How are we listening?
A few weeks back, during Fire Protection Week, Drew wrote about the 2018 NFPA theme – Look.Listen.Learn. From that post, sparked a question – “do we listen to our techs in the field? And if so, do we keep a record of what they find correctly?”
Since technicians are our eyes and ears in the field – documenting and identifying issues – it is important that their notes and photos are not only reviewed by the office, but the end customer as well. Understanding what is wrong with a fire system, and having a record of that item is vital to understanding it’s function, and could help in predicting future issues.
So how are you handling deficiencies? How do your customers know an issue is resolved? Is an original record being recorded so it can be reference if needed? Are you listening to your technicians?
Who should be listening?
In the most recent Inspect Point release (3.5), we pushed an update that directly addresses this conversation – Deficiencies and Resolution. While we have always had a deficiency management portion, the recent update improves its functionality for all parties involved – Inspect Point users, technicians in the field, and our customers customers. Here’s how:
Technicians in the Field
Technicians can now see a full record of all open deficiencies on a building – along with deficiency status and date identified
Inspect Point Customers
Inspect Point users can now create custom resolution statuses that fit into their current resolution process – proposals and service – and can be viewed on one screen without having to jump back and forth.
Our Customers Customers
Customers can now receive updated reports that not only show the original deficiency (for record keeping), but also an indication that the deficiency has been resolved and on what date.
Why should we be listening?
All of these various ways of communicating and updating deficiencies, not only helps maintenance compliance with NFPA Standards, but helps ensure that buildings are safe and will operate properly should a fire occur. Keeping a record of not only all open deficiencies, but resolved deficiencies as well, creates a “paper trail” of documentation that is invaluable should anything happen.
The technicians in the field serve as the first line of defense for problems and preventing tragedies. So with all of this said, how do you listen and empower your technicians? Leave your comments and ideas below.
