The new dashboard is instantly visible on

opening up the application, it displays two

configurable (user-defined) graphs. These can

be independently set to look at the following

data within the system: Job Status, Work Type,

Trade, Team, Site. With each graph outputting

the data in a preferred format, 2D & 3D pie or

bar charts. Each graph has a separate print

control button with outputs that fill an A4

sheet (see example below). Another nice fea-

ture is an ability to drill into the data displayed

in the graph by double clicking on the relevant

portion (graphical search tool).

Something for Everyone - The FrontLine “Dashboard”

FrontLine Version 2.10.7.0 Update Review

Three notable areas of

Improvement:

• New “Dashboard”

feature

• Web Requester

• FrontLine on the

Move (Palm/Pocket

PC) enhancements

An independent report presented by:

Chris Lee, Director at SystemQuest Limited May - 2011

In the top right hand corner is the “Current

Statistics”. Here you are given a summary of

all jobs that fall under the following head-

ings: Number of open work orders, Overdue

work, Due in the next 7 days, Due in the next

30 days, Unallocated work, Work in progress

and Work on hold. To take full advantage of

all of these improvements. It goes without

saying that you have to be more diligent in

filling out the correct details on each job

(times, dates, names etc.) thus leveraging

the maximum benefit. Another print control

button accompanies this feature, producing

an A4 summary sheet showing both selected

graphs and the statistics (see example

below).

Contact:

Chris Lee

SystemQuest Ltd

+44 (0) 7817 848756

or

chris@systemquest.co.uk

with any ques$ons or

queries you may have.

Across the top of the Dashboard are the

short cut Icons and links: Asset (New Asset,

Asset List), Task (New Task, Task List),

Planner View and Work Orders (New Work

Order, Work List & Work Order Sign Off).

These Icons/shortcuts are all controlled by

the “User profile” set up in the security

options.

Bottom right hand corner is home to “My

Reports”. A very useful shortcut to your

favorite reports. It allows a user to select

which reports appear in this menu (both

standard and user defined/customer

created). Once added, double clicking on the

listed item will open the report on the

relevant search criteria screen.

In Summary:

For many years I have said that FrontLine

was deficient in the ability to truly manage

open work orders. Hence when I wrote the

concept document for Pirana four years ago

it included a dashboard!

I come across systems all the time, where

there can be anything up to 1,500 open work

orders, spanning back 5 years, with little

chance that they will ever be cleared/done...

So why do people leave them open...Maybe

its down to discipline or that they just

become lost/forgotten in the system?

As we are driven towards looking at metrics

for performance and efficiencies (KPI’s), it

becomes vitally important to record the data

to allow efficient management of the

outstanding work list. If nothing else, this

update with its new FrontLine “Dashboard”

will take you that step closer to better job

management and control!

FrontLine “Dashboard”

This is an alternative software solution rather

than an update to the current application. It

will for some customers have instant appeal,

due to the nature of their business or down to

the IT factors/deployment/operational

requirements. So what does that mean to its

users; Both PC and Web based Work

Requester modules will be available for

customers to purchase. They will work

independently or side by side. The PC based

requester is ideal for companies that operate

over a single site/single LAN network. The

Web based solution will be suitable for

companies that have multiple sites reporting

into one centralised FrontLine system or for

contractors who wish to issue a Work

Requester application to their many

customers for direct fault logging.

Once installed and configured the application

is launched from an Icon on your desktop. On

opening the application their appears to be

very few differences to the current PC based

Work Requester application. The Filter at the

top of the screen has a few anomalies i.e. the

Asset search is replaced by a Location search

and you are unable in the web version to filter

Web Requester:

FrontLine on the Move—Palm/Pocket PC Enhancements:

new job you are given a generic task list to

select the job description from. In this

version this is now replaced by your own

user defined “breakdown” task library.

These pre-defined tasks can be selected for

uploading and used by the hand held

operator in the course of his/her duties.

The task templates carry far more detail and

will populate the data fields automatically,

just the same as the PPM tasks currently do

in the system!

In Summary : Small improvements to the

software and only benefiting those who use

Work Order’s via the PDA application.

Two small changes to the PDA Work Orders

applications.

Users have for some time been requesting the

addition of a Work Type field to enable user

defined Work Types to be added to jobs raised

on the “fly”, catergorising them prior to

returning the job to the main FrontLine

application. This should help in the ability to

search and report on all information returned

from the hand held device, also having an

impact on the data displayed via the

Dashboard.

In the existing “FrontLine on the Move” (Work

Orders application), when currently raising a

Page 2

FrontLine Version 2.10.7.0 Update Review

“The Dashboard is

the most significant

FrontLine update to

come from Shire in

recent years”

Chris Lee

Director at

SystemQuest Ltd

Contact:

Chris Lee

SystemQuest Ltd

+44 (0) 7817 848756

or

chris@systemquest.co.uk

with any ques$ons or

queries you may have.

by Register or Job Status. Four buttons below

the filter control the main functions: Add

Request, Apply, Clear and Log Out..

Click on the add request button and a “pop-

up” screen ghosts over the top. Apart from the

two system mandatory fields, Site &

Requester the rest of the fields (visibility and

mandatory fields) can be controlled from the

“System Options” in the main FrontLine

application. All other fields appear as they do

in the PC based version. Click on the Apply

button to save/send your request and a

confirmation pop up screen appears for the

requester. If you have previously launched the

Work Request Alert, this too will work in

conjunction with the web requests entering

the system.

It was good to see the new jobs coming into

the system and to be able to watch the

Dashboard update, with new requests appear-

ing under the Job Status of R, (double click on

the graph to open the request list).

In summary, I think that this web application

provides a good alternative solution for work

requesting: Simple, functional and intuitive.

Visit: www.systemquest.co.uk or to find out more about the range of

services that SystemQuest Limited offer it’s customers.

If you would like to have an audit carried out on your existing FrontLine application, as well as

some assistance in optimising your system, taking full advantage of the new dashboard feature -

Please feel free to give me a call or drop me a line to discuss your requirements.