I’m pleased to announce the launch of Connected Field Service, a joint offering from ServiceMax that leverages the PTC ThingWorx® IoT platform. The brand new solution enables ‘smart’ machines to initiate service requests, provides technicians with connected diagnostics, enables remote service and offers contextual insight into repair procedures.

White Board Sessions

 What’s Connected Field Service?

In short, Connected Field Service delivers the field service industry’s first solution that seamlessly integrates machine data with a field service delivery system. It offers an essential framework for delivering more intelligent and agile service. The solution taps into the IoT, transforms how technicians operate in the field and improves the quality of service they’re able to provide.

Connected Field Service encompasses real world enterprise applications for two major trends poised to transform field service organizations through 2016 and beyond:

  1. Proactive (and, ultimately Predictive) Field Service: Service organizations need insight into product performance to offer proactive service before it reaches a point for the customer to request service. Delivering service on a more proactive basis benefits both the customer and the manufacturer. The customer avoids the inconvenience of downtime and multiple calls into the service center. The manufacturer avoids the high cost of emergency service calls. Proactive service leads to a higher level of service delivered at a lower cost.
  1. Outcome-based Service: In order to sell the “outcome” or performance of a product, instead of the product itself, the manufacturer (and the customer) need to have smart, connected product data to monitor the equipment. Is the machine running too hot or too cold? Has higher than expected usage accelerated the need for maintenance? Connected Field Service is the first step on the path to smart, connected service that opens the door to potential new service offerings and increased profitability.

Connected Field Service in the Enterprise

“Together, PTC and ServiceMax are enabling manufacturers and service organizations to create new value for their customers, through enhanced service offerings and the sale of outcomes,” said Jim Heppelmann, President and CEO of PTC. “Connected Field Service leverages our complementary technology offerings and a shared vision for the transformation of service made possible by the Internet of Things. Connected Field Service offers an array of new capabilities to technicians in the field and powering increased efficiency and profitability at multiple stages of the service lifecycle.”

Connected Field Service alerts field service providers immediately when an asset fails or shows signs of failure. The solution, offered in partnership with PTC, automatically dispatches the necessary technician with the right knowledge and the right parts to repair the machine and eliminate unplanned downtime. Connected Field Service’s real-time window into an asset’s operational status gives our customers the opportunity to drive higher customer satisfaction by bringing machines offline on the customer’s schedule or updating firmware remotely, creating more consistent reporting to identify key trends, and fixing the equipment the first time by sending a tech with the diagnosis and related parts in hand.

“In our line of work, asset uptime is crucial. The ability to create real time reports straight from the machine and deliver to our technicians is very powerful,” said Daniel Kingham, Program Director at Elekta – a Connected Field Service customer. “This feature alone will differentiate us from our competitors, delivering proactive and highly productive service to our customers around the globe. Ultimately, Connected Field Service allows us to transform our business and create loyal customers.”

ABOUT ServiceMax

Avatar photoServiceMax is the only complete field service software solution helping companies of all sizes manage contracts, scheduling, and parts, while also providing solutions for social, portals, and analytics — all delivered in the cloud to any mobile device. We deliver software that brings together the right data at the right moment to delight customers and drive business results at the crucial point of service. We’re rethinking field service, and delivering cutting edge technology to help companies perfect service delivery, drive revenue and growth, and delight customers.