This template applies the four-block method — THE THINGS, THE LINKS, THE STATES, THE NUMBERS — to work-order and after-sales tracking. It's filled in for a boiler-maintenance company: the example shows how to describe the full thread of a request, from the client's call to invoicing, without ever describing a screen.
To adapt it, follow your own flow: who calls, what gets scheduled, who goes out, what gets noted on return. The STATES block is the heart of this trade — list the exact stages a request goes through in your company, in real order, in your words.
Filled with your vocabulary, this text briefs a developer — or is submitted as-is to Blueprint Maker, which turns it into an application plan you validate, then a generated application: database, screens, dashboard and demo data.
The template to copy
My business: boiler maintenance and repair company, 3 technicians on the road, one person in the office. THINGS tracked: - Service requests (date received, reason, priority, channel phone or e-mail) - Clients (name, address, phone, type private or property manager) - Equipment (brand, model, installation date, last service date) - Jobs (scheduled date, technician, work done, parts replaced, duration) - Technicians (name, specialty) LINKS: - A request comes from a client. - A piece of equipment belongs to a client. - A job answers a request and concerns a piece of equipment. - A job is carried out by a technician. STATES of a request: received, scheduled, done, to invoice, invoiced, cancelled. NUMBERS to see every morning: - Requests awaiting scheduling - Jobs scheduled this week - Completed jobs to invoice - Jobs per technician this month
Adapting this template to your organisation
- No tracked equipment: if you do repairs without an equipment history (locksmithing, glazing…), remove the Equipment entity and its link — the request attaches directly to the client.
- Service contracts: if your clients have yearly contracts with planned visits, add a "Contract" entity (start date, renewal date, number of visits) linked to the client, and an indicator "contract visits left to schedule".
- Priorities: the example uses a priority field on the request. If urgency structures your days, spell out your levels (urgent within 24 h, standard, schedulable) — they'll become filters.
- Reports: the "work done" and "parts replaced" fields are often enough. If your reports are richer (photos, signature), note it: the structure provides the field, the content stays free.
- The "to invoice" state marks what remains to be invoiced — the compliant invoice itself is made in your invoicing tool, not in this application.