Frequently Asked Questions

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Scheduling

Q. Does FieldOne have a tool for handling timesheets? I use QuickBooks and it'd be hard to convince me to leave it.

A. No problem. By using our powerful QuickBooks exporter you won't have to record the timesheets for your technicians, but instead use the completed schedule slots on the Schedule Board to automatically create their time sheets in QuickBooks.

Billing

Q. I want record all the details of a job performed,  but then to still hide all those details on the customer's invoice. Can I  simply show them only the relevant information?

A. This is where our streamlined solution Line Groups come into play. Just set the description you wish to show to the client and then simply attach the actual transactions to the Line Group and the system will automatically calculate the total of the Line Group for you.

Technician Productivity & Office Efficiency

Q. My biggest problem is the time I spend on the phone with my own technicians! Questions like: What's the phone number of the contact person? When was the last time we did PM for the given equipment? Did the current problem occur before? And if so, how did we solve it? Who was the technician then? Which technician has the necessary part on their truck? What's the complete history for a given Job Site or Equipment?

A. FieldOne Mobile™ really comes to rescue, a truly revolutionary product that will enhance your technician's productivity as well as that of your office staff. See the FieldOne Mobile section to learn more.

Q. I'm never quite sure how cost-effective my various employees are. I want to reward or critique them as necessary, but I need hard data.

A. With FieldOne™, these answers are just a click away. You can easily analyze each employee's actual hours and how many billable hours each week, and at which costumer and on which problem did he spend time.

Service Calls

Q. How does FieldOne manage my service calls so they integrate with my Customers, Jobs, Billing and Payroll in an easy and efficient matter?

A. On the Customer Snapshot Screen you can maintain in a one-screen-tabbed-file for instant access to all individual customer data, easily manage vast amounts of customer information such as, company name, address, phone numbers, multiple service locations, credit information, tax codes, labor rates and trip charges, unlimited contact information and more.

Q. Can you help me stop wasting time on unnecessary truck rolls for problems that could be solved over the phone?

A. Sure. You can predefine problem codes and create a check list for all possible solutions, so when a customer calls with a problem your receptionist can try to solve the problem over the phone. Everyone wins.

Q. How can I figure out what types of Service Calls are generating the most revenue?

A. FieldOne analyzes work orders by Service Type and by how much revenue they generated over any given period of time.

Q. My labor pricing and pay types have a lot of variables and require a lot of flexiblity. Is that easy to manage?

A. With FieldOne™, you can set up different markups and parts pricing, labor pricing and different pay types for each customer/work order.

Q. I've always wanted to charge some clients a 'Trip Charge'? Is there a simple way to do that without it being identified as work hours?

A. Sure. You can set up a trip charge on each job site, and each time you send a technician the customer will be billed that charge.

Q. What about charging my clients an 'Initial Charge' which will cost my clients a minimum fee for a predefined labor time?

A. This is part of FieldOne's powerful Labor Rate feature.

Jobs & Estimating

Q. How so I properly track and manage 'Changes' to a running job, without affecting the original estimate?

A. Attach a 'change order' to an existing estimate, so there is no need to change the original or create a new one.

Q. How could I track and manage 'Job Costs' while creating my estimate, and while the job progresses?

A. While creating the estimate you enter all parts and labor items so you can see exactly how much the job will cost you, and during the job process you can see the estimated cost as well as the actual cost.

Q. My jobs are done in multiple phases. How could I properly handle the status of each phase? Where could I record the tasks done for each stage? What about billing -- how could I bill those stages based on percent completion?

A. On the estimate, you can set stages for the job, and set how much should be due when each stage is completed. You can then bill the customer even if the job is not 100% done; just enter the percent done, and FieldOne™ will calculate how much is due for billing!

Q. Where could I easily get an overview of a currently long-running job: what is done, how much was billed, how much money was retained, how much was paid? How much the job costs? How much is unbilled? And of course, can I see all the above with one click?

A. On the work order overview, you can see all information on this job: Job Amount, Amount Billed, Retainage Held, Amount Paid, Amount Due, Amount Unbilled, Estimated Cost, Actual Cost, and the Net Profit.

Q. Doing government jobs? How could I properly handle 'Retainage'?

A. Enter the Retainage percent on the work order, and FieldOne™ will automatically handle all the complexity for you.

Q. Can I really see ANY transaction associated with a Job (e.g. Estimate details, Change Orders, Retainage Held, Cost Details, Parts Used, Labor Performed, Invoices Sent, Invoices Open, Purchases, Problem Details, Repair Details) on a single screen without juggling to create reports and recalculating everything over and over again?

A. With the Work Order feature of FieldOne™ this is just a click away.

Customer Service

Q. I don't want just the basic contact info when a customer calls. I need "the story". How much data is there on the screen?

A. You can attach Notes, Reminders and Links to each Customer, Site, Equipment, job, Work order, Invoice, and Payment. Best of all, you can see all those Notes in a single place.

Inventory

Q. How about tracking Inventory not only for my warehouse, but for my technician's trucks as well?

A. You can set up inventory for multiple warehouses or trucks, and easily transfer parts between warehouses.

Q. I use 'Serialized Parts' that I need to track. Is that integrated into the use of the parts?

A. On each part you can indicate if it's a Serialized Part, and then enter the serial number upon PO Receipt. When consuming those parts for a Work Order, you select the Serial Number from a list, giving you total control over your serialized parts.

Q. My parts pricing isn't static. How does FieldOne handle formulas for pricing?

A. For each part, you can set job-specific or customer specific markups based on Cost Amount or Sale Amount. There are multiple ways the system tracks part costing: Standard Cost, Current Cost, Average Cost and Highest Cost.

Q. When I receive a part from a PO, can those parts be recorded as used for the given job, the  costs added to the Job, calculating how much to charge the customer, all automatically?

A. When you create a PO you can link each part either to the warehouse or to a work order. If you assign a part to a work order, it is automatically entered in the parts list of the Work Order. Once you receive the part, the system uses your predefined default setting to charge the client.

Purchasing

Q. I would like to create a Quote for a few vendors without having to keep multiple copies of every PO. I want to record the parts I need once, and then just select to which vendor this PO quote should be sent?

A. You're in luck. Our powerful PO Quote feature works exactly this way.

Q. What if it's just an issue of reference for later? I would like to store all the pricing that I receive from vendors when sending a Quote.

A. All quotes from your vendors are stored on that given part and it's just a click away.

Q. How could I easily determine from which vendor to order a given part once I received the pricing for a Quote?

A. You get a list of all vendors and how much they charge, and you select the vendor that fits your needs.

Q. I have created an Estimate for a customer where I listed all the parts I need for the job, I want -- on one screen -- to see what I have in stock (and at which warehouse), what I need order directly from a vendor, or create a Quote for multiple vendors, as well as see all the pricing history for every part I need, in one easy-to-use single screen.

A. You can process parts right from the estimate; you can see a list of history prices, and then you can decide either to take the part from a warehouse or from a PO/PO Quote, or you can create a new PO/PO Quote.

Service Agreements

Q. Today we manually manage Service Agreements for our clients to service their equipment, and give them specific pricing if work has to be done during the agreed upon period. Can FieldOne make this any easier to do?

A. With the powerful Service Agreements feature of FieldOne™, you can even specify that a specific Service Agreement should only apply to a specific Equipment. You can also fully customize and automate the billing procedure for your Service Agreements, and the system will then automatically create Invoices on the predefined schedule -- all without you having to do anything more than print them.

Equipment

Q. I would like to track Equipment installed at my client, then record all the details of the Equipment so when the clients calls, they simply have to give us the Equipment number so we can review all the details without sending a technician to figure out exactly what type of equipment it is.

A. You can record equipment data with the Manufacturer information with unlimited contact details, Warranty information, serial numbers, date of installation. If installed by the maintenance department, you can note who the installer was, Sub-items (custom detailed information) for each equipment, and complete service history on the Equipment.

Miscellaneous

Q. Can I record multiple notes for each and every transaction? And then gather all those notes in one place for easy lookup?

A. Yes you can.

Q. I would like to snap pictures of every job site, or the equipment installed at a client's site. Can I easily attach it to the customer or job it relates to? I would like to scan documents and have them attached to a Job, is there an easy way to do so?

A. You can attach a link to any file type to each transaction, costumer, or site, even an invoice or a payment which can be accessed with one click.

Q. I hate it when my employees drop the ball. I would like to set up 'Alerts' for any employee to remind him of tasks at a given time, and 'jump' into the relevant transaction (whether it be a Job, Invoice, Payment, Purchase Order or other transaction). Is there a feature for that?

A. This is one of the unique features of our program, you can set up Alerts for yourself or even for another employee (assuming you have the security rights), and at the given time it pops up as a reminder. On the reminder, you can either go to the transaction, snooze the alert, or dismiss it.

Internet Connectivity & Scalability

Q. I need a system that could efficiently be used throughout my company's multiple branches all across the globe, and provide each branch with complete up-to-the-minute information.

A. FieldOne™ was developed by our staff to be a truly scalable enterprise system.

Q. I would like to have access to all my company information wherever I am. Is it possible to get real-time data at the hotel, airport or anywhere there is an internet connection?

A. Yes, you can connect to the server in the main office and work from wherever you are, with almost the same speed (for most tasks) as in your office (an internet connection is obviously required).

Q. I can't be limited by the number of users that can log into the system concurrently or worry that performance will degrade as users log on. Is that possible?

A. Since FieldOne™ uses an extremely modular, multi-tier system -- connected users are not directly connected to the database server -- our system can handle a massive load and could easily be expanded to a server farm, or split up onto one server for the Database and a different server for the middle tier server.

Q. How about having a system that would not limit me with the amount of data I could enter or take ages to perform my tasks even if I have lots of data?

A. Since FieldOne™ was developed with the internet in mind, it incorporates features like compression and encryption (if desired) out-of-the-box.

Q. And what about having my data stored in a truly enterprise, scaleable database system?

A. FieldOne™ was developed by our staff to be a truly scaleable multi-tier, enterprise system.

Automatic Updates

Q. We hate software updates. Our office is constantly slowing down as the techies move from desk to desk, updating and upgrading. Not to mention the server! There's got to be an easier way.

A. Yes, there is. With FieldOne's unique Auto-Update feature you don't have to run a setup on each and every workstation of your organization, the update manager will take of that for you. This is true even for workstations that are connected to the server over the web and are not part of your local network, all with a click of a mouse.

FieldOne Name Change

In January 2010, we changed our company name to FieldOne Systems. Click to see more information about the name change and what it means to you.

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