OpenPlant for Site Agents
Vision, Control, Efficiency
Site Agent Roles
The role that a Site Agent plays in OpenPlant will very much depend upon the working culture of the organisation, the role and extent of IT within an organisation and the existing business processes. OpenPlant allows for a range of scenarios from complete control of a site (or sites) by a particular Site Agent, to a peripheral role, where all orders are placed on behalf of a Site Agent by a Contracts Manager or a Plant Coordinator. Those firms that have invested in laptops and internet connectivity, whether that be terrestrial or wireless based, are able to use OpenPlant to its maximum efficiency. Equally, firms that have not invested in IT, that rely just on telephones to control their plant, can also benefit greatly from the ability to centrally control what is on site. Most firms will fall somewhere in-between the two above examples and OpenPlant can be used to provide as much or as little autonomy to a Site Agent as is desired.
Example - Deployment
In this scenario, a Site Agent is in control of a number of sites and has been provided with an Internet enabled computer by the company, or he has access to a computer at an office or depot. The organisation has entrusted the Site Agent to manage the placing of orders for plant for the two sites that have been allocated to the agent. To place an order, the Agent logs on to the system directly, through an internet connection.
Using the Orders screen, the Agent is able to quickly place a single or multiple item order, selecting from the database of items using the search facility or browsing through the different categories of plant items. Details relating to the item can then be added, such as the date and time of hire required, estimated off-hire date and a note can be added to the order to provide specific information that is not collected in the standard fields.
The order then immediately appears on the Plant Coordinator screen, in a particular colour to indicate whether it is a standard or a scheduled hire, for the appropriate action to be taken with it. Again, depending upon the working culture of the organisation and its business processes, the system can immediately notify a Contracts Manager or other designated person, via a text or email message of the placing of an order, by a particular Site Agent. This optional feature can also be used each time an amendment is made to an order, for example when an order is assigned by a Plant Coordinator. To off hire an item, a Site Agent merely selects the item from the items on hire list and clicks the off hire button adjacent to it, supplying required date and time of off hire etc.
A Site Agent can view items on hire, internal or external, per site and obtain live costing information from the system relating to the total and weekly cost. A facility to generate a report, in spreadsheet or pdf format is also available. These reports have been used by certain companies as part of their standard operating procedures.
