HS2011 System Analysis and Design

Case Study
HS2011 System Analysis and Design: Individual and Group Assignments
Note: The case study below may not provide all of the information necessary to complete the assignment.
Students will have to use their personal experiences to complete some aspects of the assignment. Students
may also seek clarification from their lecturer during interactive tutorials or discussion board.
Sunshine Motors
“Sunshine Motors” is a large car dealership with 5 branches spread over the Melbourne Metropolitan area,
with the Head Office located in Sunshine, the west of Melbourne. David Da Costa is the CEO of Sunshine
Motors and heads up a team of branch managers, one for each branch. Each branch is organized into two
departments, Sales and Service, and each department is run by a department manager. David plans on
expanding the number of branches in the near future to become one of the state’s largest car dealership and
service businesses. The servicing side of the business is really beginning to generate a good percentage of the
business, and David plans on streamlining the operations of the servicing areas in all branches by undertaking
a large IT project to computerize all aspects of this area. Currently each branch holds and orders parts for cars
that they service, but David has located a property in North Melbourne that will be central to all branches, and
plans to use this to build a major warehouse to centrally hold and distribute car parts to all branches on a daily
basis or to fill urgent ad-hoc orders for parts for just-in-time delivery to the branches.
Sunshine Motors has tasked your team to manage the project to build this software system. The system is to
allow the company to record client information – their details (for example name, address, contact details),
vehicle details (for example make, model, colour, registration), and service history (for example service dates
and odometer readings, details of the services performed separated into labour tasks and parts used, the
mechanics involved). The system must also keep records of the mechanics employed by the company – their
personal details, their qualifications and special licenses, time sheet information, emergency contact details,
supervisor details. Additionally, the system will also record the inventory in the central warehouse and accept
branch orders on a daily basis for parts to be required the next day, as well as urgent orders from branches for
parts needed to complete a service on an ad-hoc basis.
It is also envisaged that members of the public will be able to buy parts directly from the warehouse, either in
person, or on-line via a new web-based ordering system. The system will need to be continually online to all
branches and connect the branches to the central warehouse as well as to each other and head office.
The current system is a manual based system which has served the company well, but is now becoming
outdated and causing bottlenecks due to the increased workload demand.
Description of the New System
Each branch has a pool of mechanics who are entitled to a rostered day off per fortnight and so the system
must be able to produce a roster for the mechanics ensuring that there is always at least five mechanics
working on a day and one mechanic available for an emergency call in, in the event of illness or extra work
demand. Mechanics can also be rostered to different branches if necessary. When working on a vehicle, a
mechanic can enter information into the system at any of the terminals to be placed in the workshop area; front
office staff can enter information at any of two terminals in the front office; and roadway staff can enter details
at an outside terminal on arrival of the client with their vehicle.
Mechanics are assigned to a Work Bay for the day, but may move between work bays for different work
orders. Each workshop at each branch maintains a minimum of 7 Work Bays within the workshop area,
though there are plans to expand this if the company can successfully implement this project and build
expanded workshop facilities.
The company also provides loan cars to clients on request and so must keep information on when loan cars are
available for clients and who has a loan car at any given time and for how long. Not all customers request loan
cars, but when they book in a service, they may request one, so the system needs to be able to respond with the
details of when loan cars may be available.
Sunshine Motors needs to manage an inventory of parts and consumables in the central North Melbourne
warehouse that the mechanics use for jobs. As mechanics order parts for jobs they may be allocated, the
system should decrement the inventory items as the orders are processed. The purchasing officer for the
central warehouse needs to be able to check inventory levels at any time and order additional stock (typically
via email to a supplier as necessary), though the new system should be able to automatically generate its own
orders once the stock levels fall below a predetermined threshold. However, the purchasing officer should also
receive a warning email when this happens. The system should be able to handle up to 100,000 part numbers
(a consumable also has a part number) and the purchasing officer to set the thresholds for the inventory levels
for each part as they require. A part or consumable has a name, a number, a supplier and a minimum order
quantity.
Each morning, the Service Manager will review the booked services for the next day. From this review a
standard order of required parts will be sent to the warehouse for delivery that afternoon, or early next
morning. In this way, mechanics can begin work on vehicles as soon as the owner drops them off using the
standards parts delivered. If further parts are needed on an ad-hoc basis, this is handled by the mechanics using
the parts ordering system associated with the particular service being undertaken.
When a Customer brings a car in for a service, they either come to the counter where a Service Writer
prepares the Work Order, or they can drop the car off and meet a roadway staff member outside with a
portable entry device. The Service Writer and the Customer arrange for a time for the work to be completed
and then the customer signs the Work Order and leaves. The Work Orders are arranged within the system in
order of expected completion times.
When a Mechanic is free, they access the system and get assigned to the next Work Order available in the
system. As soon as a Mechanic is assigned a Work Order, they indicate the available Work Bay they will be
using, the Work Bay is then booked for the expected duration of the service, and a notification is sent to a
Service Assistant who retrieves the vehicle and drives it to the assigned Work Bay. The Mechanic then begins
work on the vehicle. The Work Order will contain a number of standard Work Items corresponding to the
particular service being undertaken, along with any specific faults noted by the customer. As each Work Item
is completed the Mechanic checks these off on the system, so the system can keep track of the progress of the
Work Order in case the Customer rings for an update on expected completion time.
As the Mechanic is servicing the vehicle, new parts may be needed for a particular Work Item. The Mechanic
will log these parts in the system against the Work Item, and the system will also check the Inventory
Database for availability. If the part is in stock then the System will adjust the quantity of these parts in the
Inventory database and a notification is sent to a Service Assistant to retrieve the part and deliver it to the
required Work Bay. If the part is not stored locally then an urgent order will be sent to the parts warehouse,
and a notice is sent to the Service Manager who will try to urgently get the part from the warehouse, or if
necessary, a supplier. If the part is unavailable then the Service Manager will notify the Customer about the
delay and may have to arrange for a replacement car until the part arrives. The Service Manager will also
notify the Mechanic who is servicing the vehicle of the outcome. This may require the Mechanic to be
assigned to another Work Order until the part arrives.
When a Mechanic finishes the items on the Work Order, this is entered into the System as complete. The
Work Order is closed and a notification is sent to a Service Assistant who then retrieves the vehicle from the
Work Bay, takes it to a Detailing Bay where it is washed and cleaned, then driven to parking bays to be picked
up by the customer. When the vehicle is returned to the parking bays, the Service Assistant enters this
against the Work Order, and the Customer is notified that their vehicle is ready for collection. When the Work
Order is closed, the Mechanic can then retrieve another Work Order from the System.
When the Work Order is closed, it is flagged as complete and the System automatically prepares an Invoice
for the Work Order. The Invoice contains the standard costs for each of the Work Items, as well as the price of
any new parts needed as the Work Items were being performed. It will additionally include labour costs. A
total cost for the invoice is then generated and the Invoice is printed out. A copy of the Invoice is also sent to
the Accounts Department.
Payment
When the Customer arrives to pick up their vehicle, they are given the Invoice which they can check, then
payment is received and entered into the system against the Invoice. When an Invoice is fully paid, it is
flagged as closed. In some cases, Sunshine Motors may allow an Invoice to be partly paid, in which case the
Invoice remains Open until full payment is received. This may be for a term of up to seven days.
Some Customers (for example companies which maintain fleets of vehicles) have accounts with Sunshine
Motors, and will receive a monthly statement through the post. These customers have longer terms, such as the
end of the month in which the statement is issued.
When a customer payment is received, a copy of the payment is sent to the Accounts Department, where the
payment is matched against the Invoice and a receipt will be issued through the post, or via text message if the
Customer has registered a mobile telephone number. Payment can be made by cash, credit card or PayPal.
Regular reports need to be generated to list those Invoices over their due dates that have not been paid.
Issues
A number of issues have arisen that have prompted Sunshine Motors to contract you to look into the
development of this new system.
• It is difficult to keep track of the Work Orders during the day and thus it is difficult to answer customer
phone queries on the progress of their service
• Work orders were not collated till the end of the day; thus, it was difficult to keep track of the
consumption or inventory on a day to day basis
• Manual checks had to be kept on inventory levels to make sure stock was available. If stock ran out
this could be costly in terms of supplying the customer with replacement vehicles.
• As the number of customers has grown (and is expected to grow in future) it was sometimes difficult to
keep track of the fleet or loan cars, and answer customer queries on when one would be available so
they could book their service.
• Additionally, we need to keep better track of kilometers in our loan fleet so these can also be serviced
in a timely manner.
• Delays in sending paperwork to our suppliers can cause delays in inventory processing and result in
longer delivery times of stock.
• The level of paperwork is increasing and the Accounts Department is having trouble keeping up with
the timely production of monthly statements, processing of payments and general financial reporting.
• With customers beginning to ask for different methods of payment such as email, PayPal etc, we need
to look at incorporating this into our business processes somehow
Other Information
Sunshine Motors has a Finance Manager who must be able to extract information related to car services and
bills paid (clients pay the front office staff on completion of a job) as well as invoices paid to suppliers, for
parts ordered by the Purchasing Officer. The Finance Manager prefers to use Microsoft® Excel® and
MYOB® for accounting activities.
Sunshine Motors has a Marketing Manager who needs to be able to set up mail out reminders to clients when
their car might be coming due for a service and any special offers. The Marketing Manager would like to
know if this could be incorporated into the new system.
There has been some consideration to giving mechanics a tablet computing device so that they can enter
information more freely as they move around the workshop, but there are concerns about the robustness of
such devices (mechanics like to drop things) and the need for a local Wireless Area Network – if possible this
is desirable, but not mandatory.
Sunshine Motors needs an IT Administrator to maintain the system, perform backups and set access
permissions, for example.
The team, apart from the IT Administrator, Finance Manager and Marketing Manager are generally fairly IT
illiterate and so need very simple user interfaces.
Sunshine Motors has a client base of 300 clients but is hoping to grow this by 10%.
This project is quite large and will require a significant investment from the company. There is some
opposition within the company from some stakeholders, particularly the Sales Managers at the various
branches, however most of the Service Managers see the project as providing significant advantages.
About the Assignments
Information system development projects incorporate several key milestones. This assignment will require
you to complete Milestone 1 – problem analysis, which includes understanding business in general, their
challenges, current system issues/problems, essential functional/non-functional requirements and limitations.
Milestone 2 – Data Modelling which uses some of the models of a Structured Approach, such as Event table,
Data fragments, a context diagram, DFDs, ERD and DFD documentation to illustrate the current system.
The purpose of the problem analysis phase is threefold. First and foremost, the project team must gain a
proper understanding of the business and system problem domain. Second, we need to answer the question,
“are these problems (opportunities and directives) worth solving?”. Finally, we need to determine if the system
is worth developing.
The problem analysis phase provides the systems analyst and project team with a more thorough
understanding of the problems, opportunities, and directives that triggered the project. In the process, they
frequently uncover new obstacles and opportunities. The information employed and acquired during these
analyses has to be from all levels of the Sunshine Motors, such as CEO, branch managers, service managers,
finance managers, sales managers, assistants and mechanics. You will need to understand the current
processes, the problems, issues, and opportunities.
As this is an academic exercise, you will not be able to do practical tasks such as surveys and interviews.
However, you should provide a brief explanation of how to investigate the current system and understand the
problems. You are allowed to make assumptions with those areas which are not clearly explained in the case
description. To make assumptions, you should conduct research, such as checking similar business websites or
reading published academic papers related to sales and service businesses in order to justify your assumptions.
Having studied the current system and analysed some of its problems and opportunities, and of course, gained
approval to proceed, you can then start to provide suggestions on how to address the current system issues,
and design a new system which enhances their business management and processes. You will focus on System
Design and Development practices in Group Assignment.