Rugged 4G LTE Tablets with ProntoForms Keep Rex Electric Workers on the Same Page
Founded as a family business in the early 1920s, Rex Electric takes pride in its reputation for delivering a superior service experience. As one of Chicago’s largest electrical firms, the company’s 350 electricians serve a variety of commercial, institutional and residential customers throughout the area.
Keeping everyone on the same page can be a challenge with such a large team of field-based employees. Until recently, Rex Electric took a traditional approach to workflow management by utilizing a paper-based system, involving reams of work-order printouts, paper forms needing to be completed by hand, and multiple trips back and forth to the office. This ate up significant amounts of time that could be spent serving customers and created the potential for error and confusion.
Recently, Rex Electric decided to overhaul this system using ProntoForms, a mobile workflow solution that allows the company to create and dispatch custom mobile forms to its workforce in the field, who can then submit their work with the push of a button. Team members on the go can now complete custom-built forms from the field and capture text, photos, signatures and barcodes, as well as GPS and time info. Managers at the company’s headquarters are also able to receive real-time reporting, monitor field worker progress and dispatch work orders to individuals on the go. These capabilities connect Rex Electric decision makers with the data they need to drive better outcomes for their customers.
Panasonic’s Toughpad FZ-A1 rugged tablets provide the ideal platform for the ProntoForms solution, allowing workers to stay productive and efficient in virtually any working environment without fear of device failure due to a drop or fall. With 4G LTE connectivity from AT&T, the tablets are equipped to take advantage of the cloud-based ProntoForms system no matter where their work takes them.
Rex Electric Project Manager Joshua Davidson said that prior to deploying the solution, he would spend significant amounts of time collecting data by hand at project sites and carrying it to headquarters. If something didn’t match up, it could mean another trek to and from the job site.
“ProntoForms using the Toughpad helped me save a lot of time,” Davidson said. “Now, instead of having to run back and forth from the job to get information, I can simply relay it back to my project manager from the job site.”
The Toughpad’s ruggedness is important in a field like electrical work, said Ryan Schultz, IT Manager for Rex Electric.
“Users like the fact that they feel more comfortable using it on the job site in work conditions with the dust and dirt,” he said. “They’re not concerned about breaking it or doing damage to the device.”
Watch the video below to hear more from Rex Electric about their use of ProntoForms on the Toughpad, powered by AT&T.
