Help · Maintenance work requests

Maintenance work requests

A unit you own needs service or repair. A maintenance request records the problem, sends it to the shop, and keeps the vendor or technician, the quotes, the PO and the completion on one record.

#Why this exists

Maintenance gives a fleet team one record for each repair, from the first report to the completed work. Without it, a foreman calls or texts a problem in, a service writer types it into a spreadsheet, and nobody can see later what was promised and what was done.

A person in the field reports a problem on a unit. The request goes to the shop's queue with the unit, the job and the details attached. A service writer then sends the work to an outside vendor or to an in-house technician. The vendor's replies, the quotes, the PO, the status and the discussion all stay on the same record.

#Maintenance vs. Equipment requests vs. Mobilizations

Use Maintenance when you own the unit and it is broken. Use an Equipment request when you need a unit that you do not have. Use a Mobilization when you have the unit but it is in the wrong place.

Whose unit	Maintenance: your own unit, or a rental you have. Equipment request: a unit you do not have yet. Mobilization: your own unit.
What you buy	Maintenance: service or repair. Equipment request: a rental or rental-purchase. Mobilization: a move from one site to another.
Who does the work	Maintenance: repair shops, dealer service departments, mobile mechanics, or your own technicians. Equipment request: rental yards. Mobilization: haulers.
Last status	Maintenance: Completed. Equipment request: Called Off. Mobilization: Received.

One Ticket can make one of each. The three request types answer different questions, so keep them separate.

#The Maintenance list

The Maintenance list shows one row per request, sorted into tabs by status. Every working tab shows a count of its requests.

The list has eight tabs, as of November 2026:

All — every request. No count.
Open — reported, nobody has started on it.
Inspecting — someone is finding out what is wrong.
Quote requested — RFQs went to one or more vendors.
Scheduled — the work is committed to a vendor or a technician.
Under repair — the work is in progress.
Waiting on parts — a technician needs parts before the job can continue. Only accounts that use the technician schedule see this tab.
History — Completed and Canceled.

The Maintenance list on the All tab, with the eight status tabs and their counts — The Maintenance list. This account uses the technician schedule, so it also shows **Waiting on parts**, the **List** / **Board** switch and **Technicians**.

#Columns

The default columns are Created, Open for, Status, Priority, Details, Unit, Job, WO, Associated, Requester, Owner, POC, Serviced by and Last activity. Use the columns menu at the end of the header row to show, hide or move columns. Shop shows by default when your account has shops. Location is off by default.

Open for — how long the request has been open. The count stops when the request is Completed or Canceled, so a closed row shows how long it was open.
Status — on a tab that holds one status, this column is off by default, because the tab already tells you the status. On All, History and Quote requested it is on.
The quote ring — while a request waits on vendor quotes, a small ring after the status badge shows how many asked vendors have answered (for example 2 of 3). Hover over the ring to see which vendors answered and which have not.
WO — the work-order number. Click it to add or change the number. A request with no number shows Add WO #.
Serviced by — who has the machine: an in-house technician, or an outside vendor. When a vendor holds the work and you set an expected-back date, the cell also shows Back and the date. The date turns red when it has passed.

#Filters

The filter chips narrow the list: Status, Priority, Business unit, Job, Unit, Location, Owner, Serviced by, Unassigned, Machine down and Roadside. Shop shows when your account has shops. Routing group shows when your account has routing groups. Department and On the request are hidden by default. Use Choose filters to show, hide or reorder chips. Reset all filters shows when a filter is on.

Serviced by finds the requests that a given vendor has now: the vendor of the accepted quote, else the vendor named on the work order.
Unassigned shows the requests that have no owner.

#Export

The Export button (the download icon at the end of the filter row) downloads a CSV of the list as you see it, with your tab, filters and sort.

#An empty list

When your account has no maintenance requests yet, the list says No maintenance requests yet. and shows a Create maintenance request button, if you may create requests.

Accounts that use the technician schedule also see a List / Board switch and a Technicians button.

#Lifecycle

Open → Inspecting → Quote requested → Scheduled → Under repair → Waiting on parts → Completed

A request moves through these statuses as the work moves. Every step after Open is optional: an in-house job can go from Open to Completed directly. Canceled closes a request that nobody will do.

Open — the problem is reported. Nobody has started on it.
Inspecting — a technician finds out what is wrong before anyone asks for a quote.
Quote requested — RFQs went to vendors. On the request's timeline, this step reads Waiting on quotes until every asked vendor has sent a quote, then Reviewing quotes.
Scheduled — a vendor or technician has the work.
Under repair — the work is in progress.
Waiting on parts — only a technician's "needs parts" report sets this status, on accounts that use the technician schedule. Nobody can pick it from the status menu.
Completed — the work is done.

#A work-order number is necessary to complete

A request cannot go to Completed without a work-order number. This rule applies to every account, and no setting turns it off. If you try to complete a request that has no number, Gearflow asks for it: Add a work order number before completing this request. When you complete many requests at once from the list, Gearflow completes the ones that have a number and shows the others under a Needs work order # chip.

#The field marks the work complete, the shop reviews it

A person in the field often knows first that the work is done, but cannot change the status. That person clicks Mark work complete on the request. The shop then sees a note on the request — " marked the work complete." — with two buttons:

Complete request completes the request. It asks for the work-order number if the request has none.
Not done yet closes the note and keeps the status.

The report also shows on the shop's task list as Review completed work.

#A vendor's "done" reply

When a vendor replies to the request's email thread and the reply clearly says that the work is finished, Gearflow completes the request and shows the reply on the request, with an Undo button. If the request has no work-order number, Gearflow does not complete it. It asks for the number instead.

#Create a request

Most requests start from a Ticket. A field user calls or texts in a problem, and the AI suggests a maintenance request with the unit, the symptom and the machine-down answer filled in. You can also create one directly: click + in the top bar and pick Create maintenance request (⌘⇧M).

#The new create screen

The create menu opens the new create screen, titled Create maintenance, as of November 2026. It works like a new ticket:

One composer. Type or talk into one field: "Which unit needs work, and what's wrong with it? Speak or type." Use + to add files.
A draft card. As you type or talk, the AI fills in a draft card for the request: the unit, the details, the priority and the other fields. You can change any field on the card.
Machine down? and Roadside? These are Yes/No questions. Each chip reads Machine down? until somebody answers, then Machine down: Yes or Machine down: No. Nothing is set until a person picks an answer.
Submit. The card's Submit button creates the request. Until the card is ready, the card says what is missing, for example "Add unit to submit." A maintenance card needs a unit.

The Create maintenance screen: a draft card with the unit and Machine down: Yes, and the composer below — The new create screen. The draft card has a unit and **Machine down: Yes**, so it reads **Ready to submit**.

#The classic form

Enter manually in the header opens the classic form of the same type. Try the new experience on the classic form goes back. What you entered moves with you in both directions. A request that you create from a ticket, or from another request, opens the classic form with its fields filled in.

The classic form has Unit, Work order number (optional), Location (or Shop, if your account uses shops), Details with Add pictures, POC and Subscribers, and chips for Priority, Machine down?, Roadside?, Job, Shop, Business unit and, on accounts that serve customers, Customer.

What blocks Create. The form needs a Unit. It also needs a Business unit when your account has business units, and a Shop when your account uses shops. Priority defaults to Medium, and Location comes from the unit or from you, so neither one blocks Create.
Why Create did not work. A blocked Create shows the reason next to the button (for example "Please fill in: Business unit") and scrolls to the missing field. The message stays until your next edit.

The person who creates the request is its requester. A service writer who changes the status of a request that has no owner becomes its owner.

#Work the request

Open a request from the list, and its detail panel opens on the right. The header shows the status, the title, the unit, and a row of chips you can click to change: Priority, Machine down, Roadside, Job, Shop, Location, Business unit, Owner, WO #, PO #, Serviced by, Expected back and POC.

#The header buttons

Copy link copies a link to the request that you can send to a co-worker.
Subscribe turns on notifications about this request for you. It then reads Subscribed. Click again to stop.
The ⋯ menu has Duplicate, which opens a new request filled in from this one.

#Owner, Serviced by and the work-order number

Owner is the service writer who moves the request forward.
Serviced by names who has the machine. Pick an in-house technician, or an outside vendor. Vendors you asked for a quote show first; search to find any other active vendor. A vendor and a technician cannot both hold the work: picking one removes the other. You do not need an accepted quote to name a vendor. When a quote is accepted, its vendor shows as Serviced by.
Expected back shows when a vendor holds the work. Set the day the vendor should return the machine. The date clears when you change the vendor or give the work to a technician.
WO # is the work-order number from your CMMS or ERP. It is free text. Each change writes a line on the timeline that names the person who made it.
PO # is the PO number for the work. You can enter it at any time, also after the work is complete.

An Under repair maintenance request with a vendor in Serviced by and an expected-back date — A request that is under repair at an outside shop. The **Serviced by** chip reads **Vendor:** and the vendor name (or **Tech:** and a technician), and **Back** shows the expected-back date.

Some accounts use Gearflow work orders, with tasks for each job. On those accounts the WO chip opens the work order, and Gearflow gives the number.

Accounts that use the technician schedule also see Type, Needs, Estimated time and Scheduled under Details.

For the unit's own record and history, see Units.

#Use an in-house technician

If your own shop does the work, you do not need a vendor or a quote. Pick the technician in Serviced by, add the work-order number, and change the status as the job moves forward.

#Send the work to vendors

If a vendor does the work, click Browse sourcing options in the request's Sourcing section. You can send RFQs while the request is Open, Inspecting or Quote requested.

#Step 1: pick the vendors

Sourcing options lists the vendors that do maintenance work. Search, then select one or more vendors, and click Next. You do not pick contacts here.

The Sourcing options step with three maintenance vendors selected — Step 1. Three vendors are selected. Each card shows when you last sent the vendor an RFQ and how many orders it has.

#Step 2: write the message and pick who gets it

Compose message shows the message that every selected vendor gets, and one card for each vendor under Sending to:.

The message. Gearflow fills it in from the request. It asks the vendor when they can get a technician on site, and it carries the unit, the unit and serial numbers, the vendor's own unit number if Gearflow has it, the machine-down answer, the location, the POC and the details. You can change the text before you send.
No POC warning. If the request has no POC, or the POC has no phone number, a warning tells you, because the vendor will not know who to call on site.
Photos. The request's photos go with the RFQ. Remove a photo from the list to keep it back. Upload pictures adds more.
Who gets it. Each vendor card has a Send to picker. Pick one or more contacts. Only the vendor's preferred contact is checked for you; if the vendor has none, nobody is checked and you must pick. Add contact adds a new person to that vendor.
Text or email. On accounts that text vendors, each contact shows how the message reaches them: Text, Email or Text and email. A contact with only a mobile number gets the RFQ by text. A contact who replied STOP shows that texts are off. On other accounts every RFQ goes by email, and a contact with no email gets nothing; a contact with only a phone number shows the number to call.

Click Send request. The request moves to Quote requested.

The Compose message step: the RFQ text filled in from the request, and one Send to picker for each vendor — Step 2. The message is filled in from the request. Under **Sending to:**, each vendor has its preferred contact picked.

#Rental units: contact the rental vendor

When the broken unit is a rental, the rental vendor services it. You do not need three quotes; you need a technician on site. Gearflow knows who rents you the unit, from the unit's Equipment request order.

On a request for a rented unit, the Sourcing section starts with a card for the rental vendor and a Contact rental vendor button. The button opens the message step with the rental vendor already selected and the message filled in. In the full vendor list, the rental vendor is at the top with a Rental vendor badge. A rental vendor that services its own machine often sends no quote and gets no PO; the request can move on without them.

The Sourcing section of a request on a rented unit, with the rental vendor card and the Contact rental vendor button — The rental vendor card, on a request for a rented boom lift.

#Quotes, the PO and the order

#Add and compare quotes

Each vendor you asked shows as a card in Sourcing, with Waiting on quote until a quote arrives. Vendors reply to the RFQ. Read the reply, then click Add quote on that vendor's card. Upload the vendor's quote PDF and type the total. Gearflow does not read the price from the PDF.

You can leave the price blank. Service vendors often answer with a time, not a price. A quote with no price shows No price yet. All quotes show side by side, one card per vendor, so you can compare them. Click View on a card to open the quote.

The Sourcing section with three vendor quotes, each with a total and a View button — Three quotes on one request, one card per vendor.

#Accept a quote and send the PO

Accept a quote to send the PO to the vendor. The PO number is optional; enter it if you have it. The request moves to Scheduled. The accepted vendor stays at the top of Sourcing, and the other vendors move behind View all.

A Scheduled maintenance request with a PO number, and the timeline entry for the PO sent to the vendor — A **Scheduled** request. The timeline shows the PO that went to the vendor, with its total.

Your terms on every PO. If your account has purchase order terms (Settings → Account → Purchase order terms), Gearflow adds them to the end of every PO message under a Terms and conditions heading. You can set one text for all POs, or a different text for maintenance.
Delays. The PO message asks the vendor to tell you if anything could delay the work.

#Fix the numbers later

When the invoice arrives or your ERP issues the PO, open the order and click the pencil next to the total or the PO number. A missing value shows No price yet or No PO yet, never $0.00. Each change writes a line on the timeline, for example "updated the order total from $278.45 to $999.99".

#Messages

#Discussion

Discussion is your team's thread on the request. The POC, the owner and the technician are always on it. Add more people from the avatars at the top of the section. Type or record a comment; everybody on the thread gets it.

#Vendor threads

Each vendor has its own message thread on the request. Click Message on the vendor's card in Sourcing to read and answer it. The RFQ, the PO and every reply stay in that thread.

Files Gearflow could not take. If a vendor sends an attachment that Gearflow cannot accept, the timeline says so, for example "skipped an attachment — quote.zip (unsupported file type)". You can then ask the vendor to send it again in a different format.
A reply from a new person. If someone at the vendor that Gearflow does not know replies, Gearflow adds that person as a contact of the vendor. Gearflow does not send them later messages by itself; a person must pick them first.

#From a Ticket to a maintenance request

Most maintenance requests start from a Ticket. A field super calls in "the boom on the 200-ton crane is throwing a fault and won't extend past three sections". The AI reads that as a maintenance request with the unit, the symptom and the machine-down answer filled in. The ticket shows the linked request and its status in its Associated section, and the request shows the ticket in its own.

#Tips

The work-order number links Gearflow to your CMMS. Paste in the work-order number your CMMS or ERP uses. Maintenance takes in and routes the work; your CMMS stays the system of record, and the number links the two. Gearflow needs the number to complete a request, so add it early.
Use Serviced by for machines at an outside shop. Name the vendor and the expected-back date, even with no quote in Gearflow. Then the Serviced by filter answers "which units are at which vendor" from the list.
Photos help the vendor. The request's photos go with the RFQ. A photo of the leak or the fault code saves the vendor a call.
Roadside matters for over-the-road fleets. A unit that is stranded where it cannot be repaired changes who you call.