Hotel PM provides you with the ability to customize a number of its features to fit your hotel. While standard values are supplied for all of these, it is a good idea to review the default values before they are used by the system. Good planning and review of the standards will enhance the usefulness and usability of the system.
The system maintains a user definable list of Equipment Categories and Subcategories. These categories allow the Hotel PM system to identify similar pieces of equipment when assigning maintenance tasks, scheduling prevetive maintenance, and when producing various reports. From the System Menu the Equipment Categories command provides the tools to print and edit the list of Equipment Categories and Subcategories. You should review this list and make the necessary changes. Each piece of Equipment will have to be assigned a category and subcategory when it is added to the database.
In association with the equipment categories and subcategories the Hotel PM has a definable set of Standard Maintenance Tasks. Maintenance tasks can be defined for each category and subcategory combination at the appropriate frequencies. These standard tasks are then associated with hotel equipment as it is added to the database. Using standard maintenance tasks simplifies the process of defining maintenance for your equipment. Maintenance tasks entered for "Exhaust Fans, Kitchen" (category Exhaust Fan, subcategory Kitchen) need only be entered once. The tasks for monthly, quarterly, semi-annual, annual or other are assigned to each kitchen exhaust fan when it is entered into the database.
In a similar manner the system utilizes Problem Codes to classify Service Calls. Proper definition of the Problem Codes allow the program to provide better reporting of service calls. From the System Menu select Problem Codes to print and edit the Problem Codes for use at your hotel.
Many sites have found it useful to have a set of predefined completion actions available for use when work orders are completed. These codes provide for quicker data enter and for standardized responses on common service calls and maintenance proceedures. Hotel PM provide these feature with the Actions list. Accessible from the System Menu the Actions command provides for the definition and printing of Action or completion codes.
An intergral part of the Preventive Maintenance(PM) system for rooms is the Room Check List. Whenever a PM work order is issued for a room it includes a detailed check list that will guide the staff member through the insepection process. A feature of the Hotel PM system is the ability to customize these check lists for each room type to meet the needs of your hotel. The Room Check List command in the System Menu provides the tools the edit and preview the room check lists. Please take the time to review the supplied check lists and insure they are applicable to your site. The Room Check List command also provides for the definition of additional room types and the check list associated with the new room type.
This is also a good time to check the Page Setup and Printer Fonts. These commands provide the definitions that are used when generating reports. Both commands are found under the System Menu. The Hotel PM program will attempt to select "Courier New" at 10 points as the default font when the program first runs. Due to the variations in fonts on any given computer it is a good idea to verify the font has been correctly set before printing reports.
Hotel PM has the ability to track man-hours spent performing Preventive Maintenance and responding the Service Calls. This requires that the number of man-hours spent on each work order be entered when the job has been completed. The system allows you to set a default value for the number of man-hours required to complete any work order. The initial value for this default is 0.5 hours. You can change this number from the Preferences command in the System Men, specifically under System Settings.
While on the subject of the System Settings this is also a good time to handle a few more house keeping matters. The Hotel PM program is licensed on an annual subscription fee. The first year is pre-paid. In each subsequent year the program will notify you when the license is about to expire. You will have approximately 60 days to contact us and make arrangements to pay the renewal fee. When the license expiration date approaches a dialog similar to the one below will appear when you start the Hotel PM program. Clicking the Online or Manual button will provide the information you need to renew your license.
The System Menu provides access to the system Standards and Defaults described above.