Maintenance Plan
A maintenance plan in SAP Service Cloud is a strategic schedule for routine check-ups, inspections, and service tasks for a particular technical object or equipment. It is designed to avoid large-scale damage or issues by identifying potential problems early. This plan helps to increase the efficiency and lifespan of the equipment while reducing downtime and costly repairs. It includes details like which tasks need to be performed, the frequency of those tasks, who will perform them, and when the next service is due.
A maintenance plan can be a combination of a condition (when a ticket should be scheduled) and a schedule type.
Maintenance Plan Types
| Condition | Schedule Type |
|---|---|
| Counter Based | Cyclical |
| Time Based | Fixed |
| Time and Counter Based | One Time |
| Absolute | |
| One Time - No Condition |
Maintenance plans help the service organization execute on preventative maintenance scenarios that may be stipulated in the service contract between a company and their customer. They do this by automatically creating work tickets based on the maintenance schedule.
A maintenance plan consists of a condition and a schedule type. Both of these fields are required to define a maintenance plan. The condition defines when a ticket should be scheduled, for example: on a time interval (time based); when a counter reaches a certain value (counter based); or when a machine has run for a certain amount of time or is reading a certain value (time and counter based). The schedule type can be cyclical, fixed, one time, one time-no condition, or absolute (a specific measure or reading).
Type of Maintenance Plans
The type of maintenance plan that you can have depends on the particular combination of a schedule type and a condition that you decide. Here are examples of the types of maintenance plans based on the combination of a schedule type and a condition.
Maintenance Plan Examples
| Condition | Schedule Type | Maintenance Plan Example |
|---|---|---|
| Counter Based | Cyclical | Perform service every 8,000 km. |
| Time Based | Fixed | First service at 12 months, second at 36 months, third at 60 months. |
| Time and Counter Based | Cyclical | Perform service every 12 months or every 8,000 km. |
| Counter Based | Absolute | A sensor reads less than 50 degrees Celsius for three consecutive days = too hot - needs service. |
| One Time – No Condition | Product recall. |
- A condition of Counter Based with a schedule type of Cyclical could be used if you wish to perform vehicle maintenance every 8,000 km.
- A condition of Time Based and a schedule type of Fixed could be used if you wish to perform service at fixed but irregular intervals, such as first service at 12 months, second service at 24 months, and third service at 60 months.
- A condition of Time and Counter Based and a schedule type of Cyclical could be used to perform service every 12 months or every 8,000 km, whichever comes first.
- The Absolute schedule type is based, not on usage or time, but on a reading - Counter Base. For example, if a motor sensor on a machine reads a temperature of over 50 degrees Celsius for three consecutive days. It means that it's running too hot and should be serviced.
- Finally, a schedule type of One Time - No Condition is a special type of maintenance plan that can be used for one-time special services such as a product recall. This schedule type needs to be activated in scoping before you can use it.
Steps to Configure and Maintain Maintenance Plans
To use a maintenance plan in SAP Service Cloud, you must first create it, then schedule it. Creating a maintenance plan for a customer in your SAP Service Cloud system involves the following steps:
- Activate maintenance plans in scoping.
- Grant users access to maintenance plans. Ensure that the COD_MAINTENANCE_PLAN (Maintenance Plan) work center item is selected.
- Set a schedule and condition for the plan.
- Include a template for generating the service tickets that the technicians will need to carry out for the maintenance, according to the plan.
With the product list, service items are assigned to the template.
- Assign the specific customer items (Registered Products) for maintenance.
- Activate the plan.
Maintenance Plan Steps
Creating a Maintenance Plan Steps
| Work Center | View | Task | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Create | Business Configuration | Implementation Project | 1. Activate maintenance plans in scoping. |
| Installed Base | Maintenance Plans | 2. Create the maintenance plan: I. Set schedule and condition. II. Create template to generate the tickets. III. Add the registered products for servicing. IV. Activate the plan. | |
| 2. Schedule | Administrator | Service and Social | 3. Create a mass data run object (MDRO). 4. Associate the MDRO with the previously created maintenance plan. |
A maintenance plan is used first by creating it and then scheduling it. Once you've created your maintenance plan, you'll set up a schedule on which the work tickets are generated. This is done using a mass data run object, also called a MDRO. This feature allows the scheduling and automation of complex business processes in SAP Cloud for Customer. You create the MDRO and then associate it with the maintenance plan.
Enabling and Creating a Maintenance Plan in SAP Service Cloud
Watch the following video on how to enable and create a maintenance plan in SAP Service Cloud.
Summary Steps
- Activated maintenance plans in scoping.
- Set a schedule and condition for the plan.
- Included a template for generating the service tickets the technicians will need to carry out the maintenance according to the plan.
- Assigned the specific customer items for maintenance.
- Activated the plan.