UM 01 Introduction
Page Contents
Machete is a web application customized to manage a day labor referral service. Machete tracks work orders from employers looking for short term, casual labor. It also provides a means for matching laborers with specific skills to requests made by employers for skilled casual labor.
Machete performs the following tasks:
- Stores basic contact information for all persons associated with the Machete system
- Stores biographical and membership information on its members
- Records daily member attendance using a identification number through either a bar code scanner or the keyboard
- Captures employer, work order, and work assignment details into a relational database
- Provides a fast, flexible method of dispatching workers to work orders based on English level, skill level, and employer requests
- Captures class, assembly, and special activity attendance
Machete is a client/server web application that supports most major web browers (Firefox, Chrome, Safari, IE). Machete is installed on an IIS web server and connected to a MS-SQL database. Many clients can simultanously use Machete as long as they have reliable network connectity between the web client and the server. The web client/server framework provides a great deal of flexibility, but also comes with it’s own quirks and restraints.
To access Machete, use a compliant web browser and go to the Machete web server URL. Your site administrator will be able to tell you the URL to access your instance of Machete.
You will need a login and password to sign in to Machete. You can register for an account by clicking in the Logon link in the upper right hand corner of the Machete page. A manager or dispatcher will need to give your account permission to use Machete.
A set of SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS) reports are provided, but SSRS is a separate component, not available with the free verson of SQL Server.
We are working on text-only reports during the summer update releases.
To access Machete, a user must create a user account AND an administrator must grant privileges to access the system by an Administrator.
The user creation process prompts the user to give their real first and last name. Using a real first and last name is important because this name is also part of the logging system. The name of the user is logged whenever he or she makes a change to a record.
When a user is not logged in, [Logon] is displayed in the upper right hand corner of every page. If the user does not have an account, a Register link is available from the logon page.
Machete user sign-in
Machete has the capability to support muliple display languages. As of 2013, it supports English and Spanish. More languages can be added.
The links to switch between English and Spanish are in the upper right hand corner of every page. A user can switch between English and Spanish anywhere in the application.
Machete manages work orders through a simple work flow process. Work orders start the process marked as Pending, until they have sufficient information to proceed. Once orders are ready, they are marked Active, making their assignments visible on the Dispatch Page. From the Dispatch Page, workers are assigned to assignments for a given day. Print-outs of the orders are given to the workers, who travel to the work site and perform work for the employer. Managers and Dispatchers review the orders and mark then Complete or Cancelled, so that the information is captured in Machete's database.
The diagram below illustrates the basic work flow of creating orders in Machete. Creating a work order involves an employer record, a work order record, and at least one work assignment record. At the end of the process, the users signifies that the order is complete by activating the order.
Active orders are visible in the Dispatch page and are able to be assigned workers.
Machete workflow