Understanding the Work Request Life Cycle
A typical work request moves through a series of distinct stages between its initiation and closeout. The Workflow Manager assigns a work request state to every work request as it moves through its life cycle. State changes are triggered by user-initiated commands on the Actions menu as well as WMS-initiated operations. Work request states and actions, as well as their icons, are configured to fit a company's business practices.
Work Request States and Actions
The Workflow Manager assigns life-cycle states to work requests to ensure an orderly, consistent work flow and help you track the status of your work. The following work request states typify a standard design work flow for Bentley OpenUtilities Designer and Bentley OpenUtilities Designer Workflow Manager:
The following work request states typify a Bentley Expert Designer Communications design workflow:
- New Request
- In Design
- Design Approval
- Design Submittal
- Project Costing
- Pre Construction
- In Construction
- As-Built Review
- Merged-Project Complete
In the Workflow Manager, each work request state is dependent on a certain action. For example, the Workflow Manager could be configured to give any new work request the Initiated state. A work request's current state is indicated by an icon displayed in the State column of the My Work view. These icons are configurable.
The actions that trigger a change in state are configured to match a company's work flows. Some actions may be performed by users while others may involve WMS-initiated operations. The Workflow Manager can support any number of states and actions for various work flows (see Work Flow). The configuration of work request states and actions will determine which commands appear on the Actions menu as well as their functions. Only those actions that are appropriate to a particular state are available while the selected work request is in that state.
Work Flow
The Workflow Manager supports multiple work flows, each with its own set of states and available actions. Up to 1,000 unique work flow actions can be accommodated. For example, the standard design work flow typically includes approval and GIS posting states and actions whereas a maintenance work flow usually requires fewer steps; an estimation-only job might not require GIS interaction. Work flows are established during configuration. Work flow types can be manually selected and edited through the Work Request Properties dialog box or automatically determined via the Workflow Manager's interaction with a work management system.
Viewing Work Requests by Life-Cycle State
Work request states are represented by configurable icons that are displayed in the State column of the My Work view. The icon next to a work request indicates its current state. Clicking on the State column sorts the list of work requests by their life-cycle state.
