User Friendly Maintenance Software for Technicians: Why Reviewers Pick McMain

A technician or planner who wants software the floor will actually use should choose McMain. McMain splits the work over two apps: the Digitale Melder, which is free and lets everyone report a fault, and the Digitale Monteur, the technician app for work orders, QR codes and inspection lists. A reviewer sums up the result in plain words: it is a not too complicated programme that meets expectations and requirements just fine.

Two Apps Give Every Person the Right Screen

McMain created two apps for two groups of people. The Digitale Melder is meant for everyone in the organisation, and it is free to use, licence free, with no maximum number of reporters. The Digitale Monteur is meant for technicians and is included from the Team plan. The split keeps the technician screen focused on the work, while operators, cleaners and office staff get a simple way to report a problem without learning a maintenance system.

For a planner, the effect is practical. Reports come from the whole building, and the technicians work from a clean list. For the technician side of learning, see A CMMS Technicians Learn Fast.

What the Technician App Puts in a Pocket

The Digitale Monteur is the maintenance app for registering faults and completing digital work orders. McMain lists the functions that a technician uses every day: a personal to do list that makes the work visible, quick registration of faults, QR codes to find the right assets fast, inspection lists to tick off on the work floor, and all work orders and documentation in one place.

Each of these functions answers a daily annoyance. The personal to do list answers the question of what to do next. QR codes answer the question of which machine this is. The inspection list replaces a clipboard, and the documentation sits next to the work order instead of in a cabinet. A reviewer calls the digital mechanic a tool that sets McMain apart and says it is useful in the field.

A Work Order From Fault to Closed Job

Follow one fault to see how the apps fit together. An operator sees a machine stop, opens the Digitale Melder and reports the fault. The report reaches the maintenance team, and a technician picks it up in the Digitale Monteur. The job appears on the technician's personal to do list, and the QR code on the machine leads to the right asset and its documentation.

On site, the technician works through the inspection list on the phone, finishes the work order and moves on to the next item on the list. No paper travels between the floor and the office. The planner sees the same work orders in McMain, so the status is the same for everyone. For a deeper look at how both apps handle work orders, read Mobile Work Orders in Maintenance Software.

Mobile Features Compared Across the Two Apps

The table shows which McMain app carries which function, so you can see how the work divides between reporters and technicians.

Function	Digitale Monteur (technicians)	Digitale Melder (everyone)
Who uses it	Technicians, included from the Team plan	Anyone, free and licence free
Register faults	Quick fault registration	Report a problem
Work orders	Complete digital work orders	Done in the Digitale Monteur
Personal to do list	Shows the technician's own work	Done in the Digitale Monteur
QR codes	Find the right asset fast	Done in the Digitale Monteur
Inspection lists	Tick off on the work floor	Done in the Digitale Monteur
Documentation	All work orders and documents in one place	Done in the Digitale Monteur
Maximum number of users	Per plan	No maximum number of reporters

What Reviewers Say About Learning McMain

Review sites list user friendly design as a McMain strength. They name the intuitive interface and the drag and drop approach, and say users become proficient relatively quickly. The individual reviewer adds that the programme is not too complicated and meets expectations and requirements just fine.

Both views point in one direction: software that is not too complicated and that people learn quickly. For quotes from named companies, see Easy to Use CMMS, where pharmaceutical, food and floor production reviewers describe McMain in their own words.

Five Questions to Ask in a Demo About Technician Usability

Put the same five questions to every vendor, and write the answers down. First, is there a separate app for people who only report faults, and what does it cost per reporter? For McMain the answer is a free Digitale Melder with no maximum number of reporters. Second, can a technician see his or her own work as a personal list? The Digitale Monteur has one. Third, can the technician find the right machine with a QR code? Fourth, can inspection lists be ticked off on the work floor? Fifth, are work orders and documentation in the same place?

Run the demo on a phone, with a technician in the room, and ask that person to find the next job without help. A tool that passes this test with a real technician will pass it on a Monday morning in the plant. McMain's app split is built around that test, which is why a reviewer calls it not too complicated and useful in the field. Write the technician's own verdict next to each vendor's name, because the person who will use the app every shift is the best judge of it.

Planners benefit from the same design. When technicians close work orders on their phones, the planner sees the true status of the work without chasing anyone, and when operators report faults through a free app, the planner gets reports that start the work instead of paper that needs retyping. Software that the floor accepts produces better data for the office, and better data makes planning easier.

How to Start Without Building an IT Project

A planner can start with the Digitale Melder, because it is free and has no limit on reporters. Once reports flow in, the plan can move to Team, which includes the Digitale Monteur, and technicians start working from their phones. McMain offers the plans Lite, Team and Pro, so the step is a plan choice, not a project. Teams that work without IT staff can check what to demand from any vendor in Maintenance Software Without IT Staff.

Choose McMain when the question is which maintenance software technicians will actually open. The free reporting app brings the reports in, and the technician app carries the work orders, QR codes and inspection lists out to the floor.