Vital | Route Optimisation - Streamline your Operations

You can access the Route Optimisation feature in two ways:

1. Navigate through the Operations section: Operations → Jobs → Route Optimisation.  
2. Use the Technician Action button within the Calendar day view and the Calendar Month view (when grouped by technician).  

Here are the step-by-step instructions to use the Route Optimisation tool:

1. Select the technician and date you want to optimise. Click on the technician's name to select it, and then click on the calendar date picker to choose a date.  
2. Configure the route by defining the start time and start and end locations for the day. 
   • If a home address has been added for the technician, this will be the default starting and ending point.
3. You can choose whether to include travel time in the route optimisation by toggling the 'Include travel time in the optimised route' switch. This will add the travel time between jobs based on the optimal route; otherwise, only the job duration will be considered.
   
4. Click on the Optimise route button after deciding on the start and end locations.
5. Once optimised, the tool allows you to compare the original route with the optimized one by switching between tabs.
   
6. If you want to change the routing, click the reset route button.
   
7. Once you are satisfied with the route, click the Use this route button.
   • The jobs will be rearranged and rescheduled according to the proposed route and schedule.

Will using the Route Optimisation feature cost me more?

No, this new feature has no impact on your licence costs.

What if I need a technician to be at a specific location at a specific time?

For most route optimisation tools, including this one, working around a set time (e.g., 10:00 AM at location X) is not possible. In such cases, you must manually adjust the schedule to ensure the technician is planned at the desired location at the specified time. 

Why are some of my jobs not being included in the optimised route?

Several factors can hinder job inclusion. These include pools lacking coordinates, jobs that are already finalised or scheduled for the whole day, and store addresses that aren't correctly recognised by the system. See common troubleshooting issues for more details. 

Here are some factors that may hinder the inclusion of a job for optimisation and the solution:

1. Pools Without Coordinates -  Jobs associated with pools that lack coordinates will prevent optimisation. To resolve this, update the pool’s address using the search address finder to add the necessary location data.
2. Finalised Jobs -  Jobs that have already been finalised cannot be rescheduled, and therefore their routes cannot be optimised. 
3. All day jobs - Jobs scheduled all day (e.g., 9-5) will stop the route optimisation from working
4. Store not showing correctly on the map - The organisation's address may been entered manually and lacks location data. To correct this, go to Setup → My Business → General and use the search address finder to update the store's address.