Configuring and using MEC Cost

Maintenance Equipment Care (MEC) Cost can be applied to all IMS modules.

Configuring MEC Costs per Module

The MEC costs on Schedules can be mandatory or optional, depending on the site’s configuration. By default, the IMS modules are configured as follows:

• MEC Costs mandatory: RCM
• MEC Costs optional: PEI, PLSS

This can be configured by defining optional modules in the application settings.

In addition, specific schedule types, on which MEC Costs are used, can also be listed. By default, IMS is configured to show MEC costs on Inspection, Corrosion, CAIR and Preventive Schedules.

The MEC Cost Application settings. 

Visibility of MEC Costs for all Users

If the MEC Costs are set as mandatory, the Schedules in that module will show the MEC Costs. However, if the MEC Costs are set as optional for the module, by default the MEC Costs will not be shown on the Schedules.

Nevertheless, in a module for which MEC Costs are optional, a user can still turn on the visibility of MEC Costs for himself. This can be done in My Account. This setting will not be available in modules for which the MEC Costs are set to be mandatory.

If set as optional, the MEC cost can be Turned on, by checking the setting in My Account.

The visibility of MEC Costs is summarized in the table below. It depends on the application setting (Mandatory vs Optional) and, in the Optional case, it also depends on the user's setting in My Account (Turned on vs Turned off).

Visibility of the MEC Costs:

MEC Costs Features

When the MEC Costs are visible, the following features are available:

Defining the Cost of a Schedule

In modules, with the MEC Cost set as optional, the costs are shown in a subtle button.

Showing MEC Costs in optional modules.When you click this MEC Cost button, a cost breakdown will be shown in an expanded view (see the image below). This view is the default view for modules with the MEC Cost set to mandatory.

For a Schedule, the costs can be defined as a complex cost, consisting out of Labor Cost, Material Costs and Misc. Costs. However, the cost can also be defined as a simple Total cost. In this case the other cost categories will not be editable.

Cost breakdown and defining cost on a Schedule.Note: The Approval status of a Schedule will not be impacted when the MEC Costs are being defined, i.e. a Schedule that is in Final Approval state will not go back to Draft when the MEC Costs are entered.

Defining Default Schedule Costs

To make it easier to define the costs, default costs can be defined for schedules, depending on their properties. This default MEC Costs are Configured in the Toplevel Settings - in the Default Cost Rules section on the MEC Cost Tab.

Using Default Cost in a Schedule

When a Schedule is being created, IMS will lookup the default cost for this Schedule. This cost will be saved by default. You can still remove the default cost and enter a more accurate cost.

When Plan Codes are used, the Scope needs to be Final Approved before IMS captures the SUM of the costs, which is defined for each Plan Code.

To remove the default cost, click on the Default used checkbox. This will enable the fields so that different costs can be entered.

Example of a schedule with the default cost.

Importing Schedule Costs

To define the costs faster, a dedicated export for import was made: Check the desired Schedules in the Schedule Main Screen grid, then click the Export button. Two options for exporting costs are available. By selecting one of these the schedule ID and relevant information, with regards to determining the costs, will be exported. The exported template can then be filled in and imported back into IMS (see Importing Data via Settings).

Export for import and import template for Schedule costs.

Annual Cost for Schedules

A Schedule’s Total Cost is annualized if the Schedule is recurring. If a Schedule is not recurring, IMS will assume that the Schedule represents a one-time job, and the Annual Cost will be the same as the Total Cost.

The Annual Cost is defined by the following formula:

The Annual Cost is only for Schedules with defined intervals. A Schedule also needs to be Approved before the Annual Cost is calculated (if the interval is added afterwards).

Example of a Schedule with an annual cost.

Determining if Schedule Cost is TA or Non-TA Cost

Depending on the Schedule characteristics, a cost can be classified as a Turnaround (TA) or non-Turnaround (non-TA) Cost.

This is decided based on two Schedule properties:

• TA candidate flag
• Connection to a Planned Event

If one of those conditions are met, the Schedule cost will be considered as a TA Cost. Otherwise, the cost will be considered as non-TA Cost. This is also indicated by the heading of the Schedule cost.

Example of a Schedule with TA Cost. 

Showing costs in Schedule Main Screen grid

The Schedule Total Costs and Annual Costs can be shown in the Schedule Main Screen grid. These options are by default not visible, but you can turn them on in the grid settings.

The Total Cost and Annual Cost in the Schedule grid.

Filtering on Schedule Cost

Two cost filters are available for the Schedule Main Screen grid. The first filter is a range filter for the Total Schedule Cost.

The second Schedule Cost filter can be used to find Schedules with "No cost defined", Schedules with "Default cost", and Schedules with "Defined cost".

Schedule Cost filters.

MEC Cost Index

Once the Schedule Costs are defined, the MEC Cost Index can be calculated. This is done on the MEC Cost tab in the Toplevel settings. 

The MEC Cost Index is calculated as follows:

The MEC Cost Index is calculated for a specific year and for a specific location (Site, Plant or Unit).

The Annual Costs are based on:

• Annual Costs for the Schedule; and
• Annual POC on the Tasks (RCM).

The Benchmark factor is specified per Year on the MEC Cost Tab (in the Toplevel settings).

The cost for a specific year is determined based on the Schedule’s Next Inspection Date. If a Schedule is overdue, the year is assumed to be the current year.

Annual Costs of Schedules are determined from the Total Cost and the Schedule Interval (as explained above). 

The Annual POC (Price of Conformance) can be found on Tasks in IMS RCM.

Annual POC on RCM Tasks.

The cost is classified as a TA Cost if the Task or Schedule has a “TA Candidate” flag. The Task Cost is also ignored if a task has a “Merged to Task” flag.

MEC Cost Index Calculation Example

The MEC Cost Index is calculated per year. Below you can see a MEC Cost Index calculation example for the years 2021 and 2022:

For more information on the configuration and calculation of the MEC Cost Index see Configuring the Toplevel via Settings - MEC Cost Tab.

MEC Cost Dashboards

A MEC Schedules Cost Dashboard is available to help track your PEI Schedule Costs. The dashboard shows: Schedules with costs; Number of Equipment which have at least one Schedule with a cost; and Number of Schedules without defined costs. To get a deeper insight in the costs, you can also drill down to see the costs per site, Equipment Group and year.

The Dashboard also shows an overview of all MEC Cost Indexes, on all Locations for which a Year and a Benchmark Factor are defined (on the MEC Costs tab in the Toplevel settings).

The MEC Schedules Cost Dashboard. 

There is also a Global MEC Dashboard.

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For more Shell specific information, you can refer to Shell MEC Cost.