What it usually covers
- Customers and units. Contacts, terms, and each unit with its VIN and unit number.
- Work orders. The job record from complaint to correction. See work order.
- Calls and dispatch. Turning calls into jobs and sending technicians, which matters most for mobile work.
- Inspections. Digital forms with photos.
- Estimates and approvals. See estimate approval.
- Invoices and payments.
- Parts and purchase orders.
- Reports on hours, revenue and open work.
- Accounting sync.
Heavy-duty versus light-duty
Software built for car repair shops often assumes a front counter, a waiting room and short jobs. Diesel and heavy-equipment shops deal with fleets on terms, unit numbers, PM schedules by miles and engine hours, road calls, and records that fleets keep under 49 CFR 396.3. Check that the software fits that work. See heavy-duty shop management software.
Signs you need it
- Jobs get lost between the phone and the schedule.
- Invoices go out days after the work.
- Parts used on jobs are missed on invoices.
- Nobody can quickly pull a unit's history for a fleet.
How to choose
Write down how your work arrives and who you bill, then ask every vendor the same questions and test on a real job. See how to choose diesel repair shop software and shop management software cost for truck shops.
See also QuickBooks vs shop management software.
MetaFleet
MetaFleet is shop management software for mobile and in-shop diesel and heavy-equipment repair in the United States, with work orders, dispatch, inspections, invoicing and QuickBooks sync. It is not built for light-duty auto shops. Get a walkthrough.