The Ramsey County (Minn.) Public Works Department has begun using software to schedule vehicle maintenance, control parts inventory and record vehicle maintenance histories. The software has allowed the department to stay on top of its vehicle maintenance needs.

The department owns 800 vehicles ranging from snowplows and trucks to graders and front-end loaders. In addition to maintaining its own equipment, the department maintains vehicles for other county offices and agencies. To keep track of all its vehicle maintenance tasks, the department began using software from San Diego-based Cayenta EAM Solutions Group in September 1998 and has been expanding its use ever since.

When vehicles enter the department for maintenance work, the shop superintendent creates work orders with the software and assigns mechanics to jobs. The superintendent can use the software to review all work orders that need to be scheduled and to review a list of available mechanics. As often as every 60 seconds, the superintendent can refresh information in the software, ensuring that there is an accurate status of all work in progress.

When parts are issued to the mechanics to complete jobs, the superintendent enters them into the computer. The software automatically generates reports of used parts and issues requisitions for replacements whenever quantities of parts drop below a predetermined reorder point. It also generates purchase orders for stocked and non-stocked items, special orders and services, and it tracks open purchase orders.

When maintenance jobs are completed, the times are noted in the work orders. The software tracks the amount of time it takes to complete each job, which allows the department to more accurately budget, forecast and analyze maintenance operations.

In the future, the department will coordinate the fleet maintenance tracking software with its enterprise resource planning system from Pleasanton, Calif.-based PeopleSoft. When that is completed in summer 2002, the department will be able to automatically purchase new parts when its inventory runs low. The fleet maintenance software will send invoices to the accounts payable system to pay bills.

Ramsey County also is looking forward to coordinating its fleet maintenance software with its fuel management system from Lansdale, Pa.-based Gasboy International. Each time a vehicle is fueled, its mileage will be entered into the fuel dispenser, and the maintenance software will report which vehicles need service based on their mileage.

By using the fleet maintenance software, Ramsey County keeps its fleet running smoothly. Integration with the city's inventory and fuel systems will only enhance maintenance efficiency and savings.