Best practices book - Flipbook - Page 307
TO:
Major Jurisdiction Committee, International Accreditation Service
FROM:
City of San Antonio, Development Services Department
SUBJECT:
Best Practice Submission – Mobile Inspections
DATE:
September 15, 2021
Contact Information:
Jorge Rafael Manzano
Development Services Administrator, Support Services
Jorge.Manzano@sanantonio.gov
(210) 207-0345
Development Services Department
City of San Antonio
PO Box 839966
San Antonio, TX 78283-3966
Program Description:
Deployment of mobile devices and adoption of mobile platform for field personnel.
Cost/Benefits:
In 2020, Development Services deployed iPad Pro tablet computers to all field personnel
(building code inspections and code enforcement/property maintenance officers). These tablet
PCs have cellular service for connectivity in the field and have the Office 365 suite of mobile
applications that allow for collaboration with department office staff. The tablets replace aging
Android tablets and laptops intended for office use, thereby providing multiple benefits: for field
staff, a powerful portable computer that is supported by the City’s IT department for
troubleshooting; for the department, economies of scale in mobile device procurements and
inclusion of devices as part of the City’s periodic device replacement process.
As part of the department’s transition to its next-generation land development, permitting,
inspections and property maintenance software replacement solution, the department was able to
leverage the introduction of a unified mobile app interface for all its field staff. Previously,
property maintenance staff utilized software capable of accessing a Mainframe application that
held code enforcement activities. Building code inspectors similarly used software to access a
virtual environment capable of running the department’s permitting system. In both instances,
the software replaced was over two decades old. The new application provides a modern
interface for field staff to enter their activities in real-time and support offline connectivity for
any work performed in cellular “dead zones”.
Attached Documents:
None
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