Release 247: Remote Access to Centralised Files

The new update means your technicians no longer need large quantities of manuals or reference materials in their service vehicles that are costly to replace if worn, lost or outdated. They can now be saved digitally and accessed remotely via the Shepherd Mobile App on handheld devices. They can also be allocated automatically to any and all relevant work orders, saving time for your staff in the field.

And since a call-out may mean your technician needs to work in a challenging environment, Release 247 now gives the mobile app a dark mode feature for greater comfort in low-light conditions.

Resources: centralised access and automatic allocation to service orders.

The ability to publish files stored in the central ERP system to the mobile app is useful, as field technicians often require reference materials in order to diagnose problems and troubleshoot. In the past, this meant that field vehicles would each carry a small library made up of the manuals the technicians need to do their job.

These resources can now be accessed in the following locations in the Shepherd CMMS mobile app:

• Service Order. The most typical use here is the publication of a document or a drawing relevant to a specific service order only.  

• Equipment Type. Here the user may store files relevant to all machines that share the same equipment type, such as eg truck or van. These files will then appear as a reference on all service orders whose machine has that equipment type.

• Make/Model. This is just like the “equipment type” above, but one level below it at a more precise location in the equipment hierarchy: Ford F-150 or Ford Torneo, for example.

• Service Make/Model. This record describes the combination of a service and a make/model. For example, the configuration of an oil change service on a Ford F-150 versus that on a Ford F-250. Just as in the cases above, a file published to this record will appear on all those service orders whose service and make/model require the specified record.

Shepherd customers have requested this feature so they can push equipment drawings, troubleshooting guides, and operations & maintenance manuals to the field. As the storage of these documents is centralized and on NetSuite, each time the manufacturer publishes an update Shepherd’s users need only save the document in one location, and all field staff will receive access to it.

Contact Shepherd for more information how centralised resources can improve your business operations.