automatic data capture
point of sale
Outdoor-ready, versatile handhelds
streamline the work process for utilities
By Amy Urban, marketing director, Handheld US.
With WWAN-equipped rugged devices such as the Handheld Nautiz X5 and the Nautiz X7, a field worker can wirelessly receive and send information even in rural areas.
A
s in many industries, utility field work has always been dependent on paperwork in the field and communicating back to a
central office. It is very task-oriented work that requires documenting various steps and transmitting information back and forth. Rugged handhelds are improving the way utility field workers do these jobs today. In many deploy - ments, they eliminate paperwork, cut down on data-entry errors and allow instant, wireless transmission of schedules, meter readings and other information. Combining a rugged handheld with specialised utility and field-service software brings the ability for customised tasks, guiding utility workers logically through their day. There are many obvious drawbacks to relying on processes that require
28 IT RESELLER – MAY 2010
multiple trips to the home office, the most obvious being inefficiency. And paper- based record-keeping with manual data entry always has the enormous potential for errors, or duplicating work by writing down information in the field only to require someone
else to input it in the computer system back at the office. With increased labour and fuel costs, smart utilities are searching for effective ways to increase overall efficiency in the field. Some sample ways these rugged outdoor computers have been used by utilities:
Field service
Using a handheld with advanced communication capabilities allows workers to communicate up-to-the- minute with the home office. No need for showing up at a house only to find that they called to reschedule the appointment. And that is just one type of task. Utility workers can use specialised software that runs on a handheld’s Windows Mobile operating system to accomplish any number of tasks. Specialised utility-focused
software allows up-to-the-minute service or work order information to be transferred between the office and the field. It features on-screen, paperless work orders in a survey format that intelligently prompts field workers to answer questions specific to each job. Once the work order is complete, the information is transmitted back to the office. Advantages of the process are eliminating paper and not having to hand-enter most of the information. That reduces data-entry errors, lost orders and paper handling. It also increases the number of work orders you can complete in a day. Beyond that, it cuts down trips to the office, which is a big plus as fuel costs rise. With a wireless mobile handheld, it’s conceivable that a field worker could receive the day’s work orders, complete all the work and transmit all the information back to the central office without ever having to actually go there.
Meter installations and replacements
Electric and water utilities typically change out their meters when they have reached the end of their useful lives. When they send a worker out to make the replacement, a handheld can greatly expedite the process. >>
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OPINION
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