Field Data Collection Software For Contractors: Mobile Forms And Checklists

  

Efficient Field Data Collection With Mobile Forms

HVAC, plumbing, electrical and other contractors are field service businesses, which means that company employees need to document equipment installation, commissioning, service, repairs and maintenance in the field (on the clients sites, construction sites, etc.). Using paper forms for this process is outdated and inefficient. Mobile forms and checklists, on the other hand, allow contractors to fill out all the necessary paperwork on site using mobile application, and immediately submit completed digital records to the centralized cloud location. Electronic documents are never lost or misplaced, require minimum time to complete, reduce errors and allow you to search and access data collected in the field on demand from anywhere.

QR Mobile Data software makes contactor field data collection easy and efficient. It replaces paper forms with the mobile forms and checklists that field service technicians can fill out on their smartphones. Equipment maintenance forms, service and repair forms, commissioning forms, parts and time invoices, inspection checklists - all contactor forms can be converted into the digital mobile forms for the paperless field data collection.

  

Custom Mobile Forms and Checklist For The Field Data Collection

Administrator(s) create mobile forms and checklists for the field data collection via the web dashboard. You can base mobile forms on the current paper or pdf forms, or you can create completely new mobile forms from the scratch. If you need to add or update something in the existing mobile form, or add a new mobile form, you can do it at any time - and field technicians will have current form(s) in the mobile application.

QR Mobile Data software includes ready to use digital mobile forms for contractors that you can import into your account and use as is, or modify to your requirements.

Mobile forms and checklists in QR Mobile data software include all typical mobile forms software options:

• Multiple control types: input boxes, drop-down lists, checkboxes, radio buttons, scan in fields, image fields, etc.
• Form field data types: text, number, date, image, etc.
• Required or optional form fields
• Ability for the user to add photo(s) to the mobile forms, collect a signature on the smartphone, auto-determine GPS location of the mobile form submission
• QR code / barcode scanning options
• ... and more

In addition, mobile forms and checklists have advanced capabilities, such as:

An ability to dynamically add repeatable sections to the mobile forms on demand, in the field, for the line items in the mobile form

Create scannable checklists, where a user scans a QR code instead of checking off a checkbox. This makes completion of checklists faster, and serves as a verification that the field employee has been on site while filling out mobile checklist.

Copyable sections, that can be prefilled from the previous mobile forms submission to minimize amount of work for the field employees.

Ability to pass incompleted forms between the field and the office or between the mobile devices in the field, so that different employees fill out their parts of the mobile form / checklist

Ability to generate custom PDF document on the smartphone and e-mail to the designated recipients from a smartphone, manually or automatically

Optionally auto-upload electronic document with the results of the mobile form submission to procore documents on the project or company level.

Stitch mobile forms together using workflows

...and more

You can find more information on the capabilities of the digital mobile forms in QR Mobile Data software here.

  

Using Mobile Application For The Field Data Collection

Field employees collect data in the field using digital mobile forms / checklists on a smartphone. QR Mobile Data mobile application includes QR code / barcode scanning capabilities, that allows field employees to easily identify inspected object by scanning its QR code, review information, documentation and past records, as well as complete relevant mobile form or checklist. QR Mobile Data mobile forms and checklists capabilities allow field technicians to complete mobile forms fast and error-free:

• You can create mobile forms and checklists that require minimal manual entry. Users can select values using drop-down lists, radio buttons or checkboxes, scan in values, auto-fill values were applicable, etc.
• Long mobile forms can be subdivided into the subforms for the easy completion on a small smartphone screen. A feild technician can easily navigate between the subforms, and see at a glance which ones are completed, and completed fields counter.
• Collected data are auto saved on the smartphone, are never misplaced or lost. A field employee can pause and resume mobile forms completion as needed.
• Field technicians can fill out mobile forms offline, and bulk submit all completed mobile forms at once when connection becomes available.

Completed mobile forms are submitted to the central database in real time, and the digital record is instantly available to all authorized users. A customer can sign off on the smartphone for the completed job or invoice, and the signature becomes a part of the digital record.

Technicians can create a pdf document based on the collected data, and e-mail it from the mobile application to all involved parties (customer, supervisor, etc.). Pdf documents may contain contactor's branding, information on the inspected equipment, collected data, images and signature. You define pdf document format, look and layout via the MS Word template.

As a result, field technicians have an efficient way to document their work on the construction site, and office employees have an immediate access to all collected field data. Electronic documents are securely stored, available on demand to authorized employees and are easily searchable.

  

Instant Access To The Equipment Data In The Field

Instant access to the equipment specifications and past service history leads to the better and more efficient field service. Using QR Mobile Data mobile application (available for Android and iOS), field employees can easily access all necessary information by scanning a QR code or barcode on the equipment with a smartphone.

The information can include equipment specifications, pdf documentations, installation instructions and past service / maintenance history.

You define what information technicians should be able to access in the field via the web dashboard. Field employees with the right permissions can update equipment information in the mobile application and add pictures.

  

Use Smartphones For The Field Employees Time Tracking

QR Mobile Data mobile application allows field technicians to track time they spent on the specific project, equipment or a client. Keeping track of the time is easy - a technician just needs to scan a QR code on the equipment / location, press "Start Time Tracking" button when he starts the job, and "Finish" button when the job is done.

When an employee clicks the "Finish" button, the time information (including an employee ID, GPS location, equipment or customer location, start and stop time, and when / where start / stop was recorded) is sent to the central database.

Office employees can review and group time sheets by any parameter they need for the payroll, billing and reporting. Reports include raw time data by employee / customer / equipment, as well as total aggregated time for the selected time period by employee, equipment, customer, location or any combination of the above (e.g. how much time an employee X spend during last month fixing equipment A).

  

Automatic Alerts On The Collected Field Data

With QR Mobile Data software you will always be on top of all routine tasks in your business. Create alerts on the preventive maintenance / routine inspections, and receive automatic e-mail with the list of equipment for which preventive maintenance is due. Create alerts on warranty expiration and other important dates. Receive an alert if a value in the number field (temperature, pressure, etc.) falls below or raises above a threshold.

QR Mobile Data software allows you to create custom fields for anything that you need to be alerted about, and configure when you will receive an alert, who will receive an alert and what will an e-mail message say.

  

Construction Site Work Tools And Inventory Tracking

All mechanical contractors (HVAC, plumbing, electrical, roofing, etc.) have the work tools that field technicians check out for the job and then return back. Often technicians can pass tools to each other, and if there is no tool management system in place eventually valuable tools are misplaced or lost.

Similar situation exists with managing inventory, parts and materials. Field technicians have to track inventory in the field, as they pick it from the warehouse, store in the service vans, use for the job and return back unused inventory. If inventory tracking is not done, you have no idea what inventory you have, and either purchase parts that you already have in stock or run out of materials when you need them.

QR Mobile Data software can be used in combination with QR Inventory mobile inventory and asset management software. With QR Inventory, you can easily track tools check out and check in, and track inventory in the field using QR Inventory mobile application for barcode / QR code scanning and recording assets and inventory transactions.

As with QR Mobile Data software, all inventory and tools transactions recorded on the mobile devices update central database in real time. Company employees can always access inventory stock in all locations, check where tools are, who is using them, for what projects and what do you have available in the shop / warehouse.