Understanding and creating workorders

Download the workflow for work orders:  workflows work orders only

1. What is a workorder

A work order is the digital equivalent of a worksheet to be given to a contractor to carry out work.

2, Where can work orders be added

Work orders can be added to:

• To a  task
• To an expiring certificate
• To a  property, unit, or tenancy
• Automatically by Arthur when a trigger occurs – This is linked to understanding automation
• Via scheduler

This related to understanding the hierarchy

3. Who has access to work order information

• Contractors – can view all information
• Property owners – Can view and approve work orders. They DO NOT see contractor details or contact details
• Tenants – Can only see the contractor that has been allocated the job and shared documents

We have included in preferences the ability to set default positions when creating a work order. These include

• Who sees what in terms of files?
• The automatic attachment of files from a task to the newly created related workorder

4. Can work orders be scheduled

Yes. This is linked to understanding scheduler

5. Creating a work order

A workorder can be created at the following levels on Arthur. Property/ Unit/ Tenancy and Tasks. You will see on the left hand panel on the relevant level you’re on, for this example it is on the property page:

An advantage is that the work order is now placed on this level and the address information will be pre-populated. If the work order is created on a task the address and task description will be pre-populated also.

To create the work order from the beginning you will need to go on Work Orders> Add Work Order

You will need to search for the related entry. As you can see in this example, there are multiple levels you can choose from. It is important to choose the relevant level to place the work order on; at property level it will pertain to the property as a whole and the units within. If it related to a specific unit you can select that specific unit and if it’s a single-unit property we always suggest to manage everything on the unit level. Tenancy level can also be selected if there are multiple tenancies in one unit, it will then be specific to that tenancy. If a task was created you can also choose to create a workorder from there too.

You will be prompted to add a title, description and work order service, these are mandatory fields and all other information is optional

Work order budget, allocated time, actual time and price per hour is information that is only viewable by yourself as the manager/agent.

You can add images and documents to the work order.

Under settings, there are default automations that can be selected.

If ticked:

“Is this an emergency?”- a banner titled “Emergency” will be shown next to the title once you create the work order and will be seen by the contractor and property owner. There will be no extra notifications for this, the banner is purely for visibility.

“Quote is required”- this will require a quote to be submitted by the contractor prior so you can review and accept/decline. Multiple contractors can be invited to quote.

“Share documents and images with contractors”- media added to the work order will be visible to the contractor

“Hide tenant details from Contractor”- this will hide the tenant contact information

“Share unit and property access details with assigned contractor”- any keys added under the access management module will be visible to the contractor.

“Share documents and images with Owner”- media added to the work order will be visible to the property owner

“Notify property manager”- the assigned property manager will be notified. This can be amended via automations.

Click “Save Work order and Continue to choose your Contractors” > choose your contractor(s) or create new contractor.

Workorders can be created via automation- this is dealt with via  How to use automation to create a workorder based on a certificate expiring

6. How do transactions get created for a job?

These are either added;

1. Via the contractor app within the work order – If used the invoice will have already been created. This linked to how contractors create invoices on the app
2. Manually added by the property manager to the work order

To add manually go to workorder>statement>add a transaction. This article is linked to how to handle incoming contractor invoices

The transaction will be linked to the work order and there is an option to create two transactions.

• 1 paid to the contractor
• 1 paid to tenant/owner

7. What can contractors do using the contractor app

Contractors can do many things within their app. This is linked to an article showing the functionality within the contractor app

8. How do owners approve a work order

This is linked to owners approving a quote

9. Frequently asked Question

Question: What if my Contractor does not want to use Arthur?

Answer: You can still create work orders and accept it on their behalf. Alternatively, contractors can accept the job via the email sent to them. You can further print the work order and email to them. We advise the app is the most efficient route to handling jobs.

Question: If my contractor accepts the job or the job is pending can I cancel or put on hold

Answer: yes you can

Question: Do contractors see the tenants’ contact details?

Answer: Only once the job has been allocated. If you do not want them to have access to details you need to tick no access within the work order.