Requirements checklist
What to ask for when choosing software for power and utility contractors.
A checklist built from how power and utility contractors work, to print or save as a PDF and bring to any supplier meeting.
What the software should cover
Tick each one that matters to your business.
- Work order intake
- Permits and outage approvals
- Crew and vehicle scheduling
- Yard material issue
- As-built and test records
- Measurement and stage billing
- Fault and emergency calls
Roles that need their own access
Who logs in, and what each person may see or change.
- For owners
- For planners and the office
- For foremen and supervisors
- For yard and store staff
- For accounts
Reports to ask for
Ask to see each one with your own sample data.
- Work orders open, closed and overdue by client
- Wayleaves and permits expiring this month
- Material issued against each order
- Crew and vehicle days used by order
- Closing packs incomplete by missing item
- Stage bills raised and retention held
- Money owed per network owner, longest overdue first
Systems it may need to connect to
Note which ones you already run.
- SMS
- WhatsApp or other messaging
- Accounting software export
- Payment gateway
- Spreadsheet import
Questions for any vendor
Put these to every supplier you are comparing.
- Does it cover planned work and fault repairs?
- Can billing follow a schedule of rates?
- Can we track permits and shutdown approvals?
- Does a foreman need anything beyond a phone?
- Can it hold as-built drawings?
- Can it feed the accounts package we already use?
- Can open orders and stock be moved in?
- Who owns the data?
- What does it cost?
Where the work usually breaks today
Circle the ones you recognise. They set the order of the project.
- Permits and outage windows live apart
- Material leaves the yard without an order number
- As-built records are late or incomplete
- Billing waits on documents
- Emergency calls break the plan
Prefer to talk it through? See the power and utility contractors page.