J
I see that the question of “what is a template” has been debated here before so firstly let me explain that when I talk about “templates” I mean Microsoft document or spreadsheet templates.
Should templates be controlled documents or not? I cannot agree with my boss on this but he has some valid points and I am genuinely unsure of the answer.
We use a document template to generate a document that records the connector wiring on the equipment we build. The document template lists the “standard” wiring configuration but we accept that this will inevitably be deviated from as each customer’s requirements are different. The completed document is then filed as a record of the equipment build.
BOSSES VIEW
The documents created from the template are not controlled documents and may be changed in format from the original template to reflect each individual situation. Because the individual documents are not controlled documents, the template cannot be a controlled document either. Document history and issue number are used to track changes on the documents created from the template. The boss does regularly change the format of the templates without use of the change process.
After the equipment is built and shipped, the wiring document becomes a controlled document and can only be altered through the change process.
MY VIEW
The template defines what information we record and also defines our “standard” wiring even though we accept this is just a guideline. Therefore the template should be a controlled document. The documents created from the template are not controlled documents at any stage. They are however “records” and as such will not be changed once build is complete. If customer’s equipment is modified in the future then these records will be updated, but we have procedures for this. It does not seem appropriate to me to use the change process to change a record, even if it needs to be updated.
The one area I am not happy with is the document history which on the template is a “history of the template”. Obviously this appears on any documents generated from the template and then has to be changed to be a history of the document.
So, should our Microsoft templates be controlled documents, or not? What is the best way of dealing with the document history and issue number of the template given that this information will appear on any documents generated from the template?
John.
Should templates be controlled documents or not? I cannot agree with my boss on this but he has some valid points and I am genuinely unsure of the answer.
We use a document template to generate a document that records the connector wiring on the equipment we build. The document template lists the “standard” wiring configuration but we accept that this will inevitably be deviated from as each customer’s requirements are different. The completed document is then filed as a record of the equipment build.
BOSSES VIEW
The documents created from the template are not controlled documents and may be changed in format from the original template to reflect each individual situation. Because the individual documents are not controlled documents, the template cannot be a controlled document either. Document history and issue number are used to track changes on the documents created from the template. The boss does regularly change the format of the templates without use of the change process.
After the equipment is built and shipped, the wiring document becomes a controlled document and can only be altered through the change process.
MY VIEW
The template defines what information we record and also defines our “standard” wiring even though we accept this is just a guideline. Therefore the template should be a controlled document. The documents created from the template are not controlled documents at any stage. They are however “records” and as such will not be changed once build is complete. If customer’s equipment is modified in the future then these records will be updated, but we have procedures for this. It does not seem appropriate to me to use the change process to change a record, even if it needs to be updated.
The one area I am not happy with is the document history which on the template is a “history of the template”. Obviously this appears on any documents generated from the template and then has to be changed to be a history of the document.
So, should our Microsoft templates be controlled documents, or not? What is the best way of dealing with the document history and issue number of the template given that this information will appear on any documents generated from the template?
John.