Nickrosis
Manned by Boderators
Today, I did some more planning and purchasing to better develop the technology that we use in our company. So, I want to throw these ideas out there, and I would love hear what other companies are doing, technologically. If you're working independently, I know many of these things are valuable too, and I'd be interested in knowing what you work with.
Work Report Database
The heart of the changes is a modular database that simplifies the task of recording work. The only data entered is a daily job report that each employee fills out anyways. The powerful part is automatic. Each customer has a custom report summarizing the work done and the number of billable hours (if applicable).
The tracking part is amazing! I can review the productivity of every piece of equipment, the efficiency by employee, the number of hours spent this year on any task: raking, mulching, pruning, removals, blowing, spraying, watering, etc.....at a click of a button - it's great!
Job Report Entry Form:
Customer Report:
Fictitious! Don't get upset!
How it all works:
Wireless Networking
Using a wireless network, whether it's at our shop or in a coffee shop, job reports and work orders can be uploaded and downloaded seamlessly using the database I made and the website I'm developing. In the not-too-distant future, a crew leader can roll into the job, have work orders appear wirelessly on his/her handheld, hop in the truck and leave, with the payroll clock being wirelessly triggered.
At the end of the day, there is no paperwork and data entry, as all job reports are picked up automatically and wirelessly and recorded in the database.
Dynamic Webpages
ArboristSite is a dynamic website, meaning each page is generated for every view. Each page has your user name and relative information on it, etc. The same with the website that will hopefully get rolled out by June 1st. Here are some of the advantages:
~Instead of creating a hundred pages, you make a template and simply supply material that gets inserted into the pages.
~Updating information is improved because you just add more content and the site makese the pages for you.
~Keeping up with visitors is improved since you can use cookies to see who is coming back and who isn't.
~The site stays fresh by having information that rotates periodically - or constantly.
~Databases of any kind are readily integrated (even necessary).
For example, a customer can check his/her account online to review work scheduled to be done, outstanding invoices, and make comments to employees and supervisors via e-mail. Even now, a customer can authorize work by signing directly onto a handheld computer.
Sales Tools
Talking to Mark Chisholm early yesterday morning in Minnesota, I picked up some more ideas about handhelds, but I really like the idea of keeping pictures and video clips of work done and works-in-progress. A customer who is unsure of how the tree will look in the end may be sold just by seeing side-by-side what proper pruning is versus topping, for example.
If the customer is concerned about a technical removal, just press play on a video clip and show how qualified you are at putting the tree exactly where you want it. Is the competition able to do that? The edge you can develop when you show up and demonstrate your credibility is one that few will be able to challenge. On top of that, these advances can save you money by increasing productivity and highlighting inefficiencies.
Handheld Calculating Tools
Many of you may have seen the log weight calculator I made for Pocket Excel, but I've since made a mulch volume calculator that calculates how much mulch you will need for a circle, square, rectangle, etc. Today, I developed a series of tools that tell you if your sprayer has a nozzle that needs to be cleaned, how many feet you need to walk to cover X square feet when your sprayer/spreader covers X feet in width, and how much product you need in how many gallons of water when the label says you need X ozs/1000 sq ft.
This is something that gets me really excited in a goofy way, but I really want to help the industry and help my family. If there's something that you would like, just let me know, I'd like to try to work something out with you. If you think I should make a calculator for something else, tell me, and I should be able to post it pretty quickly.
Work Report Database
The heart of the changes is a modular database that simplifies the task of recording work. The only data entered is a daily job report that each employee fills out anyways. The powerful part is automatic. Each customer has a custom report summarizing the work done and the number of billable hours (if applicable).
The tracking part is amazing! I can review the productivity of every piece of equipment, the efficiency by employee, the number of hours spent this year on any task: raking, mulching, pruning, removals, blowing, spraying, watering, etc.....at a click of a button - it's great!
Job Report Entry Form:
Customer Report:
Fictitious! Don't get upset!
How it all works:
Wireless Networking
Using a wireless network, whether it's at our shop or in a coffee shop, job reports and work orders can be uploaded and downloaded seamlessly using the database I made and the website I'm developing. In the not-too-distant future, a crew leader can roll into the job, have work orders appear wirelessly on his/her handheld, hop in the truck and leave, with the payroll clock being wirelessly triggered.
At the end of the day, there is no paperwork and data entry, as all job reports are picked up automatically and wirelessly and recorded in the database.
Dynamic Webpages
ArboristSite is a dynamic website, meaning each page is generated for every view. Each page has your user name and relative information on it, etc. The same with the website that will hopefully get rolled out by June 1st. Here are some of the advantages:
~Instead of creating a hundred pages, you make a template and simply supply material that gets inserted into the pages.
~Updating information is improved because you just add more content and the site makese the pages for you.
~Keeping up with visitors is improved since you can use cookies to see who is coming back and who isn't.
~The site stays fresh by having information that rotates periodically - or constantly.
~Databases of any kind are readily integrated (even necessary).
For example, a customer can check his/her account online to review work scheduled to be done, outstanding invoices, and make comments to employees and supervisors via e-mail. Even now, a customer can authorize work by signing directly onto a handheld computer.
Sales Tools
Talking to Mark Chisholm early yesterday morning in Minnesota, I picked up some more ideas about handhelds, but I really like the idea of keeping pictures and video clips of work done and works-in-progress. A customer who is unsure of how the tree will look in the end may be sold just by seeing side-by-side what proper pruning is versus topping, for example.
If the customer is concerned about a technical removal, just press play on a video clip and show how qualified you are at putting the tree exactly where you want it. Is the competition able to do that? The edge you can develop when you show up and demonstrate your credibility is one that few will be able to challenge. On top of that, these advances can save you money by increasing productivity and highlighting inefficiencies.
Handheld Calculating Tools
Many of you may have seen the log weight calculator I made for Pocket Excel, but I've since made a mulch volume calculator that calculates how much mulch you will need for a circle, square, rectangle, etc. Today, I developed a series of tools that tell you if your sprayer has a nozzle that needs to be cleaned, how many feet you need to walk to cover X square feet when your sprayer/spreader covers X feet in width, and how much product you need in how many gallons of water when the label says you need X ozs/1000 sq ft.
This is something that gets me really excited in a goofy way, but I really want to help the industry and help my family. If there's something that you would like, just let me know, I'd like to try to work something out with you. If you think I should make a calculator for something else, tell me, and I should be able to post it pretty quickly.
