Creating Recurring Work Orders (RWO's) in Facilitron Works

This article will assist Order Administrators and Order Processors with submitting RWOs for preventative maintenance and other recurring maintenance tasks. Use the links below to jump to a specific section. 

• About Recurring Work Orders (RWO)
• Inspection Profile Setup
  • General Info
  • Elective Settings
• Adding Properties/Locations/Assets
• Scheduling
• Configuring a Schedule
  • 1. Set the Start Date
  • 2. Select a Generation Mode
  • 3. Configure the Frequency
  • 4. Add a Lead Time (Optional)
  • 5. Optional Settings
• Adding Inspection Tasks
• Attachments
  • 6. Review and Save
• Viewing Profile Statuses
• Manually Generating the Next Occurrence
• Generating the First Work Order
• Updating the Schedule for an Existing Profile

About Recurring Work Orders (RWO)

Recurring Work Orders (RWOs) and Preventive Maintenance (PMs) work orders are essentially the same. In Facilitron Works, they are referred to as RWOs to clarify that these types of auto generated work orders are simply recurring, and can be used for any kind of maintenance - not only preventative maintenance. An RWO can also be created for any inspection (e.g., quality of service reminders or a task list to be performed at a certain time of year). 

RWO’s may also have tasks added to them, enabling you to create multi-point inspections. We will go through this below as well. 

Inspection Profile Setup

General Information and Frequency

From the navigation bar at the top, go to Work Orders > Recurring Profiles. Within this profile, you may designate an RWO’s frequency - weekly, monthly, quarterly, etc. Click + Create Profile to create a new RWO.

Next, fill in the blanks on the form and press Save. A profile name and inspection category are required. If you’re creating the profile for inspections, ensure that the inspection standard is selected while creating the profile. To set up an inspection standard, go to Manage > Web Site Configuration > Inspection Standards & Ratings.

Then, fill in the following fields as needed for the inspection profile. Purpose and Status to Assign are required. These are located in the Work Order Settings section.

The fields present in the General Info and Work Order Settings sections are further explained below:

General Info

• Profile Name: This populates in the Description box when a work order is generated from the profile.
• Inspection Category: This classification used to organize inspections by type or operational purpose.
• Inspection Standard: If the RWO profile you are creating requires this, you can configure it via Manage > Web Site Configuration > Inspection Standards & Ratings, otherwise you can default to Not Set. 
• Governing Agency: This is an optional field. Complete only if applicable to this profile.
• Governing Code ID: Optional field. Enter only if a governing code or compliance requirement applies.
• Materials: Optional field. Include materials only if they are relevant to this profile.

Work Order Settings

• Purpose: The purpose is the most general categorization of a work order, primarily used to route work orders to the correct department. For RWOs the purpose is usually preventative maintenance. This dropdown includes other pre-configured purposes to choose from to fit a wide array of maintenance needs.
• Trade: The trade determines which type of staff will be getting the work done (e.g. grounds, custodial, etc). Assigning a trade allows all workers assigned to the selected trade to access the RWO if needed.
• Work Category: Work category is a specific label to categorize the type of work getting done related to the trade and purpose.
• Calendar Foreground Color: This is optional. Here, you can set the text color for work orders generated from this profile when displayed on the calendar.
• Calendar Background Color: This is optional. Here, you can set the background color for work orders generated from this profile when displayed on the calendar, helping visually identify this type of recurring work on the schedule.
• Status to Assign: If a status is selected here, the status will automatically be applied to RWOs created using this inspection profile.

If no workers or contractors were selected, set the Status to Assign to "Approved" for the newly created RWOs to populate in the Receive screen. Options in the Receive screen can also be used to add further dimension to work orders, e.g., assigning to a site’s supervisor. You may also set RWOs to an Approved status so they appear on the Receive screen or in the Dispatcher inbox where the supervisor can assign as needed.

The Status to Assign can be set to Received to have the work orders directly sent to the worker or contractor if a default worker or contractor was selected.

Note: NEVER set "Status to Assign" to "Received" or "Assigned" with no workers or contractors. If this happens, no one will be assigned to the work order, and it will not be completed.

Status to Assign can also be set to "Approved" to have the work orders still populate in the Receive screen with the worker pre-selected.

• Priority: The priority helps identify the urgency of the work order, ensuring the work order is addressed as quickly and efficiently as possible. Here you may designate if an RWO is low, medium, or high priority. 
• Requestor: The person who requested the work order. 
• Contact Email: The email address for the person who requested the work order
• Budget: This dropdown lists available budget lines to assign to the work order. When recurring work orders are created, the budget code will only be assigned to work orders whose location supports the selected budget code. 

Adding Properties/Locations/Assets

Configure scheduling and save the profile before adding properties. After saving the profile, you can come back in and add the property by clicking + Add Property.After selecting a property, you will see options for adding a worker, contractor, budget, location, and asset. Use the corresponding dropdowns to select the information needed for these fields.

Scheduling

RWOs are scheduled directly from the Scheduling section of the RWO profile. The system will automatically generate work orders based on the scheduling options configured in the profile. This section determines the following:

• When the recurring schedule becomes active (start date)
• How often maintenance should occur (frequency)
• When work orders should be generated (lead time)
• When recurring work order generation should stop, if a condition is configured
• Whether work orders are generated automatically (auto generation)

Once configured, the system automatically manages future work order generation according to these settings.

Configuring a Schedule

1. Set the Start Date

The start date represents the date the recurring schedule becomes active. Beginning on this date, the system evaluates the profile using the configured frequency and lead time to determine when RWOs should be generated. 

You can also set a designated prefix in the work order number if needed. This allows work orders created from a specific profile to be easily distinguished from other work orders. For example, using the prefix PM would create work orders such as PM-10025 instead of the standard fiscal year format like FY25-26-10025.

Think of the start date as telling the system:

             "Starting on this date, begin following the recurring schedule defined for this profile."

The start date does not necessarily represent the date a work order will be generated or when the maintenance will occur. 

Note: If the start date falls after a scheduled occurrence, the system skips that occurrence and schedules the next valid occurrence based on the configured frequency. To change the scheduling for an inspection profile, you can do so by changing the start date and adjusting the frequency and lead time as needed for the new schedule. 

2. Select a Generation Mode

Next, choose either a Fixed Schedule or Closure-Based work order generation mode. The Fixed Schedule option is selected by default.

The Fixed Schedule mode schedules work orders to generate on set dates or at defined intervals. For example, work orders can be scheduled for the first of every month, every Monday, or every 60 days from the start date, regardless of when the previous work order was completed. This option is usually best for tasks that must be done on specific dates, such as compliance inspections. Fixed Schedule profiles can also include an optional end date. 

The Closure-Based mode generates the next work order at a set interval after the previous work order is closed. The lead time buffer generates the work order X days, weeks, months, or years after the previous work order is closed, per property, location, and equipment combination. This option is typically ideal for interval-based preventive maintenance that depends on real completion timing (HVAC, filter changes, equipment service, etc.). Closure-Based profiles can be configured to stop after a specified number of completed work orders. Once the completion limit is reached, the profile stops automatically generating additional work orders.

Note: If Auto Generation is turned back on after a profile has reached its configured stop condition, a warning will appear to let you know the stop condition is still active. Update or remove the end date or completion limit if additional work orders should be generated automatically.

3. Configure the Frequency

Next, select how often the recurring maintenance should occur. Available frequency options include, daily, weekly, monthly, and annually. 

When setting the frequency, please note:

• The Weekdays only checkbox is available for Monday - Friday schedules and excludes Saturday/Sunday generation.
• Duration (Min) is optional and can be used to estimate completion time for the inspection.

For maintenance schedules that occur every few months, use the monthly frequency with the appropriate interval. The selected frequency determines the recurring maintenance schedule beginning with the configured start date.

Note: Quarterly and semi-annual schedules are configured using the monthly frequency with a 3-month or 6-month interval. They are not separate frequency options.

4. Add a Lead Time (Optional)

The lead time determines how many days before each scheduled maintenance occurrence the work order should be generated.

Please see the examples below to see how the work order generation date changes according to the amount of lead time given for a work order with a July 1 maintenance date.

If maintenance staff need advance notice to complete the work order, configure an appropriate lead time. Otherwise, leave the lead time at 0 so work orders generate on the scheduled maintenance date.

Note: While the lead time affects when the work order is created, it does not change the scheduled maintenance date. 

5. Optional Settings

When Include End Date is selected, choose the last date on which a scheduled occurrence can take place. The end date is inclusive, meaning an occurrence scheduled on the end date will still generate, but later occurrences will not.

When toggled on, One work order per selected asset will generate a separate work order for each selected asset. For example, if five assets are selected, the system will create five individual work orders (one for each asset) each time the profile runs. By default, this option is toggled off. When toggled off, the system will generate one work order that includes all selected assets together into one multi-asset work order. For more information about multi-asset work orders, please see How to Create a Multi-Asset Work Order.

The expected work order count will display once a property is selected, and you will be able to see how many work orders will be created for each recurrence cycle.

Adding Inspection Tasks

For RWO work orders for FIT or other inspections, you will need to add at least one inspection task for the profile. For other types of RWO’s, this may not be necessary.

To begin creating a multi-point or other inspection, click + Create Task.

Enter a name, description, and code if needed for the inspection task. Click the green check to add the task. 

Continue to add tasks as needed.

Attachments

To add an attachment, drag and drop a file into the upload area or select Browse to choose a file from your device. During upload, the system displays a progress indicator for each file. Once the upload is complete, a green checkmark confirms the file was successfully added.

After files are uploaded, they will appear in the Files section below the upload area. The Files list displays the file name and upload date, along with actions that allow users to manage attachments directly from the profile.

Users can:

• Preview a file by selecting the Open icon. The file will open in a new browser tab.
• Rename a file by selecting the Edit icon.
• Delete a file by selecting the Delete icon.

The system enforces the same attachment requirements used for work orders, including supported file types, file size limits, and maximum attachment counts.

Note: For standard Recurring Work Order profiles, any files attached to the profile are automatically copied to every work order generated from that profile, including both Fixed Schedule and Closure-Based recurring work orders. The copied attachments will appear in the generated work order's Attachments section alongside any other work order files.

For inspection profiles, attachments can be added and managed on the profile; however, attachments are currently stored on the profile only and are not copied to generated inspections. 

Once your files have uploaded, you’ll see confirmation and options to remove or edit the files as needed. 

6. Review and Save

Before saving, review the Profile Preview at the bottom of the Scheduling section. The Profile Previewshows a live preview of the profile based on your current, unsaved settings. Nothing is saved or generated from the preview itself.

Depending on the profile configuration, the preview can show the recurrence frequency, Auto Generation status, number of work orders expected per occurrence, generation timing, configured stop condition, and the upcoming work orders the schedule is expected to create.

For Fixed Schedule profiles, review the Generates on and Scheduled for dates to confirm that the frequency and lead time are producing the intended schedule. The preview also identifies the properties included in each occurrence and, when applicable, the budget associated with each property.

Make any necessary adjustments to the profile settings and review the preview again. Once everything looks correct, press Save Profile.

If the predicted generation dates don’t appear to be correct, check if the start date, frequency, and lead time are input correctly. Make any adjustments as needed until the next three predicted generation dates match the intended schedule. Save the profile once everything looks complete. If adjustments to scheduling need to made in the future, come back to the profile and update the start date and other scheduling information as needed to reflect the new schedule and save.

Viewing Profile Statuses

The Inspection Profiles page displays the current scheduling status for each recurring profile. The page also shows the profile’s scheduling type, total number of generated work orders, next occurence, last run date, and whether Auto Generation is currently on or off.

For RWO scheduling, you’ll also see:

• The date of the next occurrence, along with additional information about its generation status
• Waiting for prior WO closure when a Closure-Based profile that cannot schedule its next occurrence until the previous work order is closed
• None scheduled when the profile has reached a configured stop condition, such as its completion limit
• Already created for profiles with existing work orders and are confirmed by the last run date

Manually Generating the Next Occurrence

If you need to create the next recurring occurrence before it is generated automatically, you can manually request it from the Inspection Profiles page.

Find the profile and open the More Actions menu by clicking the corresponding ellipses on the far right (next to the edit pencil), then select Generate Next WO. The menu displays information about the next occurrence and the result of the most recent manual generation request.

When a manual generation request is submitted, its status may display as:

• Queued: The generation request has been submitted and is waiting to be processed.
• Created: The requested work order occurrence was successfully created.
• Failed: The system was unable to create the requested occurrence.

If the next occurrence has already been created, the profile will indicate this rather than creating a duplicate occurrence. This instance is shown below.

Generating the First Work Order

For a profile that is ready to begin but has not yet generated its first work order, the system may offer the option to generate the first work order. Review the information shown in the confirmation window before continuing. The window summarizes the work order that will be generated based on the profile's current settings.

Press Generate first WO to submit the first occurrence for generation.

You can also select Generate Next WO in the Scheduling section of the work order profile.

Updating the Schedule for an Existing Profile

To view or change the scheduling for an existing RWO profile, go to Work Orders > Recurring Profiles and search for the inspection profile you need to review. Click the pencil icon to review the profile.

If your maintenance schedule changes, update the RWO profile by making changes in the Scheduling section that reflect the new schedule.

• Update the start date if the new recurring schedule should begin on a different date.
• Update the frequency if the maintenance interval has changed.
• Update the lead time, if necessary, to change when work orders should generate before the scheduled maintenance.

If the maintenance schedule changes, update the applicable scheduling settings, including the start date, frequency, lead time, or stop condition.

Before saving, review the Profile Preview section to confirm that the updated configuration will generate work orders as expected. If Auto Generation was previously turned off, review the profile's stop condition before turning it back on. 

For additional assistance, please reach out to Facilitron Support at (800) 272-2962, or email us at support@facilitron.com.