Field Dispatch
One of the challenges in performing repairs and maintenance is that the work at times is done in the field. Sometimes it is because of the cost of transporting the machine back and forth between the job site and the dealership. It can also be because the machine is too large to be able to transport.
This then becomes a difficult logistical exercise. How long will the job take to complete? When you are dealing with a customer diagnosis of what is wrong you are subjected to dangerous assumptions. Is the customer complaint the cause of the problem or a symptom of something else? This is made even or difficult by the level of skill variation that we deal with in repairs and maintenance. Compounding all of this is the size and type of vehicle that is necessary to be sent to the job.
This is why the field service technicians typically are the most skilled and highly trained employees in the service department. Only after the technician arrives on the job and inspects the machine can the field dispatcher schedule the work. Then the problems are compounded with the need for parts and supplies. This is an important class to provide some guidance on how this difficult job function is performed.