Learn more > Example Scenarios

January 12, 2021

FIRE Approval / Signature Capture

FIRE Spark is now allows your clients to view and digitally sign your Invoices on any device.

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FIRE - Scenarios

Every company has a different reason for using FIRE. The examples below illustrate how FIRE can help a wide varieties of companies to become more profitable.



A worldwide Oilfield company providing services with specialized trucks requires invoices, forms and on-site client approval in remote areas.
 
A Helicopter company working for commercial clients wants to get signature approval on location, and has other complex forms to complete.
 
A Commercial HVAC company with ten city based service trucks needs to provide dispatch information and allow service techs to complete invoicing forms on-site.
 
Glassware and Tableware Sales Reps working in the city who need to place orders while they are on-site talking to customers.
 


Scenario 1 : Remote Oilfield Service

Situation:

An Oilfield Services company has over two hundred field workers based out of various Districts worldwide, in addition to Head Office and country based management, administration, sales and operations staff. Field invoices are generated by each employee daily, typically based on a dispatch and often requiring client or job specific pricing. A client signature is required daily, and all paperwork needs to be routed to the District for review, approval and routing to Head Office for billing. An impressive array of other forms are also required to be completed daily including safety sheets, operational forms, asset failure and job incident forms, customer feedback forms, etc.

The amount of time spent correcting, approving, routing and re-entering all of the paperwork into the various spreadsheets, accounting and payroll systems, reporting and third-party software tools is huge. Then there is the subsequent workload required to create the monthly payroll, revenue, incident, asset utilization and revenue reports. In addition pricing errors or omissions are common, and it's a huge challenge to standardize on any one reporting method so that reports are useful.

Solution:

FIRE Professional and Field Laptops w/ aircards, Printers & Scanners.

Using FIRE Unplugged (the offline component of FIRE) field employees create tickets while on location. These tickets include all charges based on the pricebook, any client quote, or regional pricing which is applied automatically. The tickets can also be created from pre-existing Dispatches. The client signs / approves the ticket at the end of the day at which point it is uploaded to FIRE Online by the field supervisor before they leave the location. The ticket is then automatically routed to the appropriate people for approval, then exported to the accounting system and sent to the client for payment.

Each ticket includes the forms to track all other information such as safety sheets, operational forms, asset failures, etc. This information is also available within FIRE Online after uploading by the field supervisor upon job completion. This means not only is all the data is available immediately, but FIRE Online can sent out emails and notifications, and have reports available on any of the field information before the field supervisor has even left location.

Finally, the amount each employee is paid for field bonus is calculated automatically by the Compensation report, all stats for Asset and Job Failures is available is reports and follow-up actions can be logged and audited, asset utilization and even asset status is available immediately, and it all required less work, less time, and no re-entry to accomplish.


Cost:

 

One Time

Monthly

Total

  • FIRE - $10,000
  • Hardware ~$1,900
    per field user
  • FIRE - $1,950
  • Hardware ~$80
    per field user

FIRE Professional

$5,000
$1,950/mo  [per 50 Field Employees]
Typically includes integration into accounting system, limited customized revenue and other reports or related customization work.

FIRE Customizations

$5,000
n/a

One-time included customizations consist of an automated export file for the ERP/Accounting system, a custom Employee compensation report, and some Form changes.

Additional Cost customizations include the creation of the various custom Forms such as the Safety Sheet, Operational Form(s), and Customer Feedback Form. These costs are estimated, and could be less if standard forms are used, or more if complex forms and database support is required.

Field Laptops

$1000 ea
n/a
Assumes field staff do not currently have laptops. If computers are already deployed, then existing machines can almost certainly be used and this cost would not apply.

Mobile Internet Card for Laptops

~$100 ea
~$50/mo ea (data only)
  • Mobile Internet Cards are sold by Mobile Phone providers (Bell, Telus, Rogers/Fido in Canada, AT&T in US, etc. and not by FIRE, but we can facilitate if needed.
  • Mobile Internet card providers can be very aggressive with one-time cost if a multi-year data plan is signed.
  • Many mobile phones can double to provide mobile internet service, eliminating the need for Mobile Internet Cards

Printer + Scanner

$100 - $500 ea depending upon size
~$100 per 3 months ink & paper
A Printer / Scanner combo is often recommended to allow for scanning of receipts, backup paperwork, or any items requiring a physical client stamp.

Accessories

  • 12V Power + power bar for Netbook & printer ~ $200 ea
  • Booster Kit Vehicle mounted for Mobile Internet Card ~ $200 ea
  • A simple laptop bag is recommended over hard mounting ~ $50 ea
  • Printer mounting is recommended
FIRE has partners which can provide an extremely affordable combined Mobile Internet + GPS truck tracking / speed monitoring solution.

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Scenario 2 : Helicopter Transport

Situation:

A helicopter company with fifteen pilots flies corporate customers to remote locations. However, the company spends a lot of time chasing down client invoices because often the client signature is missing, or any changes to the plan, waiting time or fuel costs have not be captured or approved.

From a customer service and preparedness perspective, pilots would also like to know who will be on their aircraft, and tie it into a dispatch system where they know as far ahead of time as possible. Finally, the company would like the customers to fill out a survey ideally before they leave the helicopter for the day.

Solution:

FIRE Small Business implementation where pilots are provided with a Netbook device. Pilots view all dispatches on their device that were created in FIRE Online by central dispatch -- they can review all details, directions, client contact details; and dispatch changes are available to them instantly. The pilot completes the remaining fields after opening the dispatch, selects / enters the appropriate charges and notes, then submits the completed ticket before flying to the next location. A client signature can also be captured on the touch screen of the Netbook, and optionally a print can be created if the pilot has a printer onboard; otherwise the client can immediately get an email with a PDF attachment of their bill.

In addition, the Netbook can be handed to the client while onboard so they can fill out a custom Client Satisfaction Survey form - this will also be uploaded to the FIRE Online system when the flight is completed and the rest of the ticket is uploaded.

Invoices are generated after performing an export from FIRE directly into Quickbooks. Field hours reports are generated at the click of a button, and are accurate up to the day.


Cost:

 

One Time

Monthly

Total

  • FIRE - $5,000
  • Hardware ~$1,200
    per field user
  • FIRE - $1,200
  • Hardware ~$50
    per field user

FIRE Small Business

$5,000
$1,200/mo  [per 25 Field Employees]
Typically includes integration into accounting system, limited customized revenue and other reports or related customization work.

FIRE Customizations

Included
n/a
One-time customizations include an automated export file for Quickbooks, a custom field hours report, and a custom Client Survey Form.

Touchscreen Netbook (Dell Lattitude 2100)

$1000 ea
n/a
  • Many options available, but the Dell Lattitude 2100 is a good touchscreen device that is both portable, somewhat rugged, affordable, and easily available worldwide.
  • Assumes field staff do not currently have laptops. If computers are already deployed, then existing machines can almost certainly be used and this cost would not apply.

Mobile Internet Card for Netbooks

~$100 ea
~$50/mo ea (data only)
  • Mobile Internet Cards are sold by Mobile Phone providers (Bell, Telus, Rogers/Fido in Canada, AT&T in US, etc. and not by FIRE, but we can facilitate if needed.
  • Mobile Internet card providers can be very aggressive with one-time cost if a multi-year data plan is signed.
  • Many mobile phones can double to provide mobile internet service, eliminating the need for Mobile Internet Cards

Accessories

  • 12V Power supply for Netbook ~$100 ea
  • A simple netbook bag is recommended over hard mounting

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Scenario 3 : HVAC Repair Trucks

Situation:

The company does heating and ventilation service for commercial clients. Each of the twenty service techs is provided with their own truck, and is responsible to get the list of jobs from dispatch each morning, provide a daily summary of work to the client on-site, return the invoices to the office at the end of each day, and track all inventory used. Employees are also partially paid by by field hours, so a separate form is submitted by each employee at the end of the week.

Service techs could have to visit five or more sites a day, and it's causing a lot of trouble getting the right information to the tech before they leave to ensure they're prepared -- never mind the trouble caused by an emergency dispatch. Service techs don't often get the invoicing paperwork to the office quickly, and inventory tracking is more of a goal than a reality. The effort to re-enter 60+ invoices daily into the accounting system, plus the same number of inventory forms into another system is taking it's toll, and prone to errors even when legible and filled out correctly. Field hours forms are being filled out, but have also been time consuming for office staff to enter, have approved, and re-entered again into the Ceridian payroll system.

Solution:

FIRE Mobile implementation where field techs are given the option of an iPhone device. Service techs view all dispatches on their device -- they can review all details, inventory, directions, client contact details, and any dispatch changes are communicated to them instantly. The Service tech completes the remaining fields after opening the dispatch, selects the appropriate charges and inventory, then submits the completed ticket before driving offsite. A a client signature can also be captured on the touch screen of the iPhone and the client can immediately get an email of their bill as a PDF attachment.

Invoices are generated after performing an export from FIRE directly into Quickbooks. Field hours compensation reports are generated at the click of a button and accurate up to the day, assuming approval is completed. Inventory can be handled entirely within FIRE, or an export of depletions can be fed automatically into a third-party system, including any accounting system.


Cost:

 

One Time

Monthly

Total

  • FIRE - $5,000
  • Hardware ~$100
    per field user
  • FIRE - $1,200
  • Hardware ~$120
    per field user

FIRE Small Business

$5,000
$1,200/mo  [up to 25 Field Techs]

FIRE Customizations

Included
n/a
One-time customizations include an automated export file for Quickbooks and a custom Employee compensation report.

iPhone

$100 ea or less -- negotiable*
~$120/mo per device (voice + data)
  • iPhone devices are sold by Mobile Phone providers (Bell, Telus, Rogers/Fido in Canada, AT&T in US, etc. and not by FIRE, but we can facilitate if needed.
  • Mobile Phone providers can be very aggressive with one-time cost if a multi-year phone or data plan is signed.
  • Note - the iPhone needed for FIRE is the same one used as your mobile phone, so your employees do not need multiple devices, and may already be using this one.
  • Assumes field staff do not currently iPhones. If devices are already deployed, then this cost would not apply. (no specialized installation is required)

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Scenario 4 : Glassware Sales Rep

Situation:

The company employs four glassware and tableware salespeople to visit restaurants and hotels around the city. Orders are sourced and distributed from a central warehouse, and commission is paid to each rep.

A great deal of time is being spent getting the paperwork for the orders into the central location and they are not always correctly filled. Clients are complaining about shipments being wrong and taking a long time, and pricing often incorrect. Also commission payments to the sales reps are painful to calculate and often have to be fixed in the subsequent payroll period.

Solution:

FIRE Mobile implementation where each salesperson places the order using an iPhone on-site with the customer. Pricing is based on the central price list, the form is simple and correctly filled out, and the order is routed through all approvals online and available to the central warehouse immediately. The client can also optionally receive a PDF backup via email instantly. Finally, the Sales Commission report is generated automatically by FIRE.


Cost:

 

One Time

Monthly

Total

  • FIRE - $2,400
  • Hardware ~$100
    per field user
  • FIRE - $900
  • Hardware ~$100
    per field user

FIRE Mobile

$2,400
$900/mo  [up to 10 Field Techs]

iPhone

$100 ea or less -- negotiable*
~$100/mo per device
  • Devices are sold by Mobile Phone providers (Bell, Telus, Rogers/Fido in Canada, AT&T in US, etc. and not by FIRE, but we can facilitate if needed.
  • Providers can be very aggressive with one-time cost if a multi-year phone or data plan is signed.
  • Note - the iPhone needed for FIRE is the same one used as your mobile phone, so your employees do not need multiple devices, and may already be using this one.
  • Assumes field staff do not currently iPhones. If devices are already deployed, then this cost would not apply. (no specialized installation is required)

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