LinkoAG is a tool to be used by Silver and Mercury (AG) programs to help manage the information that AG programs need and generate in tFacilitieshe course of implementing and operating your AG program.  In order to use the software as an effective tool, it is important to understand the tasks you want to accomplish.  The following sequence of steps will help you map the tasks you want to accomplish and will show you how to use LinkoAG to help.

 

1) Document your AG Program - Before you start using LinkoAG, it is most helpful to consider the Standard Operating Procedures (SOP's) currently in use within your AG program:

·       What activities are you currently performing or plan to implement? 

·       What letters and/or reports do you send to Facilities?

·       List the reports / correspondence that you receive from Facilities.

·       Typically, AG programs manage Facilities through inspections and/or tracking trap pump-outs (cleanings).

 

2) Setup and Configure LinkoAG- Once you have outlined the tasks, letters and reports important to your AG program, you are ready to configure LinkoAG to fit your SOPs.  In this step, you will use the System Administration functions to enter the types of events you perform (Inspections, etc.), the types of events that the Facilities perform (Pump Out reporting, BMP training, etc.) as well as other Valid Value lists that are used in LinkoAG System Admin.  You can change the way the screens appear and customize reports and letters to fit your exact needs.

 

3) FACILITY Inventory - After you have configured LinkoAG, you need to enter all of the Facilities into LinkoAG.  The Facility Management screen is used to store and report information about Facilities.  By entering your 'inventory' of Facilities into Linko along with the information that characterizes each of the FACILITY (address, connection location, type of FACILITY, trap/interceptor information, contacts, notes, etc.) you will then be able to sort, group and manage a large number of Facilities simply and completely.  The FACILITY Inventory becomes the basis for using LinkoAG.

 

4) Scheduling Your Events - LinkoAG can be used to manage both the Authority's schedule and FACILITY compliance events.  Typically, Authority events are inspections of the FACILITY, distributing BMP documents to the FACILITY and follow-up events.   Using the Event Management Screen, you can build your schedule one facility at a time or schedule by groups of facilities.

 

5) Scheduling FACILITY Events - LinkoAG is often used to track the compliance events that the FACILITY must perform, such as Pump Out (trap cleanings) and/or Maintenance Log Reporting.  The user can schedule these events, or enter the completion of these events as they occur.  You can configure LinkoAG to create the next scheduled event when you complete an event.  This allows you to search for, report or send letters for late FACILITY events.

 

6) Day-to-Day Operations - Once your FACILITY inventory and your schedule are entered, you will use the Event Management screen to view activities that you need to complete, events that the FACILITY must complete and then update those events as they are completed.  There are many sorting and reporting capabilities to help you view the events.

 

7) AG Program Performance Review - Using the LinkoAG reporting capabilities to analyze where your AG program is succeeding and finding where it needs to be tuned up.  Ask and answer questions such as "What is the average depth of grease observed in fast food restaurant traps?" or "How many violations have we issued in the past 6 months?"