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Case study · Facilities management

An app that works in basements and plant rooms

Field technicians often work where there is no signal, and paper job sheets fill the gap. This is how we built an offline-first app for jobs, checklists, photos and signatures that syncs reliably with the back office whenever a connection returns.

Project overview

An offline-first field service app.

Industry
Facilities management
Client
Confidential
Solution
Field technician app
Platforms
iOS + Android
Timeline
12–18 weeks
Team
5 people
Offline
Full job completion offline
Integration
Job management / ERP
Devices
Company phones or rugged devices

Expected business outcomes

What the client set out to achieve

Admin time and invoice speed are the most visible changes.

  • 30–60 min Saved per technician per day

    No paper job sheets to fill in and hand back.

    Target range; depends on jobs per day

  • Same day Job data in the office

    Completed jobs sync as soon as there is signal.

    Instead of end of week

  • Fewer Disputed jobs

    Photos, timestamps and signatures on every job.

    Where photo capture is required

Business challenges

Where the client started

Paper works offline; that's why it survived.

Jobs

Job sheets printed or sent by text message.

Checklists

Inspection checklists on paper, sometimes incomplete.

Evidence

Photos on personal phones, sent by WhatsApp.

Parts

Parts used written on the sheet, often missed.

Billing

Office staff retype job sheets before invoicing.

Proposed solution

What the app covers

Designed with technicians for gloves, glare and no signal.

  • Job list

    Today's jobs with addresses, access notes and history.

  • Smart checklists

    Checklists that adapt to asset type and answers.

  • Photos and signatures

    Before/after photos and customer signatures attached to jobs.

  • Parts used

    Parts selected from van stock and recorded against the job.

  • Offline sync

    Everything works offline and syncs safely when signal returns.

  • Push updates

    New urgent jobs pushed to the right technician.

Project requirements

What the client asked us for

The request was to replace paper. The requirement that shapes everything is offline working: the app must complete a job with no signal and sync later without losing data.

We test on site with technicians, in the plant rooms and basements where they actually work.

What the project had to deliver

  • 01Complete jobs offline
  • 02Evidence on every job
  • 03Parts recorded
  • 04Office data the same day

Key challenges & considerations

What made it harder, and what we did

  1. No signal for long periods

    What we did

    The app was built offline-first, so a full job could be completed with no signal.

  2. Large photo volumes

    What we did

    Photos were compressed on the device and uploaded in the background.

  3. Conflicting edits after offline work

    What we did

    Sync conflicts were shown to the user to resolve, never overwritten silently.

  4. Technicians with varied tech confidence

    What we did

    Screens were tested on site with technicians of every confidence level.

What we watched for

  • Design for no signal from day one
  • Test in real sites
  • Compress photos sensibly
  • Handle sync conflicts explicitly

Development process

Designed on site

Technicians shape the app from the first prototype.

  1. Stage 1

    Ride-alongs

    Days with technicians to see real jobs.

  2. Stage 2

    Prototype

    Clickable prototype tested on site.

  3. Stage 3

    Build

    App, offline sync and integrations built.

  4. Stage 4

    Pilot

    One team uses the app for a month.

  5. Stage 5

    Rollout

    All teams with training and support.

Technology stack

Offline-first cross-platform

Local storage and conflict-safe sync at the core.

Mobile

  • React Native or Flutter
  • Native modules where needed
  • Offline storage

Backend

  • Node.js or .NET API
  • Azure or AWS
  • Push notifications

Quality

  • Automated UI tests
  • Crash reporting
  • Staged releases

Delivery

  • CI/CD to App Store and Google Play
  • Feature flags

Quality assurance & deployment

Tested on real devices, in real conditions

Mobile apps fail in the hands of users, not on a developer's desk. Testing covered real devices, poor networks and interrupted sessions before anything went to the stores.

  • Automated tests for the app logic and the API
  • Testing on real iOS and Android devices across the agreed versions
  • Offline, poor-network and interrupted-session scenarios
  • Code review on every change
  • Store guideline checks during the build, not before submission

Deployment

  • 01PilotOne team uses the app for a month.
  • 02RolloutAll teams with training and support.
  • 03Beta and store releaseA beta group used the app first; store submission followed, with a phased release.
  • 04Monitoring and warrantyCrash and performance monitoring from launch, and six months of free bug fixing.

Final deliverables

Paperless, even without signal

Technicians complete jobs on the app wherever they are, with photos and signatures, and the office has the data the same day.

Invoicing no longer waits for paper.

  • Offline job completion
  • Evidence on every job
  • Parts tracking
  • Same-day office data

Handed over to the client

  • 01iOS and Android appsPublished in the client's store accounts
  • 02Source codeIn a repository the client can access
  • 03Backend and adminDeployed and documented
  • 04Release processBuild, signing and store submission
  • 05Six-month warrantyFree bug fixing after delivery

Success metrics

How success is measured

MeasureOutcomeHow it is measured
Saved per technician per day 30–60 min Target range; depends on jobs per day
Job data in the office Same day Instead of end of week
Disputed jobs Fewer Where photo capture is required

Verified reviews

What clients say about our mobile app work

Verified reviews from our clients on the same kind of work, published on Clutch.

5.0 27 verified reviews

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