IndustriesMechanical contractor
Mechanical contractor software
Business Genie is mechanical contractor software for the service side of the business. Schedule and dispatch techs, let route optimization order their calls, track what each job cost with job costing, and sync with QuickBooks Online.
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2 techs’ day, split down the list and as routed. A sample mechanical contractor day, simulated, beside this.
Late
A mechanical contractor day, as booked
A mechanical contractor’s book is mostly written by its service agreements: each building’s planned maintenance visit comes due in the month its contract says, and the visits are handed out down the list as they come due. Tech 1 gets the two due this October, one at each end of town, and both vans spend the day crossing it. Why stop 1 takes 185 minutes is in the medical office’s agreement, drawn further down with the visit.
Tech 1, as booked
- 1Medical office, three rooftop unitsPlanned maintenance visit · Baseline Rd185 min7 am–8:30 am
- 2Dental office, two rooftop unitsPlanned maintenance visit · Southern Ave90 min
- 3Apartments, two assembliesBackflow test · Alma School Rd50 min9 am–11 am
- 4Grocery walk-in freezerRefrigeration maintenance · Main St75 min
- 5School, three assembliesBackflow test · Power Rd60 min
Tech 2, as booked
- 1Church boiler, fall start-upBoiler start-up · Country Club Dr120 min7 am–10 am
- 2Bar ice machineRefrigeration maintenance · Broadway Rd60 min9 am–2 pm
- 3Office floor won’t hold 72°Controls service · Dobson Rd60 min
- 4Store rooftop unit short-cyclingService call · Guadalupe Rd75 min
- 5Twenty-year-old rooftop unitReplacement survey · University Dr40 min
As booked: 2 h 30 min of driving, 1 time window missed, the last job done at 4:01 pm.
Split across techs and routed
Business Genie puts the day’s stops in the order that drives least, splits the jobs across your techs, and keeps the time windows you promised and the length of every job. Split by side of town instead, Tech 1 takes the west side and Tech 2 the east, and neither van crosses the middle.
In this sample the same 10 jobs take 1 h 06 min of driving instead of 2 h 30 min, with every time window kept instead of 1 missed, and the last one is finished at 2:22 pm instead of 4:01 pm.
11:10 am, a restaurant cooler at 47°
A restaurant calls as lunch starts: the walk-in cooler reads 47°F and is climbing. Cold food has to be held at 41°F or below, so everything in the box is on the clock.
Add the job and Business Genie re-orders the rest of the day around it, keeping the time windows already promised. The tech gets turn-by-turn directions to the next stop.
In this sample the call is fitted in at 11:25 am and the day is done at 4:11 pm. Taken straight after the job in hand, with the rest driven as booked, the day runs to 5:31 pm.
The October maintenance visit
Tech 1 · Stop 1 · Baseline Rd · 185 min
Medical office, three rooftop units.
The visit is as long as the agreement makes it. The same building is an hour in January, when only the filters are due, and most of a day in April, when the coils are cleaned and the cooling is started up for the summer.
Sample agreement · Medical office, Baseline RdChoose a visit
October visit · work order
Fall: filters and belts, and the gas heat on every rooftop unit checked before it is needed: burners, flue and heat exchanger inspected, and a carbon monoxide test.
- Sign in, roof access10 min
- RTU-1Filters, belt, heating checkRooftop unit, 10 ton, gas heat50 min
- RTU-2Filters, belt, heating checkRooftop unit, 7½ ton, gas heat50 min
- RTU-3Filters, heating checkRooftop unit, 5 ton, gas heat, direct drive35 min
- EF-1Belt and bearingsExhaust fan, restrooms10 min
- EF-2Belt and bearingsExhaust fan, exam rooms10 min
- MS-1FiltersDuctless split, IT closet10 min
- Readings and report10 min
- The length of stop 1 on the sample day185 min
- Service techs dispatchedSchedule and dispatch from the web; route optimization splits the day’s calls across techs and orders each one’s stops.Dispatch
- Cost against price, per jobJob costing sets what a job cost against what you charged for it.Job costing
- Books kept in syncBusiness Genie syncs with QuickBooks Online.QuickBooks
Route your own mechanical contractor day
Put in your own jobs, how long each takes and the windows you promise, and Business Genie puts them in the order that drives least, and re-orders it when a call comes in.
The first month is free. The team sets up your account and moves your customer data over at no charge, and route optimization is on every plan.
Mechanical contracting jobs, and how long they take
The work a mechanical contracting business books, and how long each job takes once the tech is there. Business Genie keeps the length you set for each job when it routes the day.
- Backflow test20–60 minBackflow test×2
- Replacement survey30–60 minReplacement survey×1
- Controls service45–120 minControls service×1
- Refrigeration maintenance1–2 hRefrigeration maintenance×2
- Service call1–3 hService call×2
- Boiler start-up90–180 minBoiler start-up×1
- Planned maintenance visit1–6 hPlanned maintenance visit×2
- Piping and rough-in4–8 hPiping and rough-in–
Backflow test
Each backflow preventer is tested with a gauge kit by a certified tester, once a year, and the report goes to the water utility. The water is off to the building while it is done.
Replacement survey
For a unit at the end of its life: the nameplate, tonnage, curb size, electrical and the crane’s way onto the roof are written down so the replacement can be quoted.
Controls service
A zone that will not hold its setpoint: the thermostat, the economizer and the schedule in the building’s control system are checked until the one that is wrong is found.
Refrigeration maintenance
Walk-in coolers and freezers, reach-ins and ice machines in a restaurant or a store: coils cleaned, door gaskets and heaters checked, the defrost cycle tested, and the box temperatures logged.
Service call
No cooling, no heat, a box warming up. The tech finds the cause and fixes it on the first visit when the part is on the van; billed for the time and the materials.
Boiler start-up
Before the heating season: the boiler is fired, its combustion tested with an analyzer, the safeties and the low-water cutoff proved, and the pumps and relief valve checked on the loop.
Planned maintenance visit
The visit the service agreement puts on the calendar and has already priced: filters, belts, coils and drains on every unit it lists, refrigerant pressures and amp draws read and written down, and anything that needs a repair written up to be quoted.
Piping and rough-in
Process piping, hydronic loops and plumbing rough-in on a project are measured in days, not stops: a crew on one site from start to finish.
Questions about mechanical contractor software
- Does Business Genie route mechanical service techs?
- Yes. Route optimization is on every plan: it orders each tech’s day, splits jobs across techs, keeps time windows and job durations, and re-routes when a job is added.
- Do techs track their hours in the app?
- Yes. Business Genie has GPS time tracking in the iOS and Android app.
- Who sets it up?
- The Business Genie team sets the account up and moves your data over at no charge.