Location Definitions

A "location" refers to where something is physically or virtually situated - a building, room number, warehouse, site, or a virtual environment. Locations are used across QDMS Now: document distribution points, the scope of a risk assessment, and where a nonconformity was detected.

Purposes of Locations

The importance and usage purposes of locations can be examined under several main categories:

a. Inventory Management

Knowing the physical or virtual location of assets enables accurate inventory tracking, which is critical for optimizing stock levels and preventing losses.

b. Maintenance and Repair

Location information helps in determining the maintenance and repair needs of assets. For physical assets that require regular maintenance, it allows for better planning of these processes.

c. Performance Monitoring

Locations are essential for monitoring and evaluating asset performance. Comparing the performance of assets across different locations can help identify areas for improvement.

d. Risk Management

The location of assets is important for risk analysis and management. For example, assets located in areas prone to natural disasters may require risk mitigation strategies.

e. Cost Control

Location information helps optimize the use and distribution of assets, keeping costs under control. Assets in the right location can reduce transportation and storage costs.

f. Efficiency and Process Improvement

Location data can be used to make business processes more efficient. For example, concentrating assets in a specific location can lead to faster and more effective execution of processes.

g. Legal and Regulatory Requirements

In some industries, it is crucial for assets to be in certain locations to meet legal requirements. Location information helps ensure compliance.

Because location cuts across modules - distribution, risk scope, detection point - managing it properly enhances organizational effectiveness and keeps reporting comparable.

Location Examples

Location definitions are used to indicate where assets are located and how they are organized. Here are examples of different types of locations:

1. Physical Locations

• Building: Main office building, 3rd floor, room 302
• Warehouse: Central warehouse, zone 1, shelf 12
• Site: Production site, east side, machinery area
• Customer Location: Customer A's office, 456 Park Ave, New York

2. Virtual Locations

• Cloud Storage: Amazon S3 Bucket: project-x/backup
• Virtual Server: VM-Server01, hosted on Azure, San Francisco data center
• Application Server: Web application server, IP address 10.0.0.5

3. Mobile Locations

• Portable Equipment: Portable laptop, in the employee's bag
• Vehicle: Vehicle 23, parked in the company lot

4. Geographic Locations

• City: Istanbul, Ankara
• Country: Germany, Turkey
• Region: Aegean, Marmara, Thrace, Anatolia

5. Classified Locations

• High-Security Area: Area behind the security checkpoint, accessible only to authorized personnel
• Sensitive Data Storage Area: Secure server area for storing personal data

6. Process-Related Locations

• Production Line: Production line A, plant 1, zone 3
• Service Point: Customer support center, 4th floor, office 405

These examples illustrate the different types and forms of location definitions that can be used. Clearly defining each location simplifies tracking and reporting. However, overly detailed location definitions can complicate management, so it's essential to create optimized definitions based on organizational structure and reporting needs.

Location Operations

On the location listing and entry pages, all standard functions such as exporting to Excel, filtering, and changing field visibility are operational. These standard functions are detailed under General System Usage.

Location Definition Page

This page is used to create a new location or edit an existing one.

Code: The Location Code is a unique identifier used to define a location. A short and meaningful code should be entered. Example: For a vehicle, "TR41".

Name: The Location Name field is used to provide a description of the location. This description should briefly and clearly define the location. Example: "Turkey Kocaeli".

Description: This field can be used to provide additional details or information about the location. This field is optional. Example: For Turkey Kocaeli, "Teknopark R&D Office Building".

Parent Location: This field defines the location hierarchy by specifying the location to which the defined location belongs. This field is optional. Example: If defining "Turkey Kocaeli", the parent location might be "Turkey".

City: This field specifies the city in which the defined location is geographically located. This field is optional.

State/Province: This field specifies the state or province in which the defined location is geographically located. This field is optional.

Country: This field specifies the country in which the defined location is geographically located. This field is optional.

Address: This field is for entering the full address of the defined location. This field is optional.

Postal Code: This field is for entering the postal code of the defined location. This field is optional.

Latitude: This field is for entering the latitude coordinates of the defined location. This field is optional.

Longitude: This field is for entering the longitude coordinates of the defined location. This field is optional.

Altitude: This field is for entering the altitude of the defined location. This field is optional.

Barcode: This field is used when a barcode value different from the code value is assigned to the location. This field is optional.

Responsible Teams: This field is used to add teams that work at the defined location. This field is optional. When defined, team data will work with the location filter on pages where both location and team information are displayed.

Images: This field is used to add images related to the defined location. This field is optional.

Additional Documents: This field is used to associate PDF, image, or other documents with the location. This field is optional.

Custom Fields: This field allows users to define custom key-value fields for the location. These fields are used to make the asset properties more specific. This field is optional. Example: For virtual locations, key-value pairs like IP address can be defined. These defined fields will be visible on the asset definition page when an asset record is created.

Location Hierarchy

A location hierarchy provides a structure that allows businesses to better manage their locations by organizing them under a specific arrangement and classification. This hierarchy enables tracking, managing, and analyzing locations down to a detailed level.

Below is an example of a location tree structure. This structure allows locations to be organized hierarchically:

• Company A
  • Headquarters
    • Building 1
      • Floor 1
        • Office 101
        • Office 102
      • Floor 2
        • Office 201
        • Office 202
    • Building 2
      • Floor 1
        • Office 301
        • Office 302
      • Floor 2
        • Meeting Room 1
        • Meeting Room 2
  • Branch 1
    • Building 1
      • Floor 1
        • Office 101
        • Office 102
      • Floor 2
        • Meeting Room 1
  • Branch 2
    • Building 1
      • Floor 1
        • Office 101
        • Office 102
      • Floor 2
        • Office 201
    • Warehouse
      • Area A
      • Area B
  • Data Center
    • Server Room 1
    • Server Room 2

Explanations

• Company A: The main organization.
• Headquarters: The company's central location.
• Building 1 and Building 2: Physical buildings at the headquarters.
• Floor 1, Floor 2: The floors within each building.
• Office 101, Office 102, etc.: Offices or meeting rooms on each floor.
• Branch 1 and Branch 2: The company's branches in different cities.
• Warehouse: Storage areas located in Branch 2.
• Data Center: A dedicated area for managing the company's data.

This type of location structure is extremely beneficial for tracking assets, managing them, and quickly accessing needed information. The location tree clearly shows how the organization's physical or virtual assets are structured.

Custom Field Definition

1. Selecting the Data Type

   Choose one of the following appropriate data types for custom fields. This ensures data is entered and managed in the correct format.

   • Text (Textbox)
   • Rich Text (Memo, Rich Edit)
   • Number (Numeric Edit)
   • Integer (Numeric Edit)
   • Date (Date Edit)
   • Date and Time (Date Time Edit)
   • Time (Time Edit)
   • Dropdown List (Combo)
   • Radio Button
   • Checkbox

2. Custom Field Properties

   The following properties can be configured for defined custom fields:

   • Mandatory: For all field types.
   • Label: Multi-language support for all field types.
   • Length: For Text and Rich Text fields.
   • Default Value: For all field types.
   • Minimum Value: For Number and Integer fields.
   • Maximum Value: For Number and Integer fields.
   • Value: For Checkbox fields, the value to be written to the database.
   • Elements: For Radio Button and Dropdown List fields, a Text-Value element list.

Authorization and Access Control

Topics related to Authorization and Access Control are detailed under User Management and Authorization.

Location Manager Role

• Create: Permission to create a new location
• Edit: Permission to edit an existing location
• Delete: Permission to delete an existing location
• Bulk Operations: Permission to perform bulk operations like export and import
• Design: Permission to design pages related to locations

Location Contributor Role

• Create: Authorization to create a new location.
• Edit: Authorization to edit an existing location.

All Users

• All users can use the created locations within other modules.

Warnings and Error Messages

Warning and error messages will be displayed with screenshots.

• Unique Location Code: The system will issue a warning if you attempt to register different locations with the same code.

• Unique Barcode: The system will issue a warning if you attempt to register different locations with the same barcode.

• Unique Team: The system will issue a warning if the same team is registered multiple times in the Responsible Teams field.

• Invalid Latitude: The latitude value must be between -90 and 90. The system will issue a warning if a value larger or smaller than this range is entered.

• Invalid Longitude: The longitude value must be between -180 and 180. The system will issue a warning if a value larger or smaller than this range is entered.

• Invalid Altitude: The altitude value must be between -430 meters (Dead Sea) and 8848 meters (Mount Everest). The system will issue a warning if a value larger or smaller than this range is entered.

• Leaving Mandatory Fields Blank: The system will issue a warning if required fields, such as Location Code or Name, are left empty.

User Tips and Best Practices

• Use Short and Meaningful Codes: Keeping location codes short and descriptive helps prevent confusion between locations. Depending on the company's geographical distribution, different intelligent coding systems can be implemented. For example, a company with many locations may use a city's license plate code, while a single-location business may not require such coding.

• Create Standard Definitions: It is important to use standard definitions for the same locations within a team. This prevents different users from using different descriptions for the same location, making process tracking easier.

• Avoid Unnecessary Definitions: Avoid creating unnecessary location definitions for your business. Defining more locations than needed will make the system more complex and will complicate both reporting and usage.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why Must the Location Code Be Unique?

Location codes are used to identify and differentiate each location in the system. Using the same code for multiple locations can lead to confusion in the system.

What Should I Write in the Location Description?

In the location description, you should include certain information to clearly indicate where the asset is located and allow for quick identification when needed. Here are the key details that should be included in an effective location description:

1. Physical Address or Location Information: If it's a physical location, include details like building, floor, and room number. Example: "Headquarters, Building 1, 2nd Floor, Office 203"

2. Coordinates or Geographic Information: For fields, factories, or open areas, you can include latitude and longitude coordinates. Example: "Factory site, 39.9334° N, 32.8597° E"

3. Region or Area Definition: If the location is part of a larger complex, specify which region or area it is located in. Example: "Warehouse, within the Logistics Center, West Wing, Area A"

4. Virtual or Digital Location (if applicable): For virtual assets, include server name, IP address, or cloud service details. Example: "Virtual server, Azure Cloud, US East Data Center"

5. Function or Purpose of the Asset (Optional): You can also add the function or purpose of the asset at the location. Example: "Parking area for company vehicles"

6. Related Person or Responsible (Optional): If there is a specific responsible person or contact, you can include this as well. Example: "Responsible person: Mehmet Yılmaz, IT Department"

What Should I Do If I Define a Location Incorrectly?

If an incorrect description is provided, you can edit or delete the location as necessary.

Can the Location Code or Description Be Changed Later?

Yes, the location code and description can be changed later. However, this will affect all records that have used this location in the application, so it should be done carefully. If the location is to be used for a different purpose, a new location should be defined.

Are There Any System Limits for Locations?

Typically, there is no numerical limit on the number of locations in the system. However, instead of creating too many locations, it is always beneficial to review existing ones and question the necessity of new definitions. Defining unnecessary detailed locations will complicate reporting and management.

Are There Any System Limits for Location Hierarchies?

There are generally no numerical limits for location hierarchies in the system. However, defining too many layers will complicate reporting and management. It's important to define as much detail as needed and review it later if necessary.

Why Are Locations Defined in a Hierarchy?

A hierarchy simplifies the classification of locations and optimizes management processes based on the level of detail required by the business. With a hierarchy, all locations, from the top level to the bottom, can be monitored.