In this Section
RAD Solutions: FIELD SERVICE MANAGEMENT (FSM)
Many companies require a post-sale on-site service relating to goods supplied to their customers. This may be for correction of faults or as planned maintenance. The facility is especially required where the goods concerned are complex in nature. The Field Service module within EFACS Enterprise allows the tracking, monitoring and costing of all such requirements.
Each field service order, either routine or unplanned, will have a separate computer record with a unique reference, so a full history of all service calls and subsequent actions is maintained. A call may begin as a technical query but result in the requirement for an engineer or service agent to visit the customer. A field service order is equivalent to an internal works order and inherits the rich functionality of the standard EFACS Enterprise system for definition and monitoring of the work to be done.
Details regarding each field call can be logged real-time by an engineer connected to the EFACS Enterprise server using modern “always-on” communication technology. Alternatively, office-based staff may update the record into EFACS Enteprise. Information will typically include assignment of fault codes and logging of labour and parts used. A separate sales order, sundry invoice or credit note may be raised as appropriate as a result of the service or repair.
Scheduling
Successful scheduling is a key component in delivering and maintaining customer satisfaction levels while also optimising company resources. The right engineer needs to be at the right job at the right time with the right part(s) and to complete an optimal number of jobs each day. Managing this for a whole fleet of service engineers can be an extremely complex and time consuming process and due to the interconnected nature of FSM scheduling, one mistake can have a knock-on effect across the entire schedule.
Outlook Integration
The Assisted Scheduler uniquely combines powerful scheduling management capabilities with an intuitive user experience that intelligently assists even inexperienced users to make the correct scheduling decision first time, every time. The Assisted Scheduler not only uses a ‘look and feel’ similar to an Outlook diary to enable consistency and ease of use, it can synchronise in real time with individual engineers’ Outlook/Lotus Notes diaries. This is because the Assisted Scheduler was designed to work in real time at every level and to provide visibility of information across the entire organisation.
Real Time Data Access
Access to real time information is essential, and at the heart of the Assisted Scheduler lies a fully user configurable decision engine, its sole purpose to aid the operator to make the right scheduling choice first time. This decision engine takes into consideration every pertinent fact including Service Level Agreements, Job Type, Job Location, Engineer’s Skillset, Engineer’s Location, and real time route mapping technologies. The system will then make recommendations for the user based on your individual company priorities and allocation rules maximising first fix ratios. And because the system synchronises with engineers in real time, users have immediate visibility of any potential problems or difficulties and can react accordingly.
The Field Service module allows for costing of component parts used, labour time and miscellaneous items such as call-out charges or travel time, and includes automated stock issue.
