? YES or NO 3. Was it worth your time? YES or NO 4. Did you like this form of training? YES or NO Please explain: 5. Would you recommend this form of training to others? YES or NO 6. How can we improve on this training? Student Name Date Please return evaluation to: FAX (317) or rick.baxter@costcontrolsoftware.com w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 48

49 Support Congratulations on your purchase of PlannerOne! We couldn t be more thrilled for you. Soon, you will be on your way to enjoying and utilizing the features and functionality of this product. This training manual is just the beginning. After completing this self-study program you should feel like you can move around in PlannerOne Resource Planner, understand basic terminology, the integration with NAV, changing visualization modes and actually doing some simple scheduling. Your next step will to work with a PlannerOne special trainer to discuss how you will use this product in your business. Contact us to schedule the next step, Level 2 training. On behalf of NAV Software, NAV Solution Centers, and NAV Service Providers, we thank you for your business. Most importantly, Cost Control Software sincerely appreciates your trust in our products. Should you have any questions or comments regarding our product, we encourage you to contact your local NAV Solution Center (NSC). Please also contact your NSC if you are considering modifications or seeking new software functionality. Cost Control Software provides many add-on products that may be just the solution you were looking for. Your NSC can provide you with our complete list of add-ons. You may also check out our website to see available add-on products as well. Visit: for more information. Distributed by: Cost Control Software, Inc Old Meridian Street Carmel, IN Phone: (317) w w w. C o s t C o n t r o l S o f t w a r e. c o m Page 49