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Track Field Service

Learning Objectives

After completing this unit, you’ll be able to:
  • Clarify the stages of your field service process.
  • Keep track of your inventory.
  • Identify important information for your customers’ service reports.

Manage Service Status

Your mobile workforce can record the status of service appointments, work order line items, and work orders. You can add or remove the Status fields on these objects’ page layouts. Default status values are available, but you may decide to adjust them for your specific field service process.

Note

Setting the status of a service appointment doesn’t change the status of the work order line item or work order that it’s associated with. The same is true for work order line items and work orders: updating their status doesn’t change the status of their related records.

Here are the default status values for service appointments:
Status Definition
None The service appointment isn’t scheduled (default value).
Scheduled The service appointment is scheduled.
Dispatched The service resource is traveling to the work site.
In Progress The service resource started work.
Cannot Complete The service resource was unable to finish the work.
Completed The service resource completed work.
Canceled The service appointment has been canceled.
And here are the default status values for work orders and work order line items:
Status Definition
New The work order or work order line item was created, but there hasn’t yet been any activity (default value).
In Progress Work has begun.
On Hold Work is paused.
Completed Work is complete.
Closed All work and associated activity is complete.
Cannot Complete Work couldn't be completed.
Canceled Work is canceled, typically before any work began.

Setting a status is fairly straightforward. Open the record whose status has changed, update the status, and save.

Now that Jane has completed her work, let’s set the service appointment and work order statuses to Complete.

  1. From the App Launcher, find and select Work Orders.
  2. Click the work order number.
  3. Go to the Related tab.
  4. In the Service Appointments related list, click the service appointment number to open the related service appointment.
  5. Change the status to Completed.
  6. Click Save.
  7. Click the parent record number to reopen the work order.
  8. In the Information panel, change the status to Completed.
    Update work order status in the information panel
  9. Click Save.

Now that the service appointment and work order are complete, Jane, your mobile resource, can record the parts that she used while completing this work order.

Track Parts and Van Stock

Your mobile workforce may need to use parts or tools from their van or utility box. The Product Item Transactions and Products Consumed related lists help you track parts that are related to a field service location or a product item.

Products consumed are products that were used to complete a work order or work order line item. Your mobile workforce can record which part and how many were used to complete the work. As an example, let’s track the two 100-foot cables that were used to install a cable:

  1. From the App Launcher, find and select Work Orders.
  2. Click the work order number.
  3. From the Related tab, click New in the Products Consumed related list.
  4. For Product Item, select the product number for 100-foot cables.
  5. For Quantity Consumed, enter 2.
  6. Click Save.

What’s really cool is that when a consumed product is tracked, an entry in the Product Item Transaction related list is automatically recorded.

Click the product item number in the Products Consumed related list. Take a look at the Product Item detail; now, there are only 48 cables in Jane’s Wagon!

Product item object automatically tracks consumed parts.

In the Product Item Transactions related list, a transaction is automatically created.

Product Item Transaction object automatically records a part transaction.

Provide Service Reports

Nothing is more satisfying than a job well done and a satisfied customer. Get that accomplishment on virtual paper with a service report sent directly from your technician’s mobile device. Create a service report template for your customers with details about how your mobile workers solved their issues.

Your technicians and dispatchers can create reports for work orders, work order line items, and service appointments and email them directly to the customer. You can use standard templates or create your own.

First, let’s create a service report template.

  1. From Setup, enter service report in the Quick Find box, then click Service Report Templates under Field Service.
  2. Click New.
  3. For a template name, enter Work Order Report for Cable Install.
  4. Click Save.

Now let’s customize its layout. First, we’ll decide which fields are shown on work order service reports that use the template.

  1. In the Related Templates dropdown, select Work Order. This means that you’re customizing the service report subtemplate used for work orders.
  2. Check that Work Order is selected in the left-hand panel. This displays work order fields that you can add to the template.
  3. Drag Work Type, Service Territory, and Status to the Header section.
  4. Click Save.

Next, let’s follow similar steps to control which fields are shown on work order line item service reports that use the template.

  1. Click Edit next to the service report template to reopen it.
  2. In the Related Templates dropdown, select Work Order Line Item. This means that you’re customizing the service report subtemplate used for work order line items.
  3. Check that Work Order Line Item is selected in the left-hand panel. This displays work order line item fields that you can add to the template.
  4. Drag Status to the Header section.
  5. Click Save.
  6. To make the template available to your team, click Activate next to Work Order Report for Cable Install.

Now it’s time to create a service report for your customer.

  1. From the App Launcher, find and select Work Orders.
  2. Click the work order number.
  3. Click Create Service Report from the action dropdown.
  4. In the Choose Template dialog, select Work Order Report for Cable Install.
  5. Click Create PDF to view a preview of your service report.
  6. Click Create Service Report. The service report is saved in the Service Reports related list on the work order. (You might need to refresh the page to see it.)

You did it! You set up easy work type templates for your common work orders, assigned service resources to your work orders, and created a service report showing the work completed and parts used. Your customers think you rock!

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