by Lisa Brand
Nowadays, most of us own a smartphone and use many applications on these devices in the workplace or at home, from online shopping to mobile banking, all with the push of a button.
Technology has significantly evolved over the past few years and there are so many things that we can now do on our mobile phones that just weren’t possible before.
There are now apps available which have been specifically designed for gas engineers to help make their lives easier and save hours each week just by using these online Apps and learning resources.
Most gas installers find they are great at their jobs, but not so great when it comes to doing their admin work which requires lots of time commitment which can eat into your family life.
But things are about to get easier for you with the aid of these recommended Apps and learning resources to help keep track of your finances and paperwork.
Let’s take a look at these resources and see how they could make your working life so much simpler.
1. Anton Sprint Mobile (available from the Play Store and Apple stores)
https://antonbycrowcon.com/products/sprint-pro-app/
If you want to make your life easier and take your business to the next level, then the Anton Sprint Mobile App is the one for you. It has been designed specifically for heating engineers to help improve how you produce and present your FGA reports to customers and will also assist you with the overall running of your business.
The Sprint Mobile app provides instant on-site personalized reports, gas certificates, landlord certificates, safety notices, warning notices and service sheets, provides reminders for annual boiler servicing for each of your customers and securely stores all of their details on your phone.
Whether or not you own an Anton Sprint eVo3 Bluetooth enabled analyser, this FREE mobile app will calculate your gas rate, pipe size, ventilation, radiator output and energy conversion.
However, if you do own an Anton Sprint eVo3 then this app can also deliver a seamless Bluetooth interaction with the analyser, which allows you to use all of the apps full functions and features.
Overall, this is a great new development in Flue Gas Analysers that will save you time on your administration as this well-designed tool generates and sends quotes, invoices and receipts directly to your customers and will create a professional image of your business to your customers. You’ll soon be wondering how you’ve ever managed without it!
The only downside is that Anton Sprint Mobile is only available on Android, however, they’re looking to support other devices in the near future, so watch this space!
2. Gas Engineer Software (available from the Play Store)
https://gasengineersoftware.co.uk/#homePage
If you are a gas engineer, then the Gas Engineer Software app is a must for you. It has been designed to help you manage and grow your business and allows you to create certificates, records, quotes and invoices when you are out and about, attending to jobs and all without the need for an internet connection.
Running your own business can be great, but it can also bring lots of added stress and extra work your way such as paperwork, dealing with your own tax, wages and invoicing for jobs.
With the help of this app, you can finish the job on site and save up to 10 hours per week. This app lets you send certificates, quotes, invoices directly to the customer as well as before and after photos of the job.
All of your paperwork is done on site, freeing up your evenings and weekends. It includes a full customer and job management system, a secure database and backups, which means your data is protected with bank-level encryption and any data can be restored to any second in the last 2 weeks or to any day in the last 4 years.
Create and send a wide range of professional certificates such as Domestic and Non-Domestic Gas Certificate, Domestic Oil Certificates, Job sheets, Legionella, Minor Electrical Works, Quotes and Invoices instantly whilst on site, website portal for office use, view all of your un-invoiced jobs and outstanding invoices.
Get more work with the fully customisable automatic service reminders, which will help grow and build your business year after year.
There is a cost of £75+ VAT per year, but this is per user and you can download this onto as many devices as you need to and is definitely worth every penny.
If there is one thing you should do this year, it’s investing in this app!
3. Gas Certificate App (available from the Play Store)
https://gascertificateapp.co.uk/
Another top app that is simple to use is the Gas Certificate App from the play store. Create with ease domestic gas certificates, non-domestic gas certificates, domestic oil certificates, job sheets, electronic signatures and automated reminders to send to your customers on certain dates.
It also has an area to keep all of your customer’s details, job addresses and certificates in one place, where they are easy to access, safe and secure and is protected with bank-level encryption.
You can also create job estimates and then convert them into an invoice
This app has a 30-day free trial and then it’s £65 per year after.
4. Boiler Fault Finder Website
Gone are the days of lengthy phone calls to boiler technical departments to try and figure out what the problem is with your customer’s boiler. The Boiler Fault Finder app will take you through all the necessary steps required to find the fault and get it fixed fast.
Many gas engineers find themselves under extreme pressure on jobs when they need to accurately identify and fix boiler faults. Well, now you can find the answer quickly with the click of a button on your mobile or tablet device with the Boiler Fault Finder web app.
This app was designed to support gas engineers, precisely and safely, where they can learn at their own pace, develop their skills and build their knowledge.
The Boiler Fault Finder website is crammed full of valuable information and you can now find answers for everything all under one roof and alternative possibilities to choose from. This app will soon become your most valuable resource and your new BFF!
Although you will need to spend a bit of time reading through all of the segment which will help you increase your knowledge base, you will be making money whilst you are learning without the need for expensive training courses.
This nifty app contains a free content section with lots of useful information where you can get an instant solution to your problem. Get the information when you need it on any device and fast. It contains 1000’s of boiler manuals to view or download, CP12 certificate template, full boiler fault finder manual and comprehensive Boiler Fault Finder Technicians manuals, which are regularly updated.
Boiler Fault Finder is a professional toolkit for heating engineers and is an absolute steal at just £9.99 for a yearly subscription. This is a must for any gas engineer where you can download boiler manuals and is a dab hand when it comes to finding faults when you are having difficulty finding the problem.
This is an essential tool for your toolbox for any gas engineer. Identify the problem, find the solution and fix the problem. You can also list your business in their business directory.
Keep yourself logged in when you are on jobs and when you need to turn to the app for help just click on the button and hey presto, you have your answer!
5. ViperGas
The ViperGas website is a must for any gas engineer as it contains the full collection of ViperGas technical manuals which are all downloadable. They contain over 40 subjects from domestic, commercial and LPG and are accompanied by a vast range of self-study workbooks which are vital to all gas engineers for their ACS readiness.
Subscribing to this website will provide you with access to the whole ViperGas portfolio and subscriptions are open to all sorts of businesses, including the StaySafe program to ensure information is up-to-date and in accordance with the latest technical standards.
Prices range from £49.99 per year for a single user to £999.99 for a large enterprise. Once you have purchased these publications, you will receive routine updates to your books once they have been revised on their website. You will no longer need to buy a newly updated manual, simply print off the updated pages and replace the old ones with the new ones which are presented in a ring binder in A5 format.
6. SmartTrade – Card Reader App (available from the Play Store and Apple stores)
If you run your own business as a gas installer, then you need a way to take instant payments from your customers. Well, now you can. With the SmartTrade Card Reader App, you can take care of all your business needs in one place. You can accept contactless payments from your customers using your mobile phone or tablet device, without the need of an expensive chip and PIN payment machine, and you can even accept card payments via phone and email.
This mobile card reader really will make your life so much easier as a gas engineer or any other business owner and I can’t recommend it enough.
It was the winner of the 2016 Payments Solution of the year and shortlisted in the 2017 Card and Payments Awards for having the Best Mobile Initiative.
Not only does it take card payments, but it also creates professional looking invoices, quotes and receipts.
With minimal effort to get started, you simply download the free card reader app, create an account for your business, process your first payment and voila, as simple as that!
Once you have set up an account for your business you can pay as you go. You don’t need to sign your life away with long-term contracts, there are no hidden fees awaiting you, and you’re free to cancel your subscription at any time.
You can also add unlimited members of staff to your team with their own logins and preferences, where you remain in complete control while your team accepts payments on your behalf. You can track them from your online dashboard, all without the need to buy any extra hardware!
All payments are processed via Stripe (Smart Trade’s acquiring bank) which is a certified PCI DSS Service Provider Level 1, which is the highest level of security available in the payments industry. This payment system is just as secure as any other chip and PIN device you’ve ever used.
Available from £0/month.
Learn more about the pricing plans here.
7. Registered Gas Engineer (available from the Play Store)
http://registeredgasengineer.co.uk/
Registered Gas Engineer is the official FREE monthly magazine from the Gas Safe Register and is only available to Gas Safe Registered engineers.
Access the magazines at any time and stay up-to-date wherever you are by downloading the latest issue from your mobile phone from the Play Store and read on the go.
Registered Gas Engineer website, contains Gas Safe Register’s essential safety information – including safety alerts, technical information and features and Industry Standard Updates, the latest prosecutions, tips for your business and industry news updates.
To start using this app, you need your Gas Safe Registration details before you can register using your tablet or phone. Altogether a handy website and app that is easy to use.
8. Installer Online - (available from the Play Store – Installer Reader)
https://www.installeronline.co.uk
Last but not least, Installer online, is great for keeping up with the latest industry news, product and training information in the heating business and has been the leading magazine in the gas industry for the past twenty years.
Installer magazine is published ten times a year and has been running for more than 25 years! You can read the latest issue of their magazine FREE online, or you can download the app from the Play Store (Installer Reader).
This is a great magazine packed full of useful tips and advice and is essential reading for all plumbers and heating engineers.
If you would prefer a paper copy of Installer Magazine delivered straight to your front door, then you need to fill out an online form.
Over to you!
As a gas installer, you will always be learning new skills in the gas industry, especially when technology is forever evolving. These apps and learning resources will help you build your engineering skills and knowledge base and help you take your business to the next level of professionalism.
In no time at all, you will be running your office from a touch of a button from your mobile phone and wondering how you ever managed without these apps.
Have you tried any of these apps or learning resources, or are there any other apps that you’d like us to add to the list? Let us know what you think – tweet us @BarrettBellLtd.
