MES go‑live: prepare the first workstation

Describe exactly what is going live

Specify the operations, teams and shifts involved in the first use. Make the dependencies visible: master data, interfaces, access and equipment. Users need to know what is excluded just as much as the project team does.

Gather the remaining open issues and their owners. The go‑live decision remains with the site. This work provides concrete input for that decision.

Walk through the situation with users

Attending training does not, on its own, establish whether a team is ready. Site owners define how to check that users can carry out their activities and recognise when they need help. A representative walkthrough allows the team to discuss the conditions at the workstation.

• Does the user have the role and access required?
• Can they find the data and guidance they need?
• Do they know whom to contact and what information to provide?
• Does the same arrangement cover out-of-hours shifts and replacement staff?

Organise feedback from day one

Define where teams report their observations and who examines them. Missing access, a question about usage and unexpected behaviour may need different owners. A shared collection point makes it possible to follow each issue without losing it across several conversations.

Each report needs to identify the activity, the observed behaviour and its impact. Sensitive information stays within site-approved channels. Also prepare the continuity and escalation arrangements that apply to the scope.

Plan the handover after hypercare

Intensive support ends when the handover is ready against the agreed criteria. Examine residual issues, knowledge transfer and support coverage. A date alone does not establish that readiness.

Ask the people taking over the system to retrieve a decision and route a familiar request. Any difficulties become handover actions, each with an owner and a due date. Open issues remain tracked after the project team leaves.