Fire and security inspections are hard work. Everyone we’ve dealt with had the same problem – they would do the inspection, which might take only a few hours, but then the tedious work happens – hours and hours of documentation. Of all the field service management industries we’ve addressed, fire and security inspections appear to have the longest reports.
One of our clients told us that he would regularly be up almost to midnight writing documentation for an inspection he finished around noon.
We worked closely with that client to determine exactly how his reports are put together, and worked up a field service management system solution for him. He now finishes his inspection the same as usual, and by the time he gets back to the office, the report is already generated and ready for him to adjust if needed (for personal touches) and send off to the customer.
Inspections generally involve photographs, lots of report sections depending on what’s found at the inspected area, and finally the customer’s signatures.
If the inspector were to fill out a form that had every possible question on it, then the form would be even worse than just writing it by hand. Instead, we use skip logic so that if a question needs further information (for example, if compressed gas cylinders are on-site, there would be a section questioning how they are stored), we show that section, but if there is no need for the questions, they simply don’t appear.
This way, the inspector fills out a form which contains exactly the questions needed answering, saving time.
After completion of the form, we can set up automated workflow management triggers based on the answers. For example, if the answers suggested that safety was inadequate, then a further inspection may be needed in a few weeks to determine if any progress has been made to address the problems identified.
