Overview
The Related Alarms feature helps users identify alarms that may be associated with the same underlying issue before creating work. When work is created from an alarm, asset, or other supported location, Virtual Facility can automatically suggest additional alarms that appear to be related, allowing them to be included on the same work item.
This feature can help reduce duplicate work orders, improve technician visibility, and provide additional context when multiple alarms are occurring within the same area or system.
How It Works
When a user initiates Create Work, Virtual Facility evaluates the selected alarm and any directly connected assets to identify alarms that may be related. If qualifying alarms are found, the Related Alarms modal is displayed and the user can choose which additional alarms should be included on the work item.
The modal displays:
Current Alarm(s)
The alarms originally selected for work creation. This is shown in the green box in the example image below.
For each alarm, the modal displays:
- Alarm contextual name
- Alarm time
- Shop (when available)
Related Alarms
The alarms identified as potential candidates for inclusion on the work item. This is shown in the red box in the example image below.
For each alarm, the modal displays:
- Alarm contextual name
- Alarm time
- Shop (when available)
- How the alarm is related to the current alarm(s)
Users may choose to:
- Include all suggested alarms
- Include only selected alarms
- Ignore the suggestions and continue without adding related alarms
What Makes an Alarm "Related"?
An alarm may be suggested if it is associated with:
- The same asset
- An asset connected through a Feeds relationship (one level away)
- An asset connected through a Fed By relationship (one level away)
Only direct asset relationships are considered. Virtual Facility does not continue searching beyond a single Feeds or Fed By connection.
Alarm Qualification Rules
To be eligible for suggestion, an alarm must satisfy all applicable criteria.
Status Requirements
The alarm must be:
- Active or Intake
- Not stale
Age Requirement
Alarms must also be less than 24 hours old to qualify as suggested related alarms.
Note: While alarm age is displayed in the Related Alarms modal, alarms older than 24 hours are not presented as suggested related alarms.
Priority Requirements
Creating Work from a Single Alarm
Related alarms must have the same priority or a higher priority than the alarm being used to create work
Creating Work from a No Priority Alarm
If the originating alarm has no assigned priority, only High and Highest priority alarms are eligible for suggestion.
Creating Work from Multiple Alarms
When work is created from multiple alarms simultaneously, suggested related alarms are limited to High and Highest priority alarms.
When Does the Related Alarms Modal Appear?
The Related Alarms modal may appear whenever a user creates work and qualifying related alarms are found. Supported entry points include:
- Alarm slideout
- Asset slideout
- Alarm table
- Asset view
- Work view
- Command Center asset
- Command Center alarm
The modal is only displayed when at least one qualifying related alarm is identified.
Enabling or Disabling the Feature
Administrators can control whether the Related Alarms modal is available for their organization.
Navigate to:
Settings → Alarm Config
The setting:
- Is available to administrators
- Is enabled by default
- Can be disabled at the client level
When disabled, the Related Alarms modal will not be displayed during work creation.
Example
A user creates work from a High Priority AHU alarm.
Virtual Facility evaluates:
- The originating asset
- Any directly connected assets through Feeds relationships
- Any directly connected assets through Fed By relationships
The system then searches for alarms that:
- Are Active or Intake
- Are not Stale (i.e., are less than 24 hours old)
- Have High or Highest priority
- Are associated with qualifying assets
If qualifying alarms are found, the Related Alarms modal allows the user to include those alarms on the same work item before creation.
Best Practices
- Review suggested alarms before creating work to determine whether they are part of the same issue.
- Use the alarm time displayed in the modal to help assess whether alarms are likely related.
- Avoid combining unrelated alarms into a single work item simply because they meet suggestion criteria.
- Periodically review the feature setting in Alarm Config to ensure it aligns with your dispatching processes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why wasn't an alarm suggested?
An alarm may not be suggested if:
- It is more than 24 hours old (it is stale).
- It is not Active or in Intake.
- It does not meet the priority requirements.
- It is not associated with the same asset or a qualifying connected asset.
- The Related Alarms feature has been disabled in Alarm Config.
Can users manually select alarms that were not suggested?
No. The Related Alarms modal only presents alarms that satisfy the qualification criteria used by the feature. If the user desires to add other alarms, they should cancel out of the work creation form and alarm slideout, then select all the desired alarms from the table and create work of them through the relevant bulk action.
Does alarm time determine whether alarms are related?
Alarm time is displayed to help users evaluate whether alarms may be associated with the same event or issue. If an alarm triggered more than 24 hours ago, it will not be suggested.