Two methods are available for establishing task assignments:
Use the Task Assignment Creation form to group requirement tasks for a new task assignment.
Create a new task assignment directly on the Task Setup and Results form.
There are advantages to each method. With the Task Assignment Creation form, you can move through a series of steps that simplify the process of grouping requirement tasks, previewing information about the associated requirement tasks, and automating some of the decisions about the task assignment. For example, you can associate various similar or related rule requirement tasks and scenario requirement tasks under one "umbrella" task assignment to simplify completing the task assignment and then set up a recurrence schedule to assure compliance for all the requirement tasks. When the task is established, the Task Setup and Results form replaces the Task Assignment Creation form, so that you can review the new task assignment and make any necessary adjustments.
A task assignment can be established directly on the Task Setup and Results form when associating few or no requirement tasks with the task assignment, or the suggested work flow is not suitable for your environment, or a preview of the list of associated tasks is not necessary.
The Task Setup and Results form can also be used to assign the task, configure an email notification scheme, and document progress toward completing the task assignment.
Once a task has been established using either method, it is automatically assigned a numerical Task ID. The ID number is assigned sequentially and is displayed in the Task ID field on the Task Setup and Results form and the Task List. Although the Task ID cannot be changed, it can be used to locate tasks with the Power User Task Search and the Task List Query Builder.
When a task assignment has been linked to a work order via the Work Order Manager, a hyperlink for viewing the task-to-WO link is displayed next to the Task ID field.
If an active temporary assignment exists, the Temporary Task Assignment icon appears next to the Task ID field. Move your mouse over the icon to view details about the temporary assignment such as original and temporary task owner/supervisor/team information, as well as the assignment start and return dates.
An Event field and link to the event activation record is displayed beneath the Task Description field for task assignments created as a result of an event. The link is the first 100 characters of the event activation description followed by the activation date and time. Hover your mouse over the link to view event activation comments.
For instruction on Task Assignments, click the following links or use the scroll bar to scan the page.
To Establish a Task Assignment with the Task Assignment Creation Wizard form |
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Note:
Many of the sections and fields
on the Task Setup and Results form
are controlled by element security for the New Task Assignment security
object. The procedures described below assume full access has been granted.
Refer to General
and Entity-Dependent Security Profiles for information about element
security.
Tip: You must establish your rule requirement tasks and your
scenario requirement tasks before you can select and associate them with
a task assignment.
The Task Assignment Creation form is a "wizard" form, which is designed to help you identify and group regulated, permitted, and/or internal requirement tasks that you have already established in the Compliance Manager module. The Task Assignment Creation form serves as a "staging area" for assembling a task assignment from various sources; you can identify existing requirement tasks on other Essential forms and add them to the task assignment you are assembling. When you associate requirement tasks with a task assignment, you can schedule them, assign them, and then use the Task Management function to confirm that the tasks are successfully completed. For example, if a requirement task specifies a weekly boiler inspection, you could associate the inspection task with a task assignment that includes weekly inspection of many boilers and assign them collectively to an employee or team.
After you identify all the requirement tasks that you want to group under the new task assignment, you can have the software evaluate the selected requirement tasks and identify certain values, such as frequency and task group. You can then refine the task assignment definition based on these characteristics. For example, you can have the software evaluate all the requirement tasks and select the interval of the most frequent task. You can then establish a recurrence pattern for the task assignment that satisfies this most restrictive requirement.
In the final step, the Task Setup and Results form replaces the Task Assignment Creation form, so that you can review the new task assignment and make any necessary adjustments. The Task ID is displayed above the Task Statement field. Assign responsibility for the task assignment to an owner, team, and/or supervisor and define automatic email reminder options on the Task Setup and Results form. When you finish setting up the task assignment, you can send email notices about it.
Task assignments can also be established directly on the Task Setup and Results form. Refer to Establishing a Task Assignment (Without Wizard form) for additional information.
When requirement tasks are selected for a task assignment on any of the forms listed below, the Task Assignment Creation form is displayed with the selected tasks listed in the Requirement Task Information section.
Select rule requirement tasks on these forms:
Rules form
Requirement Citation Information form
Rule Requirement Tasks View form
Select scenario requirement tasks on these forms:
Compliance Scenarios form
Scenario Requirement Tasks View form
Entity Compliance Scenario Task Associations form
Note:
Task assignments are entity-specific. Therefore, if the first task
you select for a task assignment is a scenario requirement task, the entity
for the compliance scenario is assigned to the task assignment. If you
select a rule requirement task first, you must specify an entity. All
the scenario requirement tasks assigned to a task assignment must be associated
with the same entity as the task assignment.
To establish a task assignment
with the Task Assignment Creation Wizard form
Tip: Do not click Finish
until you have completed the Task Assignment
Creation form. When you click Finish,
the task assignment is saved, the form is closed, and the Task
Setup and Results form is displayed.
Select a requirement task and click Add to Task Assignment on any of the following forms to open the Task Assignment Creation form:
Rules form
Requirement Citation Information form
Rule Requirement Task View form
Compliance Scenarios form
Scenario Requirement Task View form
Entity Compliance Scenario Task Associations form
If you have not previously selected an entity for the task assignment, select an entity when prompted. The Task Assignment Creation form appears with the selected requirement task added to the list at the top of the form.
Verify that all the requirement tasks to be grouped for the task assignment appear in the Requirement Task Information section.
Expand the Data Transfer section, if necessary, select the applicable options, and click Generate Values. Data will be automatically generated based on the selected requirement tasks and included for the new task assignment.
Click Next
to display the Task Identification
section and enter a Task Statement.
In the Task
Identification section, you can also enter a more detailed
task description, indicate if the task assignment is a performance
metric, and establish estimates for time and cost to complete the
task assignment.
Click Next to display the Task Recurrence section and enter a Due Date for the task assignment, or define a recurrence schedule to automatically generate a new instance of the task assignment at a regular interval.
Click Next to display the Units and Areas section. Associate the task assignment with process units and/or process unit groups, if applicable.
Click Next to display the Task Groups section and assign task groups to the task assignment when applicable.
Click Finish to save the task assignment and open the Task Setup and Results form.
The values described below can be automatically generated for a new task assignment. Data is derived from the tasks selected and is transferred to the new task assignment.
Performance metric—determines if any of the selected tasks are performance metrics and selects the Performance Metric option in the Task Identification section if true.
Frequency basis—identifies the smallest frequency interval for the selected tasks, selects the Recurring Task option in the Task Recurrence section, and enters the smallest interval identified (Daily, Weekly, Monthly, Yearly).
Tip: Finish the recurrence schedule setup process by completing
the fields in Task Recurrence
section.
Task Groups—selects all task groups for the selected requirement tasks and places the groups in the Available Task Groups list in the Task Groups section.
Process Units—selects the process units for the selected scenario requirement tasks and places the process units in the Available Process Units list in the Units and Areas section.
Select the data to be included for the new task assignment in the Data Transfer section on the Task Assignment Creation form and click Generate Values. Open each of the sections with generated values on the Task Setup and Results form and verify or edit the values, as necessary.
Enter a task statement for the task assignment in the Task Identification section on the Task Assignment Creation form. The task statement should identify the task assignment and serve as a concise label for the task assignment. The task statement will be viewed on various lists and any user should be able to identify a specific task assignment based on the task statement. A detailed task description can also be entered.
If you selected the Performance Metric option in the Data Transfer section, the Performance Metric check box may already be selected. Otherwise, click the check box if the task assignment is a performance metric.
When estimated hours and costs have been defined for the requirement tasks associated with the task assignment, the values can be automatically calculated. Select Default to Max to use the largest number of hours or the greatest cost. Select Default to Sum to use totals. Select User Entry to type a value.
New task assignments can be established directly on the Task Setup and Results form. When the task is saved, a Task ID is automatically assigned. Task IDs are numeric identifiers and are assigned sequentially. Although the Task ID cannot be changed, it can be used to locate tasks with the Power User Task Search and the Task List Query Builder. The Task ID field is displayed above the Task Statement field.
To establish
a task assignment without the Wizard form
Click Data
Entry > Task Management > New Task Assignment in the
Navigation Tree.
The Task Setup and Results
form is displayed.
Select an Enterprise
Entity from the list.
If the entity is not listed, click the Ellipsis
button and add it.
Type a Task Statement.
Click Save.
The initial State is automatically
set to Open. The Creation Date is the date the task
assignment is first saved.
Enter the Due
Date if the task occurs only once. Otherwise, expand the Task Recurrence section, if necessary,
and define the recurrence pattern. (A new due date is automatically
calculated for each instance of the task assignment.)
The system defaults 11:59:59 PM as the Task Due Date Time per the entity's
time zone. View and/or change this value by clicking the Globe
button next to the Calendar
button.
Enter a Task Description.
Expand the Task
Setup section, when necessary, and select the individual who
is responsible for completing the task from the list for the Task Owner field and/or select a
task Team from the list that
will collectively be responsible for completing the task. If the appropriate
team is not listed, click the Ellipsis
button next to the field and add it.
Tip: Either
the Task Owner OR the Team is required when saving a task.
Add other information in the Task Setup, Requirement
Tasks, E-mail Notification,
Units and Areas, and Task Groups sections on the form.
Associate rule requirement tasks or scenario requirement tasks with
this task assignment using the Requirement
Tasks section.
(The Completion
Progress section is used to track the results of task completion.
It is not used during task creation.)
Click the Save button on the form.
Send on-demand email about the task, when applicable.
In the Task Setup section on the Task Setup and Results form, select information about managing the task. Specify a task owner, team, and priority, select an individual or team to supervise the task, identify the person who initiated a task, and select a method of verifying that the task has been completed successfully. You can also indicate if the task is a performance metric and enter estimated costs and hours required to complete the task.
Tip: Either the
Task Owner OR the Team is required when saving a task.
An individual can be selected as the task owner, task initiator, or as the supervisor when he or she has been validated on the Contacts and Personnel form, associated with a user login account, and flagged as available for task assignments at the entity where the task is being created. Refer to Task Assignment Availability Requirements for additional information. To send email reminders, an email address must be entered on the Contacts and Personnel form.
Before selecting a team for task assignment, associate members designated as available for task assignments with a team on the Contact and Personnel Teams form. Enter email addresses for team members on the Contacts and Personnel form.
Expand the Task Setup section, if necessary.
Select the individual who is responsible
for completing the task from the list for the Task
Owner field. In the Task Initiator
field, select the person who initiated the task. In the Supervisor
field, select a supervisor or other person who would be held accountable
for the task's successful completion.
Before an individual can be selected as the task owner, task initiator,
or supervisor, he or she must be validated on the Contacts
and Personnel form, associated with a user login account, and
flagged as available for task assignments at the entity where the
task is being created. Refer to Task
Assignment Availability Requirements for additional information.
Select a task Team
from the list that will collectively be responsible for completing
the task. Select a Supervisor Team
from the list that will be held accountable for the task's successful
completion.
If the applicable team is not listed, click the Ellipsis
button and add it.
Enter a Task Driver when applicable.
Select a Task Type. The task type is an attribute assigned to a task when creating new tasks. It creates a searchable field for quick filtering in the power search. The Task List reflects the type result as either True = 'tracked task type' or False = 'untracked task type'.
Select a Task
Priority from the list to indicate the importance of the task.
If the task priority is not listed, click the Ellipsis
button and add it.
Click the Performance Metric check box when applicable.
Select the Verification
Method for confirming that the task is completed successfully
from the list.
If the method is not listed, click the Ellipsis
button and add it.
Enter the expected cost and time
to complete the task in the Estimated
Cost and Estimated Hours
fields.
The information entered in this section is also displayed in the Completion Progress section on the
form. Edit these estimates in either section and the value is changed
in both sections.
Select the Track Deviations option to flag the task assignment for potential deviation tracking, when applicable.
Click the Enable
Quick Complete check box and/or Enable
Quick Close check box to activate the option.
These options are displayed only when the applicable Task Management
defaults have been set for the entity. Refer to Understanding
Task Management for additional information. Even when the appropriate
default has been set, the Enable
Quick Complete option is not available for conditional event
tasks since a response to the conditional question is required to
complete the task assignment. Refer to Event
Tasking Templates for more information.
Select the Copy
Task When Closed option when applicable. This option is available
only for non-recurring tasks.
Tip: The new task created by this option will contain
any Completion Evidence document links marked to be copied to future
instances of the task. Refer to Completion
Evidence Reference Documents for additional information.
Click the Save button on the form.
Use Deviation Tracking to flag a task for Potential Deviations. There is a setting at the application level associated with this flag that identifies the default state of the flag during task setup. To track potential deviations, users must manually flag tasks in the Task Setup section of the Task Setup and Results form. Click the Track Deviations check box to set the flag. Once the flag is set, the Track Deviations button is enabled for tasks flagged as potential deviations (in the Completion Progress section.) Tasks flagged as potential deviations enable the Track Deviations button adjacent to the Potential Deviation field. Multiple Deviations (Potential and/or Verified) can be associated with a single task. Users that have been granted the appropriate security privileges can record and validate task deviation information on the Deviation Details form.
The Deviation Details form can also be accessed via the Task List for tasks eligible to be flagged as a potential deviation. The Track Deviations button is displayed in the Deviation Details column. The number of potential deviations already recorded for a task appears on the button in parentheses. When no deviations exist for a task, a zero, i.e., (0), is shown. Click the Track Deviations button to display the Deviation Details form. Use the Manage Task Deviation browse view to access existing deviation records.
Note:
By default, the Track Deviations
button on the Task Setup and Results
form is not visible. Only users with the appropriate security privileges
are able to view the button for tasks flagged as a potential deviation.
Add documents, such as SOPs or other guidance materials, that would apply to all instances of a recurring task in the Operational Controls Document Links section. A document added here is available in the original task where it was added and all future recurrences of the task. Refer to Setting Up Recurrence Information for a Task for additional information.
The following two methods are available for adding related files that exist in third-party applications, such as Microsoft Word:
Document Links - Set up a hyperlink to the file. Optionally, the location of an off-line reference can be specified without a link.
Document Attachments - Add a file to the record. A copy of the file is placed on the server and made available for user access. Any changes made to the original file after the attachment will not be present in the copy. The default maximum file upload size supported by ASP.NET is 4096 KB (4MB). The default can be modified to support larger file uploads, i.e., attaching files larger than 4MB. For instructions to increase the default value, refer to: refer to Microsoft (https://docs.microsoft.com) and view the article: httpRuntime Element (ASP.NET Settings Schema).
Each link or attachment added is displayed as a line item in the Operational Controls Document Links section. Attachments and linked documents can be viewed by clicking the link.
Note:
In order to view a file listed in the Operational
Controls Document Links section, desktop access to the particular
software used to create the file must be available. For example, access
to Microsoft Word is required to view an attachment created as a Word
file (.doc, .docx).
To add operational control document
links
Expand the Operational Controls Document Links section on the Task Setup and Results form when necessary.
Click Add Link.
Enter the file path in the File field or click Browse to locate and select the file.
Enter a Description
of the document and the Document
Location.
A maximum of 500 characters are available for the Document
Location field.
Select a Document
Type from the list.
If the appropriate type is not listed, click the Ellipsis
button and add it.
Ensure the Is
Hyperlink check box is selected to establish the link.
When specifying an off-line location, ensure the Is
Hyperlink check box is not selected.
Click OK.
The document information is added as a line item in the Operation
Control Document Links section. Click the link to view the
file. Edit existing attachment information using the buttons adjacent
to the line item.
Click Save.
Repeat steps 2 through 8 to add other document links.
To add operational control document
attachments
Expand the Operational Controls Document Links section on the Task Setup and Results form when necessary.
Click Add Attachment.
Enter a file path in the File field or click Browse to locate and select a file.
Enter a Description of the attachment. A maximum of 70 characters can be entered.
Repeat steps 3 and 4 to add a second and/or third attachment.
Click OK.
Each attachment is added as a line item in the Operation
Controls Document Links section. Edit existing attachment information
using the buttons adjacent to the line item.
Click Save.
Repeat steps 2 through 7 to add other attachments.
Add documents, such as completed reports and inspection forms, that need to be available for the task in the Completion Evidence Document Links section on the Task Setup and Results form.
The following two methods are available for adding related files that exist in third-party applications, such as Microsoft Word:
Document Links - Set up a hyperlink to the file. Optionally, the location of an off-line reference can be specified without a link.
Document Attachments - Add a file to the record. A copy of the file is placed on the server and made available for user access. Any changes made to the original file after the attachment will not be present in the copy. The default maximum file upload size supported by ASP.NET is 4096 KB (4MB). The default can be modified to support larger file uploads, i.e., attaching files larger than 4MB. For instructions to increase the default value, refer to Microsoft (https://docs.microsoft.com) and view the article: httpRuntime Element (ASP.NET Settings Schema).
Document Links can be configured to be carried over (1) to the next instance of a recurring task and (2) to the new task if the Copy Task When Closed option applies. A Copy Link check box is available for each document link. When the check box is selected, the link will be copied to the next task instance. When the option is not selected, the link remains associated with the current record only.
Tip: An entity-wide
default setting determines if the Copy
Link check box is automatically selected when a task is initially
set up to. Refer to Understanding
Task Management for additional information.
Each link or attachment added is displayed as a line item in the Completion Evidence Document Links section. Attachments and linked documents can be viewed by clicking the link.
Note:
In order to view a file listed in the Completion
Evidence Document Links section, desktop access to the particular
software used to create the file must be available. For example, access
to Microsoft Word is required to view an attachment created as a Word
file (.doc, .docx).
To add completion evidence document
links
Expand the Completion Evidence Document Links section on the Task Setup and Results form when necessary.
Click Add Link.
Enter the file path in the File field or click Browse to locate and select the file.
Enter a Description
of the document and the Document
Location.
A maximum of 500 characters are available for the Document
Location field.
Select a Document
Type from the list.
If the appropriate type is not listed, click the Ellipsis
button and add it.
Ensure the Is
Hyperlink check box is selected to establish the link.
When specifying an off-line location, ensure the Is
Hyperlink check box is not selected.
Click the Copy
Link check box when the document link is to be copied to the
next instance of a recurring task or copied to the new task if the
Copy Task when Closed option
applies.
Tip: The Copy Link
option is automatically selected when set as a default for the entity.
Clear the check box to override the default. Refer to Setting
Entity-wide Task Management Default Values for additional information.
Click OK.
The document information is added as a line item in the Completion
Evidence Document Links section. Click the link to view the
file. Edit existing information using the buttons adjacent to the
line item.
Repeat steps 2 through 8 to add other document links.
Click Save.
To add completion evidence document
attachments
Expand the Completion Evidence Document Links section on the Task Setup and Results form when necessary.
Click Add Attachment.
Enter a file path in the File field or click Browse to locate and select a file.
Enter a Description of the attachment. A maximum of 70 characters can be entered.
Repeat steps 3 and 4 to add a second and/or third attachment.
Click OK.
Each attachment is added as a line item in the Completion
Evidence Document Links section. Edit existing attachment information
using the buttons adjacent to the line item.
Click Save.
Repeat steps 2 through 7 to add other attachments.
Use the Requirement Tasks section of the Task Setup and Results form to view and modify the list of scenario and rule requirement tasks that have been associated with the task assignment. Tasks can be associated with multiple requirements, i.e., rule, process unit scenario, and facility type scenario requirements.
To associate
requirement tasks with a task assignment
Tip: When adding tasks via the Task
Assignment Creation form, click Add
to Task Assignment to open the Display
Tasks form and begin with step 3 for rule requirement tasks or
step 8 for scenario requirement tasks.
Expand the Requirement Tasks section on the Task Setup and Results form, if necessary.
Click the Add Rule Requirement Tasks link to open the Display Tasks form. For scenario requirement tasks, skip to step 7.
Select a Rule and Citation from the list for each field.
Select a task status filter option and click Display Tasks to show the available tasks.
Click the check box adjacent to
a task to select it. When all applicable tasks have been selected,
click Add Selected Tasks.
The selected tasks are displayed as line items in the Requirement
Tasks section. Remove an existing task by clicking the Delete button adjacent to the line
item.
Continue to step 7 to add scenario requirement tasks. Otherwise, skip to step 12.
Click the Add Scenario Requirement Tasks link to open the Display Tasks form.
Select the Process Unit or Facility Type option and then select the corresponding process unit/facility type from the list.
Select the applicable Scenario, Rule, and Citation from the list.
Select a task status filter option and click Display Tasks to show the available tasks.
Click the check box adjacent to
a task to select it. When all applicable tasks have been selected,
click Add Selected Tasks.
The selected tasks are displayed as line items in the Requirement
Tasks section. Remove an existing task by clicking the Delete button adjacent to the line
item.
Click Save at the top of the form.
Associate rules and/or requirement citations with a task assignment in the Rules and Requirements section on the Task Setup and Results form. Each rule/requirement citation, effective date, and permit combination is displayed as a line item. When a regulation has been added at the rule-level, the line item provides a link to the rule record. When a requirement citation has been added, a link to the requirement information record is available. If a permit is associated with the rule/requirement citation, a link is provided to view the permit record.
Tip: The Number of related
tasks on the Rules form
is updated when the task is associated on the rule-level. The Number
of related tasks on the Requirement
Citation Information form is updated when the task is associated
with a requirement citation.
To associate
task assignments with rule requirements
Expand the Rules and Requirements section, if necessary.
Click Add
Rules and Requirements.
The list contains the most recent version of rules (by promulgation
date) and requirements (by effective date). Clear the Only
Display Most Effective check box to include all versions in
the list. Standard search capabilities are available to locate specific
rules/requirements.
Click the check box adjacent to a rule/requirement citation to select it.
Click Add
Rules/Requirement Citations after all applicable rule requirement
citations have been chosen.
Each rule/requirement citation selected is displayed as a line item.
To remove a citation, click the Delete
button adjacent to the line item.
Click the Save button on the Task Setup and Results form.
Use the Email Notification section on the Task Setup and Results forms to set up automatic email reminders about a task assignment to select email recipients. Each option selected will send one email notification (unless configured to send multiple Advanced Notification and Overdue Notification emails) for the task assignment. When establishing recurring tasks, the email notification option specified is re-activated for each instance of the task assignment.
For each option, you can elect to send the email notification to the task's owner, the task's supervisor, and/or the entire task team identified in the Task Setup section, or you can select an alternate contact and/or team.
Note:
Hyperlinks emailed to Task Owners, Supervisors, etc. take a user
directly to the Task Setup and Results
form for that particular task. Upon successfully logging into Essential,
the user is redirected to the specific task being accessed.
Additionally, you can establish a schedule to send individual or multiple Advanced Notification and Overdue Notification emails in the Email Notification section. Except for the Fixed Date notifications that sends a notification only on a specific date, you can define a recurring interval that continues to send email notifications until either the task is closed or the notification recurrence interval is changed. If the notification only needs to be sent once, select the Never Repeat radio button for the Send emails (until the task is closed) field.
Note:
The minimum interval definition is
one (1) day.
Advance Notification—Sends an email notification before the task's due date. Select the option, select the recipient(s), and enter the number of days and the time period for Scheduled Delivery. For example, "10" and "days" sends an email reminder 10 days before the due date.
Due Date Notification—Sends an email reminder on the due date.
Overdue Notification—Sends an email reminder when the task becomes past due. Select the option and enter the number and the time period that expresses the overdue period. For example, you might select "2" and "days" to send an email reminder when the task is two days past due.
Fixed Date Notification—Sends an email reminder on a particular date. Select the option and enter the date the notification should be sent.
To send an on-demand email about a task
Tip: The on-demand email function is not active on the Task Setup and Results form when
the task is being created.
Save a task assignment or select a task assignment on another form to open the Task Setup and Results form.
Expand the Send E-Mail section.
Select one or more email recipients.
Identify the specific contact/team when the Alternate
Contact and/or Alternate Team
option is selected.
The task owner, supervisor and team are identified in the Task
Setup section. Select the To
Me option and an email will be sent to the logged-in user where
it can be forwarded to other contacts when applicable.
Click Send
E-Mail.
A link to the Task Setup and Results
form for that particular task is provided in the email message. Upon
successfully logging into Essential, the user is redirected to the
specific task being accessed.
Use the Units and Areas section on the Task Assignment Creation or Task Setup and Results forms to associate a new task assignment with process units or process unit groups. You can later query the list of all task assignments and obtain a list of outstanding tasks grouped in the same way. For example, if you associate a task assignment with process units, you could query for the open task assignments for a process unit.
You can associate a task assignment with any number of process units or groups. Typical uses for the classifications follow:
Process Units—Process units are your equipment or other environmentally significant entities, such as storage units, equipment items, and outfalls. If the Process Units check box was selected in the Data Transfer section on the Task Assignment Creation form, all of the process units associated with the requirement tasks chosen for the task assignment will be available for selection.
Production Units—Production units are typically groups of process units that share a common production schedule. When using the Air module, group process units into production units and then enter a common production schedule as required to calculate emissions.
Emission Units—Emission units are typically groups of process units based on operating permits or regulatory requirements. Associating tasks with emission units would allow regulatory personnel to obtain lists of outstanding tasks focusing on permit or regulatory compliance.
Process Areas—Process areas typically define a physical location or conceptual group and reflect an internal designation or grouping.
Production Areas—Production areas are groups of production units. They often have a physical location.
Work Areas—Work areas are designated areas within your entity that are generally associated with sampling for the Industrial Hygiene module.
To associate task assignments
with units and areas
Expand the Units and Areas section, if necessary.
Click the Add link for the unit/area to be assigned.
Select the appropriate unit/area
from the list and click OK.
The unit/area is displayed as a line item. Remove the task assignment
association using the Delete
button adjacent to the line item.
Repeat steps 2 and 3 to add other units/areas.
Click Save at the top of the form.
In the Task Groups section on the Task Assignment Creation or Task Setup and Results forms, associate the task assignment with one or more groups. You might group task assignments to accomplish a work flow or to facilitate scheduling of personnel. Use the Task Groups form to establish task groups.
To associate task assignments
with task groupsExpand the Task Groups section, if necessary.
Click Add
Task Groups and select a Task
Group from the list.
If the appropriate task group is not listed, click the Ellipsis
button and add it.
Click OK.
The group is displayed as a line item in the Task
Groups section. Use the Delete
button adjacent to the line item to remove the group.
Repeat steps 2 and 3 to add other task groups.
Click Save at the top of the form.
To automatically regenerate new instances of the task assignment at a regular interval, set up a recurrence or rolling recurrence schedule for the task assignment in the Task Recurrence section on the Task Assignment Creation or the Task Setup and Results forms. The schedule controls how frequently the new occurrence of a task assignment is generated. For example, if the task assignment includes a group of monthly required activities, set up a schedule that generates a new instance of the task assignment each month.
Each new task assignment in the series is identical, with the exception of:
The due date, which is recalculated for each occurrence of the task assignment.
Completion Evidence document attachments are not copied; document links designated to be copied are carried from the original point of entry to each subsequent occurrence.
Operational Control document attachments are copied to each future occurrence and all point to the same copy of the attachment in your Essential database. When an attachment is deleted from the task where it was originally added, the attachment is deleted from the database. Occurrences of tasks that already exist will no longer include a link to the attachment and future recurring task assignments will not reference the attachment. A warning message is displayed that requires user confirmation before an original operational control document is deleted from the database.
The next recurring task occurrence is automatically generated based on the conditions below. When applicable, refer to Rolling Recurring Tasks for additional conditions.
If the task assignment's state and status are independent, the next task is generated when the task state has been set to Closed. Refer to Understanding Task Management for additional information about task state/status dependencies.
If the task assignment's state and status are dependent, the next task is generated when the task status is set to Completed (which also automatically sets the task state to Closed). Refer to Understanding Task Management for additional information about task state/status dependencies.
If the Task Management Supervisor is being used, the next task is automatically generated when the PWTaskUpdate component runs regardless of the state or status of existing task occurrences. Refer to Task Management Supervisor for additional information about the PWTaskUpdate component.
Rolling Recurring Tasks are recurring tasks whose subsequent due date is determined by the date that the current instance of the task is Completed and the interval specified for the recurring task (e.g., If the Rolling Recurring Task due on 12/16/2004 is completed on 12/10/2004 and the recurrence interval is set at two weeks, then the next instance of this Rolling Recurring Task would be due on 12/24/2004 instead of 12/30/2004.). Due Dates are required to establish a rolling recurring task.
The following conditions apply to rolling recurring tasks:
A task's status must be set to Completed for the next occurrence to generate. When the task assignment's state and status are independent, it is not necessary for the task's state to be set to Closed in order for the next occurrence to generate.
Rolling recurring tasks are not included the PWTaskUpdate Task Management Supervisor component when the current task is past due. The next occurrence is automatically generated when the task status is set to Completed and the completion date is provided; the system date is the default when no completion date is entered along with the Completed status entry.
Refer to Understanding Task Management for additional information about task state/status dependencies.
Note:
For resource planning purposes, all recurring task assignments (based
on the recurrence schedule) are shown on the Task
List.
To set up a recurrence schedule
for a task assignmentExpand the Task Recurrence section on the Task Setup and Results form, if necessary.
Select the Recurring
Task or a Rolling Recurring
Task option by clicking the appropriate check box.
Clear the check box to discontinue queuing up subsequent instances
of this recurring task.
Use the guidelines below to specify Range of Recurrence and Recurrence Pattern options, then click the Save button on the form.
Range of Recurrence
Start Date—Enter the date the schedule begins.
End Date Options—Select one of the following:
No End Date—The task assignment is rescheduled at the selected interval until manually terminated by the user.
End Date—The task assignment is rescheduled until the end date. To end a recurrence schedule for a task assignment, enter an End Date.
End After __ Occurrences—The task assignment is rescheduled repeatedly for a specified number of times.
Recurrence Pattern—Task assignment can be regenerated on a daily, weekly, monthly, or yearly schedule. A task can be regenerated once during the selected interval, or in multiples of the selected interval. If the Frequency option in the Data Transfer section on the Task Assignment Creation form was selected, the requirement tasks selected for this task assignment have been evaluated and the more frequent interval has been identified. For example, if one of the requirement tasks has a weekly frequency and the other requirement tasks have a monthly frequency, the weekly option will be selected.
Daily—The task recurs daily, on weekdays, or in intervals measured in days. For example, you could schedule a task to reoccur every 2 days or every 45 days.
Weekly—The task recurs once every week, or in intervals of weeks, or on one or more specific weekdays. For example, you could schedule the task to occur every Monday, every 4 weeks on Tuesday, or every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.
Monthly—The task recurs monthly or in intervals of months. For example, you could schedule a task to occur on the 15th day of each month or on the first Monday of every second month. (If you select a day greater than 28, the recurrence schedule will be adjusted to the last day of the month, as necessary.)
Yearly—The task recurs during a selected month, either annually or in intervals of years. For example, you could schedule a task to occur every January 1 or on the first Monday in June.
Click Save
at the top of the form.
Refer to Modifying a Task
Recurrence Schedule before making any changes.
Troubleshoot: If recurrence information
is included on the Data Importer Task Assignment template for a
new
task assignment record only,
the recurrence information will be added to the new record. However, to
ensure data integrity, recurrence information entered on the Task Assignment
template for an existing
task assignment record will
not revise the record's recurrence data—whether or not any recurrence
data already exists. Changes to recurrence information for an existing
task assignment need to be made via the Task Recurrence section
on the Task Assignment form.
Refer to Validate
and Import Data for additional information.
To modify the recurrence schedule for a task assignment, use the following guidelines to edit the criteria in the Task Recurrence section of the Task Setup and Results form:
The latest task assignment in
a series is referenced to determine when it is time to generate the
task assignment again. Therefore, if you need to modify or end the
recurrence schedule, you must change the Task
Recurrence section of the latest task assignment in the series.
When a task assignment has a schedule defined for it, the Recurrence
Schedule icon 
appears just to the right
of the Task Statement on the Task
List. Click the Recurrence
Schedule icon to view all instances of that task in a separate
Task List and locate the latest
in the series.
When changing the Recurrence Pattern, ensure the Start Date for the Range of Recurrence matches the Task Start Date in the Completion Progress section. Otherwise, many unnecessary emails will be automatically generated back to the original Due Date when reminders have been set up in the Email Notification section.
When changing the Recurrence Pattern frequency, the Due Date of the current task will be set to the next date defined by the pattern.
Use the Incidents section on the Task Setup and Results form to associate incidents with tasks. Multiple incidents can be associated per task and each incident can be associated with multiple tasks. Designate an incident by selecting it from the list for the Incident field. If the applicable incident is not listed, click the Ellipsis button and add it.
Note:
When tasks have been assigned to an incident that is deleted, the
incident/task association is removed so the incident record can be deleted
from your Essential database. Task records remain in the database for
historical purposes.
Add Controls to a task assignment in the Controls section on the Task Setup and Results form. Each Control, category, and description is displayed as a line item. When a Control has been added, a link to the Control record is available.
Note: When a task is recurring or copied, its instances/copies inherit its added controls.
To add Controls
Expand the Controls section.
Click Select Existing Control.
The Select Existing Control dialog box opens with a list of Controls associated with the selected Entity.
Select the corresponding check boxes for the Controls you want to add to the Task.
Note: Standard search capabilities are available to locate specific Controls.
Click OK.
The selected Controls are displayed in the Controls grid. Click the link to view details about the Control.
Click Save at the top of the form.
When a task assignment has been set up for an Audit Corrective Action, the Corrective Actions section is displayed on the Task Setup and Results form. The corrective action title and number are displayed, along with the following applicable field:
Field Audit populated with the Field Audit Description
Finding populated with the Finding Fact
Recommendation populated with the Recommendation description
Observation populated with the Observation description
Good Practice populated with the Good Practice description
Checklist Item populated with the name of the Checklist Item
For identification purposes, the Corrective Action
Task Assignment icon 
is displayed next
to the task statement in the Task List.
Document the means by which you intend to determine compliance status in the Compliance Methods section of the Task Setup and Results form.
To enter compliance
methods
Expand the Compliance Method section, if necessary.
Select the Compliance
Method from the list.
If the method is not listed, click the Ellipsis
button and add it.
Enter any corresponding notes in the Compliance Method Details field.
Click Save at the top of the form.
Use the Essential print utility to print a detailed report of the task record displayed on the Task Setup and Results form. Click the View Report button at the top of the form. Use the Essential print utility's print, save, and email buttons to retain a copy of the Detailed Task List report displayed.
Tip: The Detailed Task List
report can also be printed from the Task
List—in which case all of the tasks listed are included in the
report. Refer to Task
List for additional information.
A task assignment record can be permanently deleted from your database or soft-deleted, in which case the task record remains in your database for viewing purposes only. For example, a task assignment may need to be available for internal audit reviews.
Soft-deleting a task is comparable to permanently deleting a task, except:
You can use the Power User Task Search and the Task List Query Builder to locate the task and display it on the Task Setup and Results form. All fields will be read-only.
The Soft Delete task record can be permanently deleted on the Task Setup and Results form.
Otherwise, a Soft Delete task cannot be edited in any way, nor participate in any task-related activities/transactions, such as email notifications, auto-task triggers, bulk updates, copy functions, deviation management, temporary reassignments, etc. If the most recent instance of a recurring task is soft-deleted, a new instance will not be created. A soft-deleted task will not appear on a user's Home Task List , the Task Calendar, or any other task view, such as the Scenario Requirement Tasks view.
Caution: A Soft Delete task can NOT be "un-deleted"
or re-activated.
To soft-delete a task assignment, click the Soft Delete button on the Task Setup and Results form. To permanently delete a task, click the Delete button at the top of the form. In both instances, a confirmation message is displayed. Click OK to continue with the deletion process or Cancel to stop.
To find a Soft Delete task, use the Power User Task Search
or the Task
List Query Builder. On the Task
List that displays the search results, the Soft
Delete icon 
is displayed
next to the task statement. Click the Task Statement on the Task
List to display the Soft Delete task record on the Task
Setup and Results form.
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Audit Trail