Operations Updates
ARM Climate Research Facility Operations Update - July 31, 2006
This bimonthly report provides a brief summary of significant accomplishments and activities in the operations area of the ARM Climate Research Facility (ACRF).
New Operations Status System Improves Tracking, Reporting
Environmental conditions at the ACRF sites, like this one in Alaska, contribute to the challenge of managing an extensive array of sophisticated instruments.
With heavily instrumented research sites around the globe, the ACRF faces a daunting operations and reporting challenge. To better track and report the status of the capabilities at these widely disbursed sites, ACRF operations staff recently completed the development of a comprehensive Operations Status System (OSS). By serving as a central collection point for all ACRF site status information, the OSS enables timely and cost-effective decisions about site operations, particularly with respect to instrument performance issues.
Until now, each site developed and maintained individual databases to track their specific operations activities. Though some of these activities are site specific, many—such as routine maintenance, corrective maintenance, shipping and receiving, inventory, spares, and calibrations—are common elements found at all the ACRF sites. Additionally, the separate site databases did not include a useful "time stamp" feature to help track each activity. Because these tasks have a large impact on budget planning and operational efficiency, the ACRF Operations Manager determined the need to standardize the cross-site elements into a common database.
The OSS was designed for tracking the states of various instrument and computer systems and components at each ACRF site. It was also designed to have the capability as an inventory tracking system. Now, site operators enter notable operational events into the OSS. These statistics are then used to develop diagnostic metrics, such as "accumulated time in service" and "mean-time to repair." This information allows site managers, in an objective manner, to promptly identify any necessary actions and consider future budget expenditures.
