Equipment360

Enhancing User Experience for Construction Mechanics and Managers

Client

HCSS

Date

May to July 2019

Role

UX Designer (Intern)

Introduction

Equipment360, a flagship application developed by HCSS, is an essential tool for construction site professionals, enabling mechanics and managers to handle work orders efficiently and accurately track mechanic hours.

My Role and Responsibilities

My colleague Isabel and I were entrusted with redesigning this vital iPad application, a process that entailed in-depth user interviews, robust data interpretation, stakeholder presentations, and the development of revised information architecture, wireframes, visual design elements, and high-fidelity prototypes.

The Challenge

The primary challenge lay in revamping the visual aesthetics of the Equipment360 iPad application and conducting comprehensive testing to identify and rectify any existing UX concerns. Our objectives included:

Conduct user-centric research to comprehend the user-product interaction and identify their pain points.
Detecting and mitigating user issues, eliminating superfluous functionalities, and exploring opportunities to incorporate new, useful features.
Revitalizing the user interface in alignment with the new branding colors.

Our Approach

We conducting a detailed examination of user flows and the overall user experience. By dividing the app into user-specific workflows, we performed a heuristic analysis to identify critical workflow and UI challenges.

We decided to prioritize and address the most critical issues. We presented our analysis during the project kickoff meeting and received stakeholder approval to proceed.

Learning about our users

We interviewed Customer Service Specialists who served as our proxy users, which allowed us to gain insights that could help not only our project but all other projects under HCSS.

We learned about two types of users for Equipment360, Mechanics and Managers

Mechanic:

Primarily use the app to identify and add work orders to their time cards.
Younger mechanics, being tech-savvy, use Equipment360 concurrently with their work orders.
Older mechanics, less tech-literate, prefer pen and paper, and only use the app at the day's end.

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Managers

Primarily delegate tasks to mechanics.
Some managers (Manager-Mechanics) execute work orders personally.
Monitor work orders and ensure streamlined workflow at construction sites.

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Implementation

Armed with a brand style guide, we developed a comprehensive system incorporating the newly selected colors for the redesign. We used the older version of the app as a benchmark, keeping significant interface changes to a minimum to avoid user confusion.

We crafted wireframes, as well as low and high-fidelity designs, and sought periodic feedback from our senior designers to ensure we were on the right path.

We placed substantial emphasis on the component system, intending to provide a guide for developers who would be building based on our designs and future designers who would rely on it.

Exceeding Expectations

Even though the new version of the Equipment360 app isn't out yet, we gained something big from this project. The main takeaway was learning how to work together to design products. We figured out how to blend different ideas, use everyone's strengths, and work as a team toward our goal.