Donald B. Stephens has been in the field service industry for 32 years. He is currently a Senior Customer Service Engineer with the Xerox Corporation. As you can imagine, in his time there he has witnessed the technology evolution and has learned a lot about how things can go right – and wrong. Stephens has taken his firsthand experiences and spends some of his time writing his own thoughts on those topics. He contributes regularly to...  Continue Reading..

Boeing has launched a new venture capital division, and made one of its first investments in a field service technology company.  Continue Reading..

Greg Dykes, manager of technical services at The Davey Tree Expert Company, joined Field Technologies recently on a webinar to discuss his company’s experience rolling out a variety of technologies to its mobile workforce. One component of their overall solution is Apple devices – and here Greg talks about why Dave Trey felt Apple devices were the best fit for its field force.  Continue Reading..

A lot of field service companies have deployed consumer smartphones for their mobile applications, but often find that the upfront cost savings are quickly eaten up by device replacement costs when the phones are damaged. Rugged computer manufacturers have responded by releasing their own rugged and semi-rugged smartphone and PDA-style devices, and new competitors are entering the market with ruggedized phones.  Continue Reading..

Fujifilm North America is making technology a center piece of its newly reorganized field service operation. The company, which sells and services imaging and photography equipment, is combining its North America field service teams of its Imaging Division and Graphic Systems Division to create the Fujifilm Technical Services Group as of April 1.  Continue Reading..

Analysts at VDC Research have posted their thoughts on the technology on view at the 2017 Mobile World Congress in Barcelona earlier this month. As expected, 5G and the Internet of Things (IoT) were a big focus, but business case justifications were scarce. According to VDC: “The net effect was a greater emphasis on mobile solutions and application opportunities. However, as a result of this transition, what was lacking was any meaningful...  Continue Reading..

Practical insight for ensuring a smooth transition from basic to advanced to next-generation field automation.  Continue Reading..

Consider these tips for how to best help your technicians help your customers.  Continue Reading..

As more connected ‘things’ join the network, security concerns are on the rise.  Continue Reading..