Field Service Representative Feedback Proposal

This report lays out the framework to improve the feedback loop from the traveling FSR team to the Ariel Technologies engineering management team. This is required to translate that information into an indexable database and subsequent I2ETP for the Air Force’s Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles.

Note: Names have been changed to preserve the client’s confidentiality. Illustrations, such as charts and graphs, have been removed as they are not the property of this writer.

Introduction

Ariel Technologies needs to develop an Intelligent Technical Data Management Framework (ITDF) that technicians can integrate into an Intelligent Interactive Electronic Technical Publication (I2ETP). To accomplish this, Ariel Technologies requires Field Service Representatives (FSRs)—a traveling team of Command, Control, Computers, Communications, Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (C4ISR) systems technicians—to restore the current fleet of US Air Force’s Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Family of Vehicles (FOV). The goal is to provide the USAF with access to metrics concerning the current C4ISR integration efforts and vehicle performance by converting the original engineering design information and integration manuals into an electronic format that is updated within the World Wide Web and reflects real time. These metrics will display trends in MRAP FOV logistical life cycle management plans and allow FSR teams to run efficient procedures.

The following report outlines a roadmap that Ariel Technologies can use to improve the feedback loop from the FSRs so that information currently implemented into the I2ETP can be created into technical documentation. To produce solid metrics, a draft of how the Graphical User Interface (GUI) could work is presented. A suggested list of how the GUI would handle the deliverables is available in Appendix B.

Roadmap Development Overview

The roadmap is designed for managers to analyze metrics that can be used to improve team efficiency and populate the existing USAF database, known as the Integrated Maintenance Data System (IMDS). Ariel Technologies will need to take nine major steps (with two steps divided into parts A and B) to implement a working database tool. This process begins by determining what pertinent information to gather so that a remote FSR team can effectively develop metrics based on what they observe and input it into the USAF IMDS system. The following is a series of steps that further explains the purpose and proposed action to achieve this.

Step 1: Determine Information to Capture

The team conducting this project should determine what type of information FSRs can gather and conclude which aspects are most important. This information needs to be easily attainable and consistently gathered since teams will be separated and in remote locations. The team will work with the USAF personnel to determine what specifically needs to be imported into the IMDS. For example: integration configurations, part numbers, serial numbers, Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) vehicle identification numbers, OEM kit numbers, and USAF registration numbers. Once this has been established, FSR management needs to conclude what metrics are valuable to them, what can be used to ensure work is completed efficiently, and what will be useful for future performance and material-quality projections over time. Some of these items are:

• Times for major actions (start and stop times)

• Initial condition of equipment

• Common quality inspection discrepancies

The team should produce a detailed list of the applicable information that FSRs can input into their laptops daily. The list will include some items that are finite or just have a yes/no component to it, while other items will need to be evaluated on different levels, such as a vehicle’s condition upon initial inspection. These items need to be concise and organized into three to four levels at most.

Step 2: Determine Best Web Tool

The information compiled and inputted into the FSRs’ laptops in step 1 needs to be transmitted via the web into a central server that can compile and display it. The best way to achieve this is to use a Commercial-off-the-Shelf (COTS) solution or have database developers build an entire web tool from scratch. For a COTS solution, the team will need to research these components and consider cost, ease of customization, reliability, the ability to manipulate data, metrics presentation, and any other performance aspects. For a self-built web solution, the team will need to analyze what internal resources Ariel Technologies has available and how long it would take to finish building the database and go live. The team should create a backup plan in case the advertised COTS or internal products do not meet quality standards.

Step 3A: FSRs Gather Information

While the database is constructed, FSRs need to gather all applicable data from the list determined in step 1 and enter it into a spreadsheet. The spreadsheet should include instructions on how to use each item and various delivery methods, and it should be formatted in a way that allows the FSRs to fill it out. Management should ensure all FSR team leads understand and have experience using the listed items so that the leads can communicate this information to the team.

Step 3B: Build GUI for Database

The list built in step 3A should be used to develop the GUI of the database that FSRs will use at other job sites. If the list is revised, management will need to verify that FSRs are gathering these things as well.

Step 4: Compile Info

The data entered into the FSR’s spreadsheet should be imported, most likely by hand, into the GUI that the database developers constructed in step 3B. Any technical issues that arise at this time will need to be fixed prior to going live.

Step 5: Use Database

Once the database is live, the database developers and applicable managers should ensure that the FSRs are trained on how to use it and are able to connect to the server. From there the FSRs will use the database to populate daily metrics that can be housed in a reliable remote server and later inputted into the USAF IMDS. The FSR team will also need to obtain a portable scanner that will generate PDF documents of scanned hand signatures. The team will also need to develop a plan to back up the data collected by the FSRs.

Step 6: Develop Metrics

The database administration team will run the database to produce applicable metrics in a timely and presentable fashion. The database needs to be flexible enough for the team to obtain new metrics as the need arises and be able to import those metrics into other systems when necessary.

Step 7A: Management Use of Metrics

FSR management or the USAF logistics team will decipher the metrics and evaluate the database to determine how the project’s cost, schedule, and performance can be improved. To properly evaluate the project, the team will produce and view data reports to see if any oddities are present. Over time, these reports will illustrate trends about the project’s efficiency and cost savings.

Step 7B: Implement Database into IMDS

After the team confirms that the database correctly functions, they will work with the IMDS administrators to import the data from the database into the USAF IMDS so that it can be tracked and reported internally to the USAF. USAF personnel should run reports without assistance from the database development team to guarantee that the database is working properly with the IMDS.

This roadmap provides the basis to develop a clear plan and measurable milestones to schedule against for a team to manage and execute this effort. This effort would eventually produce a well-developed database that would help the project managers and USAF personnel generate actionable metrics, and gain efficiencies that will save money and time. It would also maintain a professional-level historical record of the project’s deliverables and how they were obtained for use in future projects or resource estimations.