The Challenge
PulseLogic provides mechanical and electrical maintenance services across commercial properties in the UK. Their 200+ field engineers were using paper job sheets, faxing them back to HQ, where admin staff typed the information into a back-office system. The lag between job completion and data entry was often 48–72 hours.
More critically, engineers working in underground plant rooms, remote industrial sites, or signal-dead areas couldn't access job information at all without printing everything in advance. When details changed — a part became unavailable, a customer moved an appointment — engineers had no way of knowing.
The tipping point
A large commercial client threatened to cancel their contract after PulseLogic couldn't provide a digital audit trail of completed maintenance for a regulatory inspection. Paper records had been misfiled. The cost of that single incident was the catalyst for the project.
Our Solution
We built a React Native app for iOS and Android, designed specifically for field use: large touch targets, works with gloves, readable in direct sunlight, and — most critically — fully functional with no internet connection.
GPS Job Dispatch
Jobs assigned by the back-office system appear on an engineer's device instantly. Route optimisation suggests the most efficient order. Arrival and departure times logged automatically via geofencing.
Digital Job Sheets
Structured forms replace paper sheets — checklist items, free text, photo capture, and customer signature on glass. Form templates configured per job type with required fields enforced.
True Offline Mode
All assigned jobs and their assets are pre-downloaded to device. Engineers work entirely offline. Changes queue locally and sync automatically the moment a connection is detected — with conflict resolution handled transparently.
Parts Ordering
Engineers can raise parts requests directly in the app. Back-office confirms, and delivery to site is tracked. Reduces the callback loop from an average of 3 calls to a single in-app thread.
Technical Approach
The offline-first architecture was the most technically demanding aspect. We used a local SQLite database (via react-native-sqlite-storage) as the source of truth on device, with a background sync service that handled both push and pull against our Node.js API.
We ran a 4-week pilot with 12 engineers in the South East before full rollout. This caught edge cases we hadn't anticipated — notably how the app behaved when a device ran out of storage mid-shift. We implemented graceful degradation and storage warnings as a result.
Technology Used
Results
"The mobile app launched on time and under budget — something we'd never experienced with a dev agency before. The offline sync alone saved us thousands in lost job data."
