Define operating time and priorities
Now the configuration of the Communication Center is completed and can be used with all its functionalities on the plant. This means that alarms are transmitted to the specific users.
Additionally, a filter can be set for each branch, this means a setting which alarm should actually be transmitted to the user. This filter is operating time and priority of an occurred error. Operating time specifies a time interval at which the Communication Center should be active (for example, only Monday from 06:00 until 22:00, all days from 08:00 until 14:00, ...). The priority specifies, as the name suggests, the minimum priority. If an alarm with the set minimum priority or higher occurs, it is forwarded and processed by the Communication Center. A set operating time and a priority are "AND" linked. This means both conditions (settings) have to be fulfilled so that the alarm is transmitted to the user.
In case of alarms that do not have the necessary priority when they occur, and the configuration of the priority (for example, priority is set lower later) is changed later, the alarm that occurred before and would fit into the schema for forwarding, is not processed (although the alarm would still be pending)! First a second alarm (of same type) would trigger a message via the Communication Center.
The setting of a operating time and priority is optional. If this filter is not set, all alarms, no matter at which time and with which priority are processed by the Communication Center!
The operating times and priorities are set in the "Define operating time" panel that is
opened by clicking the 
button.
The configuration is done in this panel by selecting the desired setting via the combo boxes and spin buttons in the lower part of the panel. The set options are applied using the Insert button. The filter settings of a selected row can be changed and are applied using the Modify button.
When the time interval is set, the start time always has to be smaller as the end time. An interval of a day has to be configured using two rows in the table (see also figure at the top).
