Tech Tip: How to Prepare for the End-of-Year Process in RTA
As 2020 winds down, it might be time to start preparing your fleet operation for the end of the year. In RTA, the End-of-Period (EOP) process helps you clear out your data from this year and prepare for 2021. While this process is not necessary to keep RTA working properly, it is recommended to help identify trends in your data and find any potential errors that you can correct before closing out the year.
To run EOP, follow these steps, as recommended by our Support and Training teams:
Determine How to Handle Any Data That Has Not Yet Been Entered
Do you have data that has not yet been added into the RTA system? Before running your EOP process, you have two options for how to proceed:
- Option 1: Wait to run the end-of-year process until the 2020 data has been entered. If it is after the new year, you can still process it as 2020.
- Option 2: You could run EOP and then add the missing data afterwards. The cost and usage will then be accounted for during the next period.
Preparing for EOP
You need to complete the following steps to ensure EOP processing runs smoothly:
- Enter all work orders, purchase orders, fuel orders and other data that should be accounted for in this period.
- Post all fueling transactions.
- Schedule a time to run your EOP and give your staff a heads up so that everyone is out of the RTA system.
- Print all needed current period cost reports.
- Review the reports to check for accuracy. Finding any errors now will help eliminate the need to fix data after the EOP has been run.
- Make any adjustments and the rerun the reports.
- Make a complete end-of-period backup and archive it. This should be done just prior to running EOP.
- Make a complete end-of-year backup and archive it.
End-of-Period Options in RTA
RTA has six types of end-of-period procedures you can run.
- End of Week/Month Processing for Mechanics: This can account for hours assigned to work orders.
- Create Fleet Report: This takes a snapshot of your current fleet costs for this period and stores the data.
- End of Month Fuel Tax: This can be run if you are tracking the Use Fuel Tax in RTA.
- End of Period Processing for Tires: If you are using the RTA tire module, you should run this before running your EOP for vehicles.
- End of Period Processing for Vehicles: Relevant data is stored in the vehicle’s lifetime files and current information is zeroed out.
- End of Period Processing for Parts: The Reorder Point and Reorder Quantity is recalculated and adjusted. Requisitions are created for stocked parts and parts usage per period is updated. Part warranty statistics are updated, and more.
For assistance in running end-of-period processes at your fleet operation, or if you have any questions, please reach out to our Support team at Support@RTAFleet.com.