Integrated Deferral Approval Process for Schedules

When a Schedule is Final Approved, but still Uncredited, it can be Deferred (via an Integrated Deferral Approval Process).

Enabling & Showing the Deferrals

To show the Deferral functionality, it must first be enabled in the Application Settings. To enable Integrated Deferral for Schedules:

• Navigate to Settings \ Maintenance \ Configuration \ Application Settings. 
• Use the search bar to search for Schedule deferral integrated.
• Click the blu Edit button. 
• In the B value field enter "1".
• In the N value field enter "33" to enable deferrals for PEI and CIVIL, or enter "49" to enable deferrals for PLSS, PEI, and CIVIL. 
• Click Save. 

The “Schedule Deferral integrated” application setting’s B value must be set to “1” and N value to "33" for PEI and CIVIL, or "49" for PLSS, PEI and CIVIL.The Deferral Main Menu can be enabled via My Account.

Select the Deferral Main Menu in “My Account”.There is also a CHANGE/DEFERRAL Role. This needs to be assigned when a user has no other IMS Roles. See Security Settings.

If the Integrated Deferral Process is not used for your site, see how standard Deferrals (Extensions) work in Approving, Editing and Deferring Schedules.

Integrated Deferral Workflow

The Integrated Deferral Workflow is depicted below:

The Deferral workflow in IMS PEI. 

Creating Deferrals

Deferrals are only mandatory (indicated in yellow) for Category 1 Schedules. For Category 2 and Category 3 Schedules it is optional (indicated in blue). Deferral only becomes applicable when a Schedule has been approved, thus it will not be available for Schedules that are still in Draft. Already Credited Schedules can also not be deferred.

A Deferral can either be created from the Deferral Main Screen (grid), or from a Schedule Details Page.

Deferrals can be created from the Deferrals Main Screen (grid).
 Schedules can be deferred from the Details Page. When you Edit a Schedule and want to change the User Date, then a Deferral is also mandatory (yellow for Category 1) or optional (for Category 2 and 3).

When Editing the User Date, a Deferral is mandatory (for Category 1) or optional (Category 2 and 3).When, for the Category 1 Schedule, the User Date is changed (outside all possible NIDs) without a Deferral, it will not be saved, and a warning will be shown.

When trying to change the User Date a warning is given.

The Deferral Approval Process

The Deferral Approval Process in IMS PEI is similar to the IMS RCM Change and Deferral Process. It must first be Requested, then Approved and lastly Implemented.

Requesting a Deferral

When a Schedule is Final Approved, but still Uncredited, it can be deferred. When you click the DEFER button a pop-up with the Deferral details appear. 

The Deferral pop-up.When the Deferral is created from the Schedule Details Page, that Schedule will automatically be added to the Schedule list. You can also manually add Schedules to the Schedules list. Equipment will automatically be added in the Location / Equipment list based on the selected Schedule(s). In addition, it is important to select a Related Discipline, Request Priority, add a Schedule Reason note and a New Schedule Due date. 

Specify Deferral Details and Submit for Approval

After the Risk Analysis is filled in and Saved and at least 1 Approver was added in the Deferral Approval Stage, you can Submit for approval. Optionally, Implementers can also be added. 

At least a Risk Analysis must be done and 1 Approver must be added before the Deferral can be Submitted for Approval. Approvers & Implementers can be preselected for Locations. IMS will then automatically add predefined Approvers & Implementers to Deferrals with associated Locations.

Specifying multiple Approvers (and Implementers)

You can specify multiple Approvers. All can be specified on the same Tier level, or on different Tier Levels. If all are on the same Tier, they will all be notified simultaneously. If on different Tiers, then they will only be notified after the Approvers on the Tiers higher than them have Approved. Similarly multiple Implementers can also be specified.

Schedule will warn when incomplete.

In the Schedule a warning will show if the Deferral Details has not been completed.

Warning is shown when the Deferral request is incomplete. 

Approvers Notified

An email with a link will be sent to the Approver(s) and the Schedule will go back in Draft. In the Schedule’s Approval section, one will see that a Deferral Request is pending.

A pending Deferral shows in the Schedule’s Approval section.Note: If all Approvers are on the same Tier, they will all be notified simultaneously. If on different Tiers, then they will only be notified after the Approvers on the Tiers higher than them have Approved.

Approve the Deferral

Each Approver can follow the e-mailed link or select the Deferral directly in IMS. After review, they can either Approve or Reject the Deferral in the Deferral Approval Stage section on the Deferral Details Page.

Schedule goes to Level 1 Approval

The Schedule will now automatically go to "LEVEL 1 APPROVAL" when all Approvers have approved.

If Reject, Re-Initiate Request

If the request was Rejected, the the Requester will be notified via e-mail. He can then go back to the Deferral and make the necessary changes. Thereafter he can Re-Initiate the Deferral Request. The Approvers will again be notified.

Updating the list of Approvers

Some Users can still update the list of Approves. These Users are:

• Users with an Admin role.
• Approvers who are defined in the approval stage grid, when the status is “Waiting for approval”.
• Implementers who are defined in the implementation stage grid, when the status is “Waiting for implementation”.

The Approver can Approve or Reject the Deferral.

Implementers Notified

An email with a link will be sent to the Implementer(s) after all Approvers have approved the Deferral. The Requester will also be notified.

Implement the Deferral

Now each Implementer can follow the e-mailed link or select the Deferral directly in IMS. After all the changes have been implemented (e.g., in SAP, and the Schedule is FINAL APPROVED), the implementation can be confirmed by Approving (or Rejecting) in the Deferral Implementation Stage section on the Deferral Details Page.

The Implementer can then Approve or Reject the Deferral.

If Implementation is confirmed by all, the Requester is notified by e-mail.

If the Implementer Rejects the Deferral, he needs to select an Approver. The selected Approver will then again be notified via e-mail, and the Schedule will again go back into Draft (if it was FINAL APPOVED), else it will stay on LEVEL 1 APPROVAL.

Take Note

It is not possible to make any changes to the Deferral after the Implementation is confirmed (Approved) by all. In this case, if changes are needed, you will have to cancel the Approval of the Deferral to put it back intro Draft. After the changes are made the Approval process will need to start from scratch again.

Approve the Schedule

Lastly the Schedule needs to be Final Approved.

Reviewing Deferrals

You can go to the Deferral Main Screen (grid list). Here you can use the scope and filter to find and review your Deferrals.

Use the filter to find relevant Deferrals.

For more information on the Deferral Main Screen see IMS Main Screen (Grid List).

Preselected Approvers & Implementers

Approvers & Implementers can be preselected for Locations in Settings\Maintenance\Common Data\Deferral\Auto Approval selection.

Approvers and Implementers can be preselected in settings.

IMS will automatically add predefined Approvers & Implementers to Deferrals with associated Locations.

Deferring Schedules Again

It may happen that a Schedule of which the Deferral has already been implemented, needs to be Deferred again. It is possible to Defer a Schedule more than once.

By design it is not possible to make any changes to an Implemented Deferral. Thus you will either have to create a new Deferral or cancel the Deferral's Approval. The first option is normally advised.

Creating a new Deferral 

It is normally not advised to Cancel Approval of the Implemented Deferral. For example, it may happen that you need the change an individual Schedule that is part of a multiple Schedule Deferral. By cancelling the Approval, the Deferral of all Schedules in that Deferral are canceled. The better approach is to leave the original Deferral as is and then Defer the applicable Schedule again:

• Open the individual Schedule. 
• You should notice that it has already been Deferred (in the below example it was Deferred once.)

Original Deferral information. 

• Click DEFER.
• Create a new Deferral. Extension will show how many times the Schedule has been Deferred. In the below example, it is the second Deferral and it therefore shows "2". Also Repeat Request should now automatically be checked.

When a Schedule is Deferred for the second time, Extension will show "2" and Repeat Request will be checked.  

 

• Then follow the Deferral Approval Process until the Implantation is Approved.
• Final Approve the Schedule. 
• After the Schedule is Final Approved, the new Deferral information will show.

New Deferral information will show.

By design the original Deferral Details Page will still include the Schedule that you now Deferred for the second time. However, after the Schedule is Approved, the Schedule NID will also update in this original Deferral to show the new extended date. 

Take Note

The latest implemented Deferral will overrule all other Deferrals on the Schedule.
This also means when the original Deferral is backed out and approved again, then this will be the last implemented Deferral and thus overrule the other deferral.

Cancel the Deferral's Approval (only one Schedule in Deferral)

If the already Implemented Deferral includes only the applicable Schedule then you can choose to cancel the Deferral's Approval:

• Click Cancel Approval.

If the Implement Deferral includes only the applicable Schedule you can Cancel Approval. 

•  Change the New Schedule Due Date.
  

  Change the New Schedule Due Date.

   
• Make all other changes needed, e.g., update the Risk Analysis. 
• When done Submit for Approval. 
• The whole Approval process will then be repeated starting with the Notification of the the first Approver.