Equipment objects in a facility can be of two different types, functional or serial. A serial equipment object, in contrast to a functional object, may be moved around in the facility, or placed into inventory, and is therefore called a movable serial object. A movable serial object could for example be an electrical motor, a pump, a valve or anything else suitable for relocation into different positions in the facility. Serial equipment objects can also be of the non-movable type, such as turbines or any other very large pieces of equipment which will most likely not be moved from their locations. Non-movable serial objects can be registered as functional objects. For these types of functional object you can also define part numbers and serial numbers, just like any other serial objects, but the object's position in the structure cannot be changed.
A serial object can be created manually in IFS/Equipment by defining a part number that exist in IFS/Part Catalog and defining a serial number that has not been previously used for the part. You can also create a serial object from serialized parts that exist in IFS/Inventory (the part could for example have been received into inventory on a purchase order, or a shop order, etc). This can be done by issuing the serialized part on a work order, and placing the issued part into the equipment structure directly from the work order. Another way to establish objects (functional as well as serial object) in IFS/Equipment automatically is by transferring a structure built in IFS/Project Delivery and IFS/Plant Design.
A serial object can also be established from a serialized inventory part when delivering a customer order line, if the sales part or the customer order line is defined to create an SM (Service Management) object upon delivery. If the delivered part has a serialized structure underneath it, the underlying structure will also create serial objects (used in IFS/Service Management only).
A serial object can be moved to a new position in the equipment structure, underneath a functional object (if the functional object's object level allows it) or underneath a serial object, or as a stand alone object. You can also move the serial object into a repair workshop (defined as a functional object). This is done by creating a repair work order. When the object is repaired you can either place it back into the equipment structure, or place it into inventory.
Whenever the serial object is moved to a new location within the facility, moved into or out of a repair workshop, issued into or out of inventory a history transaction will be created. This allows you to tracking where a serial object has been located at any time, what kind of moves have taken place, where the object was moved and what date and time it took place, facilitating a life cycle management solutions for serials. The serial object history is accessible from the IFS/Part Catalog as well as directly from the serial object in IFS/Equipment.
Information about the serial object can be accessed in IFS/Part Catalog as well as in IFS/Equipment. In IFS/Equipment you can add information such as position, spare parts, technical data, etc.
Serial objects have various status categories or dimensions. This section will describe the three serial status dimensions that apply to serial objects and the possible combinations of values for those dimensions. The three main status dimensions are:
The Operational Condition status dimension describes the basic condition of the serial part, or simply whether it is Operational or Non Operational.
| Value | Definition |
| Operational | The part is in working condition and can be put into operation. |
| Non Operational | The serial is currently invalid and needs to be repaired or scrapped. If a serial has an operational condition of Non Operational, you cannot put the serial into operation until the reasons that have made the serial invalid are resolved and the serial's operational condition has been changed to Operational. |
The Operational Status status dimension describes the serial object’s status in the operative lifecycle. Possible values for this dimension are shown below.
| Value | Definition |
| In Operation | The serial object is in use. When a serial object is in In Operation, you can enter historic data and create entries in the operational log for the serial object. |
| Out of Operation | The serial object is temporarily out of use due to activities such as routine maintenance, repair, management decision, or lack of need. |
| Scrapped | The serial object has been scrapped and is permanently out of use. |
Note: Although you cannot set serial objects and structures to a Planned for Operation status from within IFS/Equipment, objects that are delivered to IFS/Equipment from IFS/Project Delivery or IFS/Plant Design may arrive with the Planned for Operation status. You can set these objects' operational status to In Operation in order to use the objects in IFS/Equipment.
The Current Position dimension describes the serial object's physical position or location. Possible values for equipment serial objects are shown in the table below.
| Value | Definition |
| Contained | The serial object is connected to a parent object and, thus, is in the same location as the parent. |
| In Facility | The serial object is physically located in the facility. |
| In Repair Workshop | The object has been moved into the repair workshop on a repair work order. |
| Issued | The object has been issued. It could be issued to a fulfill a work order, a material requisition, customer order, shop order or to fulfill various business or manufacturing objectives. |
| In Inventory | The object is currently at an inventory location. |
The allowed combinations for the main three status dimensions for equipment serial objects are shown in the matrix below. Allowed combinations of operational status and current position are indicated in gray. The allowed values for operational condition Operational (Y) and Non Operational (N) are indicated by the cell contents.
| Operational Status | |||
| Current Position | In Operation | Out of Operation | Scrapped |
| Contained | Y | Y / N | N |
| In Facility | Y | Y / N | N |
| In Repair Workshop | Y / N | N | |
| Issued | Y / N | ||
| In Inventory | Y / N | N ** | |
** You can scrap an object while it is still in inventory.