Field Service And Maintenance: How Integrating Video API With Tech Support Can Transform Operations
David (a fictitious name) and many of his ilk work in a major oil and gas company, and their days are firmly cut out: every morning, they are set off to visit their assigned rigs, check their operational status, fix the problem if any, and then submit the technical status report. The job seems straightforward, but it can be challenging as oil rigs may be situated far apart. Many times, when they arrive at the scene, they find it hard to fix the problem because of the complexities involved in pinpointing the actual reason behind the issue. They have to either snap a few pictures and return to the back office to huddle with an expert engineer or they may have to collaborate with remote experts via WhatsApp video calling. This is not an efficient mechanism as there is no tracking and very little or no collaboration capabilities in WhatsApp.
Their life was going on in the same old rut until communication APIs enabling live video calling integration arrived on the scene. It proved to be a game-changer for the field services industry.
Video Call APIs & SDKs: The Technology Transforming Field Services Management
The world of field services is changing faster than you may realise, thanks to real-time video call APIs powered by WebRTC. Organisations are now shunning outdated working models and standalone communication tools, and legacy field management systems for more efficient and modern field service maintenance.
The technology driving this change is simple: with a mobile device and internet connection, technicians can troubleshoot problems on-spot, avoiding struggles to explain the problem via telephone or coming to the office to discuss with experts in the case of complex issues witnessed during installations, troubleshooting and customer communication. And all this through an approach where all solutions work as a single-engine with deep integration between support systems & communication capabilities.
Field services experts are not ignorant of these changes; they’re taking note of this grand shift happening in the industry. In its latest report, Technology And Service Industry Association has touted video streaming among the top three trends changing the contours of the industry, helping the industry to improve productivity and efficiency.
Field Service Maintenance: Key Challenges
Most field services like gas pipeline, optical fibre maintenance and repair and industrial utilities experience significant difficulties considering their vastly distributed geographical spread, while customers have immediate service needs.
Various studies show that more than 82 per cent of consumers in the US said they stopped doing business with a company due to one or more negative customer service experiences. The cable installation industry, for example, needs technicians who can troubleshoot problems and work efficiently in people’s homes. This has implications for enterprise field service maintenance.
Here are the following three key challenges faced by the field service companies:
- Field engineers are responsible for inspecting and maintaining their company’s assets like pipelines and fibre. Still, there is no recordkeeping on these activities. And often, companies have to trust what vendors report.
- WhatsApp lacks collaboration features like screen sharing, annotations and recording, making it challenging to collaborate with experts.
- Technicians struggle to explain the problem to service in a voice call, and it often takes more time than required.
How Live Video Calling Can Transform Field Service & Maintenance
Packed with powerful collaborative tools, live video streaming has emerged as one of the most potent tools for service technicians to perform their tasks better and faster. Some of the obvious advantages are the following:
- Live video solutions can help eliminate the need for technician dispatch, reduce the risk of user error and ensure that field service engineers have the right hand on equipment parts.
- With live streaming video available as a communication tool, your technicians can provide an enhanced stream of information, leading to faster and more accurate diagnosis of problems.
- Organisations can dispatch the right people and equipment and effectively monitor the service and maintenance work, resulting in improved customer satisfaction, better upkeep, and improved FCR (First Call Resolution).
- Recorded maintenance videos can be used for training and auditing purposes. This is done through the integration of video calling into the CRM/Support systems like ServiceNow, SalesForce.com etc.
- Field technicians now have the choice to remotely resolve customer queries and concerns, reducing the truck rolls.
Leveraging the Power of Video API
Most field-service companies already use some service management application that uses Voice, SMS or Chat; embedding video into it can vastly improve the communications capability. You can enhance it by integrating real-time video call APIs into mobile applications.
Oil and gas companies, telcos, power utilities, and heavy machinery manufacturers are just a few of the many heavy machinery industries that can take advantage of this technology.
To Conclude
The ability to troubleshoot from anywhere using remote video chat has certainly got a powerful appeal. Clients are always more satisfied and happier when field services issues are fixed quickly.
Interested to learn more about how EnableX Video API can transform your field operations?
Why not schedule a call with us!
