The data model in one picture
Work Order
├─► Work Order Line Items (billable materials/labor)
└─► Service Appointment (scheduled unit — Optimizer plans these)
├─ Assigned Resource (Service Resource)
└─ Service Territory (dispatch region)
Service Resource
├─ Skills / Certifications
└─ Time Sheets
Everything the Optimizer touches is a Service Appointment — Work Orders are the business record.
Scheduling & Optimizer
Enhanced Scheduling & Optimization (ESO) replaces the legacy engine. Configure with:
- Scheduling Policies — hard/soft rules per business scenario
- Work Rules — match required skills, service territory membership
- Service Objectives — weighted scoring (minimize travel + maximize SLA)
Objective weights (example):
Minimize Travel: 0.30
Preferred SR: 0.20
Balance workload: 0.15
Meet SLA: 0.35
Run In-Day Optimization every 15 minutes and Overnight Optimization for the next 2 days.
Offline-first mobile
The FSL mobile app is offline-first. Configure the Briefcase Builder for each profile:
Briefcase: Field Tech - HVAC
Work Order: scheduled + status != Completed within 7 days
Service Appointment: assigned to me, next 7 days
Product Item: van inventory (Location = my van)
Knowledge Article: published, category = HVAC
Test airplane-mode workflows end-to-end. Conflict resolution runs on reconnection — Last Write Wins is rarely what you want; use a merge Flow.
IoT-triggered work orders
With Data Cloud + Flow:
IoT event stream (MQTT) → Data Cloud Streaming Ingestion
→ Calculated Insight: Asset temp > threshold for 10 min
→ Data Action → Flow: create Work Order, priority = High
→ ESO schedules Service Appointment automatically
The technician's mobile app buzzes within seconds. First-time fix rate typically improves 15–20% because parts get pre-staged.
Parts management
- Product Item = inventory at a Location (warehouse, van, customer site)
- Product Transfer moves stock, updates counts
- Product Consumed on Work Order deducts van stock and posts revenue
Enable Van Stock Optimization — a nightly job restocks based on last 30 days consumption.
Signature, photos, and PDFs
Use Enhanced Document Generation to render a signed Service Report:
Template: "Service Report v3.docx" (Word template with merge fields)
Data Source: Work Order + Service Appointment + Signatures
Output: PDF attached to Work Order, emailed to customer
KPIs to expose on day one
- First-Time Fix Rate
- Utilization (billable hrs / available hrs)
- Mean Time to Repair
- SLA Compliance %
- Travel-to-Wrench Ratio
Build one CRM Analytics dashboard for dispatchers and one for ops leadership. Skip the tech-level dashboards — the mobile app is enough.