QRmaint CMMS implementation at Komfort Serwis Real Estate Service

From a paper calendar to QRmaint – how things get done at a property maintenance company

“Eight years ago, in 2011, hardly anyone thought about using modern tools for planning work related to the technical maintenance of buildings. A pencil and a piece of paper seemed sufficient.” – says Jacek. “At the beginning, we were using an actual paper calendar- that is how we would plan the day. If I had to set up an appointment with a client, I- oftentimes still at the client’s place where we were supposed to for instance replace the tap or carry out other works on the premises- would give a call to Tomek (Tomasz Nyc, the owner of the company). Tomek would then keep me on the phone, going back and forth through his paper calendar, trying to figure out what time and date could work for both parties. Trust me, it was not an easy task!” – that is how Jacek Turkowski recalls his beginnings at Komfort Serwis. The problems occurring due to that way of working, would often delay the execution itself tremendously. The information flow was mainly via the mobile phone: nack and forth between the client, the maintenance company and the technicians performing the work. There were many mistakes or even non-execution in some cases, simply because “someone forgot or did not provide certain crucial information about the work order”. We know from experience that such modus operandi works well only in the case of really small business. As your company grows, so do the needs: it becomes increasingly difficult to maintain the quality of service and professionalism. Your company keeps on expanding, you have your own ambitions and the number of clients is growing too! And that is all great news but how do you get that peace of mind and maintain quality at the same time?

How to convert paper documentation into an IT system?

Jacek and the owner of Komfort Serwis, Tomasz Nyc, were looking for solutions that would keep up with their rapid expansion within the property servicing business in Warsaw.

“Together with Tomek, we introduced a Google calendar and an Excel sheet. We entered all of the recurring work into the spreadsheet, and the Google calendar was where we kept records of tentative work and potential meetings. ”

It was a significant improvement in communication and enabled us to find potential dates in a much quicker and easier way. It was no longer necessary to call the client from the main office to discuss when the work could be performed. However, the implementation of this solution helped us only in one area: the communication in- between the technicians and the company’s head office. We still had no idea how to effectively communicate outside of the company- with property administrators and to report on work progress. Additionally, the paper was still the king at our company. “We had a problem not only with planning but also with collecting paper orders from our employees- something was always missing, the employees would fail to fill out the paper forms, etc.” – Jacek continues.

Nozby and Trello tests and property servicing

The search continued. Finally the decision was made: to implement the Trello system to work with administrators and the Nozby system to work with the technicians. However, the main issue was to integrate these two systems – the administrators were reporting failures with Trello and Jacek had to copy the work orders to Nozba.

“The administrator was reporting a problem via Trello, and I had to copy the work orders to Nozba. The problem with Nozba was that one could assign the work order but was unable to see its status and whether or not it was completed. Let me give you an example: I would write in Nozby: “Get the door checked today” and the technician could only comment on that work order. I had to actually ask the technicians if they had completed the work order and I had to close the work order. After closing the work order in Nozby, I closed down the ticket in Trello so that the administrator could see it.”

The tests lasted several weeks but did not bring the desired result. And so the search continued…

Is QRmaint good for technical real estate services?

In May 2018, Jacek started testing the QRmaint application to check whether the system could work in their case.

Initially, Jacek rejected the possibility of implementing the system at Komfort Serwis, focusing on free- of charge solutions. However, he soon got back to the thought of sticking to our system as it largely met his expectations and additionally, all of that for a reasonable price (check our price list here). Jacek opted for the paid option with some of his technicians in mind.

It was very important for us to get Jacek involved in the development process of our system. Together we defined the functional needs to adapt the system to the needs of a property servicing company. We implemented, among others, clearly defined schedules for periodic work divided among technicians or an additional mode for a free-of charge user: the location administrator. All of that enabled property administrators to report failures and preview their implementation process.

Time to hit the ground running!

The implementation process itself went quite smoothly, although Jacek does recall having to deal with a lot of work:

“To add a property to QRmaint and to do it well, it is a lot of work. You have to walk around the building, determine its equipment, plan the scope of work to be performed. At the beginning, we wrote down every lamp and every frame, but it took too long. (…) Currently we have general terms such as “lamps and staircase detectors”, “lamps and detectors – garage” or “outdoor lighting”. Now, when it is time to review the equipment, I simply tick off the assets and the technician already knows what to do. ”

The implementation itself continues to this day – because Komfort Serwis is acquiring more customers! Today it is done much more efficiently than the first time around. Implementing a new building into the system along with the list of individual parts of the equipment, planning periodic work on the property- all of that takes up to two weeks. But after all that hard work, all work orders, work history or maintenance costs will easily be carried out within the QRmaint system, which is available wherever the Internet.

What have been the main benefits of using QRmaint for Komfort Serwis so far?

One of the key objectives was to eliminate paper work orders and paper reports. With QRmaint, all work orders (planned or reported by administrators) are included in the work order list assigned to a given location. At Komfort Serwis, technicians taking care of the work orders, complete the checklists or add any order- related costs. Thanks to that, administrators have on-line access to each work order and can track the type of work performed on the property 24/7.

Another very important issue was to increase control over the course of works performed and the use of methods with which they were carried out. “When I assign a work order to a technician, I can see whether that work order has been completed or not and when. If something is not being done as scheduled, I notice it instantly as the system displays it as an overdue work order. ” – says Jacek.

The problems with communication are now also a thing of the past: both at the head office, with the technicians and the clients i.e. the administrator or the residents themselves. In the first case scenario, “a technician using the application who happens to be on- site, will find out immediately about the new work order. I also get information from the technicians much quicker – e.g. a technician receives a work order concerning a leak. The technician can then quickly assess the situation and report back to me on the severity of the situation or the possible costs of removing the failure. Thanks to that, I in turn can immediately pass this information on to the administrator of the building. ” Furthermore, both administrators and the residents may report any issues that might occurred on the property via the QRmaint system. The information will immediately reach Jacek, who can then quickly react and assign a technician based on the work schedule and availability- also visible in the QRmaint system.

The process of removing the failures and reporting back to the administration has been shortened significantly. Previously, the administrator would receive a report on the work performed once a month. Now the report is available as soon as the technician finishes the job. Thanks to that option, the property administrator can control the costs generated by the community on-line and on an ongoing basis.

Also, the employee are much more engaged when it comes to filling out the work reports as this procedure can easily be completed by using the mobile application.

Does QRmaint makes client acquisition easier?

Leaving traditional methods of communication behind- in this case both about failures and the work planned? Instead switching to a modern system available whenever there is Internet access? If you are dealing with property management professionally, that definitely will significantly increase your competitive edge.

Many administrators were not even aware that the communication and information flow about the work status could be this much simplified. “Today, Tomek and I had a meeting with a prospective client (…) During the meeting, I presented all the possibilities of working with the QRmaint system and the property administrator opened his eyes wide- both with surprise and delight.”

Needless to say, the visit ended with a signed contract in hand, although I must say our offer was not the cheapest in comparison to the competitors. By improving the supervision process of an ever- increasing number of technicians and customers and thus simplifying the communication between the client and the contractor, Komfort Serwis added much value to their offer.

How is QRmaint being developed?

“Since the implementation of QRmaint at our company, the program is still being developed; the functions are being adapted to the specifics of our industry – e.g. a schedule that was not even there during the implementation process, now looks like a Google calendar!” – Jacek is still at awe.

We are pleased that we were able to solve the problems of companies such as Komfort Serwis by adapting our system to the industry- specific needs. By observing how QRmaint is being utilized by companies such as Jacek’s, we are constantly coming up with new solutions to jointly build a competitive advantage in this field. And so far we are proud to say that we have been successful!

A recommendation from a demanding customer like Komfort Serwis means a lot to us!

To meet the needs of our clients, we are constantly working on further improvements of the QRmaint application. If you happen to have an idea how you would like to use our CMMS system but have not found such feature as of yet, please do get in touch with us:

contact@qrmaint.com