1.  Incident

The Incident Management system enables you to monitor and record Incidents that are linked to Accounts, Contacts, Users, and To-Do"s. The flexibility offered by the Incident Workbench enables you to effectively manage a variety of business processes:

  1. Customer requests

  2. Customer issues

  3. Vendor certification

  4. Outbound product quality tests

  5. Inbound component quality tests

  6. Any other processes that require tracking

1.1.  New Incident

Incidents can be used for multiple purposes, including customer service, trouble-ticketing and more. And for sites where the Batch Manager is installed and running, various Incident notification options are available (e.g., email notification). To enter a new Incident, select the "New Incident" option. The following screen will appear:

Create New Incident

When entering a new Incident, you are presented with the following options:

Incident #

Displays the Incident Number. You may set a beginning Incident Number at the system level.

Description

Enter a few words to briefly describe the Incident

Category

Specify a user-defined Category to assign the Incident.

CRM Account

Specify the CRM Account the Incident is associated with.

Assigned To

Specify the user you want to assign the Incident to.

Status

Specify a system-defined Incident status to assign to the Incident from the available options:

New

This is the default Incident status when a new Incident is entered.

Feedback

This status can be used for Incidents which require more information before they can be confirmed.

Confirmed

A confirmed Incident is ready to be acted on.

Assigned

When Incidents are assigned to a user, they become that user's responsibility.

Resolve

A resolved Incident is ready to be closed. Typically, users work to resolve the Incidents assigned to them.

Closed:

This is the final status and indicates an Incident requires no further action. It is completed.

Severity

Specify a user-defined Severity to assign the Incident.

Priority

Specify a user-defined Priority to assign the Incident.

Resolution

Specify a user-defined Resolution to assign the Incident.

Contact

Manually enter Contact information in the fields below—or use the browse button to select pre-existing Contact information. If the Contact you select is linked to a CRM Account, the Account will be filled in automatically.

Notes

This is a scrolling text field with word-wrapping for entering general Notes related to the Incident.

To the far right of the screen, the following buttons are available:

CANCEL

Closes the screen without creating the Incident, returning you to the previous screen.

SAVE

Creates the Incident and closes the screen, returning you to the previous screen.

If CRM is configured with a default Incident EDI Profile or if the Category of this Incident has an EDI Profile, you may encounter an EDI processing interface when saving the Incident.

To views or edit links an Incident has to other records, select the "Relationships" tab. The following screen will appear:

Incident Relationships Information

When linking an Incident to a specific Item or Lot/Serial Number, you are presented with the following options:

Item Number

Enter the Item Number of the Item (if any) you want to associate with the Incident.

UOM

Inventory Unit of Measure.

Lot/Serial #

Manually enter a Lot/Serial Number (if any) to associate with the Item—or use the browse button to select pre-existing Lot/Serial Number information.

Incidents may be linked to a specific Receivable Item from the A/R Open Items and A/R Open Items by Customer displays. When an Incident is linked to a specific Receivable Item, you are presented with the following options:

Type

Displays the type of document associated with the Incident. Document types would include Credit Memo, Debit Memo, Invoice, and Cash Deposit.

Doc #

Displays the identifying number of the Document.

To the far right of the screen, the following button is available:

VIEW

Select this button to view the details of the Receivable Item.

To view or associate To-Dos with an Incident, select the "To-Do List Items" tab. The following screen will appear:

Incident To-Dos
To-Do List Items

Display lists To-Do List Items associated with the Incident.

To the far right of the screen, the following buttons are available:

NEW

Opens screen for creating a new To-Do List item.

EDIT

Enables you to edit highlighted To-Do List items. The edit screen is the same as that for creating a new To-Do List item—except that when editing, the fields will contain To-Do List item information. Double-clicking on a To-Do List item will also bring you to the editing screen.

VIEW

Highlight a To-Do List item and then select this button to reach a read-only view of the "Edit" screen.

DELETE

Highlight a To-Do List item and then select this button to remove the association between the To-Do List item and the Incident.

To view the history associated with an Incident, select the "History" tab. The following screen will appear:

Incident History

The "History" screen displays information related to the Incident, including username of Incident creator, created date, status, and description.

To view system-generated Comments associated with an Incident—or to add new Comments of your own—select the "Comments" tab. The following screen will appear:

Incident Comments

When adding or reviewing Comments, you are presented with the following options:

Verbose Text

Select to display all Comments in the list in an expanded view which includes the entire text of each Comment. To edit a Comment, simply select the "Edit" link next to the Comment. That link will not be shown for Changelog Comments, which can't be edited. If the "Verbose Text" option is not selected, the Comment list will display only header level information for each Comment.

Comments

Display lists Comments related to the record.

To the far right of the screen, the following buttons are available:

NEW

Opens screen for creating a new Comment.

VIEW

Highlight a Comment and then select this button to reach a read-only view of the "Edit" screen.

EDIT

Enables you to edit highlighted Comments—as long as the Comments are not "ChangeLog" Comments. ChangeLog Comments are system-generated and may not be edited. The edit screen is the same as that for creating a new Comment—except that when editing, the fields will contain Comment information. Double-clicking on a Comment will also bring you to the editing screen.

To enter a new Comment, select the NEW button. The following screen will appear:

Create New Comment
Comment Type

Select a Comment Type from the drop-down list to classify the Comment. This is a required step. Comment Types may be system-defined (i.e., "ChangeLog" and "General") or user-defined, as described in Section 13.13, “Comment Types”. Once you have specified a Comment Type, begin typing your Comment in the main text area. The text area features word-wrapping and scroll-bar support for longer Comments.

To the far right of the screen, the following buttons are available:

CANCEL

Closes the screen without creating the Comment, returning you to the previous screen.

SAVE

Creates the Comment and adds it to the list of Comments.

SHOW MORE

Select to show the complete list (i.e., "thread") of Comments associated with the record. To hide the list, simply select the SHOW MORE button again. The Comment thread will show the most recent Comment first.

To view the documents associated with an Incident, select the "Documents" tab. The following screen will appear:

Incident Documents

When associating documents with a record, you are presented with the following options:

Files

Select to display the list of associated Files.

Images

Select to display the list of associated Images.

To the far right of the screen, the following buttons are available:

Files

Display lists the title and URL for any related Files.

OPEN FILE

Highlight a File definition and then select this button to open the URL in a web browser.

NEW

Opens screen for creating a new File.

EDIT

Enables you to edit highlighted File definitions. The edit screen is the same as that for creating a new File definition—except that when editing, the fields will contain File definition information. Double-clicking on a File definition will also bring you to the editing screen.

VIEW

Highlight a File definition and then select this button to reach a read-only view of the "Edit" screen.

DELETE

Highlight a File definition and then select this button to remove the File definition from the list.

To specify a new File association, select the NEW button. The following screen will appear:

Create New File

When creating a new File association, you are presented with the following options:

File

Select radio button to add file URL from local source.

Internet

Select radio button to add file URL from the Internet.

Title

Enter a title to identify the File.

URL

Enter the URL indicating where the File is located. This is the location where the File will be opened from when the user selects the OPEN button.

To the far right of the screen, the following buttons are available:

CANCEL

Closes the screen without creating a File, returning you to the previous screen.

SAVE

Creates the File and adds it to the list of Files.

To specify an association with an Image, select the "Images" option. The following screen will appear:

Image Associations

When associating Images, you are presented with the following options:

VIEW IMAGE

Allows you the ability to preview the Image.

PRINT

Runs the report associated with this screen.

NEW

Opens master list of stored Item Images, allowing you to associate an Image with the Customer.

EDIT

Enables you to edit highlighted Image definitions. The edit screen is the same as that for creating a new Image definition—except that when editing, the fields will contain Image information. Double-clicking on a Image definition will also bring you to the editing screen.

VIEW

Highlight a Image and then select this button to reach a read-only view of the "Edit" screen.

DELETE

Highlight a Image definition and then select this button to remove the Image from the list.

To specify an assignment for an Image, select the NEW button. The following screen will appear:

Image Assignments

When assigning an image to a purpose, you are presented with the following options:

Purpose

Select one of the available purposes an Image might serve:

Inventory Description

Select if the Image describes Inventory.

Product Description

Select if the Image describes a Product.

Engineering Reference

Select if the Image serves as an engineering reference.

Miscellaneous

Select if the Image is a miscellaneous Image.

Note

You may create multiple Image Assignments, but only one Image Assignment per purpose.

To the far right of the screen, the following buttons are available:

CLOSE

Closes the screen, returning you to the previous screen.

SAVE

Highlight an Image, then select the SAVE button to associate the Image with the specified item and purpose.

NEW

Opens screen for adding a new Image to the master list of stored Images.

VIEW

Allows user to view image.

To add a new Image to the master list of stored Images, select the NEW button. The following screen will appear:

Create New Image

When adding a new Image to the master list of stored Images, you are presented with the following options:

File Name

Enter the physical directory location of the Image. The browse button enables you to search your system for the physical directory location of the Image file. Once you locate the file, simply select it to have it entered into the "File Name" field.

Name

Enter a unique name for the Image.

Description

Enter a description to further identify the Image.

To the far right of the screen, the following buttons are available:

CANCEL

Closes the screen without adding a new Image to the master list of stored Images.

SAVE

Creates the Image and adds it to the master list of stored Images.

Files

Display lists the title and URL for any Files related to the Item. To enter Files associated with an Item, select the "Files" radio button.

To view the alarms associated with an Incident, select the "Alarms" tab. The following screen will appear:

Incident Alarms

Upon selecting Alarms you are presented with the following options:

Alarms

Displays a list of Alarms you can create to send reminders to various users associated with an event or system message.

To the far right of the screen, the following buttons are available:

NEW

Opens screen for entering new Alarm information.

EDIT

Enables you to edit highlighted Alarm. The edit screen is the same as that for entering new Alarm information—except that when editing, the fields will contain Alarm information.

VIEW

Highlight an Alarm and then select this button to reach a read-only view of the "Edit" screen. Double-clicking on an Alarm will also bring you to the view screen.

DELETE

Highlight an Alarm Item and then select this button to remove the Alarm Item from the list.

1.1.1. Create New Alarm

To create a new Alarm, select the NEW button. The following screen will appear:

Create Alarm

When creating a new Alarm you are presented with the following options:

Due

Add the date and time for which you want the Alarm to alert specific users and contacts.

Event

Select if you would like an event to trigger the Alarm. You may select from an unlimited list of users to be notified.

Email

Select if you would like an Email notification to be sent as an alarm. You may select from an unlimited list of users to be notified.

System Message

Select if you would like a system message to be issued as an alarm. You may select from an unlimited list of users to be notified.

To the far right of the screen, the following buttons are available:

CANCEL

Closes the screen without creating an Alarm, returning you to the previous screen.

SAVE

Creates the Alarm and adds it to the list of Alarms.

USER LOOKUP

Allows you to choose unlimited number of users created in the system.

CONTACT LOOKUP

Allows you to choose from unlimited number of contacts created in the system.

1.2.  Incident Workbench

The Incident Workbench enables you to monitor and take action on the full range of Incidents entered in your system.

Incident Workbench

When using the Incident Workbench, you are presented with the following options:

Assigned to

Select to include Incidents assigned to the specified user(s).

Owned by

Select to include Incidents owned by the specified user(s).

All Users

Select to display Incidents for all users.

Selected User

Specify the user whose Incidents you want to display.

Pattern

Enter a user pattern to select a range of users.

Status

Specify which of the following system-defined Incident statuses you want to include in the display. Not selecting a status means Incidents having that status will not be included in the display:

New

Select to include Incidents having "New" status in the display. This is the default Incident status when a new Incident is entered.

Feedback

Select to include Incidents having "Feedback" status in the display. This status can be used for Incidents which require more information before they can be confirmed.

Confirmed

Select to include Incidents having "Confirmed" status in the display. A confirmed Incident is ready to be acted on.

Assigned

Select to include Incidents having "Assigned" status in the display. When Incidents are assigned to a user, they become that user's responsibility.

Resolved

Select to include Incidents having "Resolved" status in the display. A resolved Incident is ready to be closed. Typically, users work to resolve the Incidents assigned to them.

Closed

Select to include Incidents having "Closed" status in the display. This is the final status and indicates an Incident requires no further action. It is completed.

Start Date

Incidents created on or after this date will be included in the display.

End Date

Incidents created on or before this date will be included in the display.

Search

Enter a text pattern to locate keywords found in Incident "Number," "Summary" and/or "Description" fields.

Incidents

Display lists Incidents, using the specified parameters.

Automatically Update

Select to automatically update the display every five minutes.

To the far right of the screen, the following buttons are available:

CLOSE

Closes the screen, returning you to the application desktop.

QUERY

Select to generate the display, using the specified parameters.

PRINT

Runs the report associated with this screen.

RESET

Select to clear the "Summary/Description Matches" field.

NEW

Opens screen for creating a new Incident.

EDIT

Enables you to edit highlighted Incidents. The edit screen is the same as that for creating a new Incident—except that when editing, the fields will contain Incident information. Double-clicking on an Incident will also bring you to the editing screen.

VIEW

Highlight an Incident and then select this button to reach a read-only view of the "Edit" screen.