If you have ever used SiteCapture you are probably familiar with how our smart form fields work. Using our template editor, anyone can create and update the forms by adding instructional text or questions, selecting what type of input is allowed, and choosing whether or not photos or comments should be added or required. We refer to these as “static fields”. These will show up on any project you create in SiteCapture from any template. What you may not be familiar with is a feature we call “dynamic field groups”. These are like little forms within your form. On the mobile or web interface, they appear with a button that says something like “add items”. You can name the groups however you like, for example, if you wanted to use this feature to have someone build an estimate for repairs, you might call the dynamic field group “repairs” and then it would display as “add repair items”. You can have multiple dynamic field groups in any section of your template.
SiteCapture’s dynamic field groups can be utilized to create punch lists, build estimates, generate additional repair lists or add days to a daily progress report with ease. By simply pressing a button on the app, a field user can quickly capture additional information on the spot, without needing a predetermined field for that information. Every time they add an item, it builds its own item table or a list of what we call dynamic items.
When you combine dynamic field groups with our service line database – you also have the ability to build quotes, scopes or do other cost estimating that will automatically calculate based on input of things like units (e.g. square feet, each, cubic yard).
Managing Estimates and Scopes with Dynamic Items
In the field, users can add dynamic items, capturing detailed information, like photos and descriptions. The dynamic field group has form fields that can take advantage of the same features our static fields have such as making these fields required, admin only, conditional, or enforcing that a photo be taken or a comment allowed. You can also use the “hide from” aspect that allows the fields to show up based on the role of the user who is creating the item.
Once a project has been completed with its dynamic items populated, anyone with permissions can use our new “Manage Items” feature where they can work with the list of items in a variety of ways. You can group them by category, section, or type of item. You can also group them based on a field like “approved” or “complete” or really any field you like. Our support team can help you set up your templates with what we refer to as “report columns” which allow you to choose which fields from a dynamic field group show up as columns in the item list view and also allows you to name those columns anything you like.
Once you have them grouped, you can select a subset of items and copy them to a new work order, generate a PDF report with only those items, or you can perform bulk actions like deleting items. It is a really simple and quick way to work with the items your users have generated when working on a project that uses dynamic field groups.
Ready to use the Manage Items feature? Find out more on our support site
This feature helps keep your SiteCapture smart forms efficient. Now, you can replace the need for static fields that might have to list out things like “repair item 1”, “repair item 2” and so on – with a dynamic field group allowing them to add as many or as few items as needed.
With just a few simple steps to set up dynamic field groups in your templates, and a press of a button on the app, dynamic items can help you gather important information in real time, eliminating the need to make multiple trips to a work site and when you combine dynamic field groups with our service line item feature – you also can have a powerful real time scoping and estimating tool.
Learn more about implementing Dynamic items on our support site
If you are a SiteCapture customer and are looking for more information on SiteCapture and dynamic items, please email your Customer Success team or support@sitecapture.com
If you are interested in becoming a SiteCapture customer please email us at sales@sitecapture.com.
