Case study: Environmental org builds custom Salesforce app
"We needed to leverage a mobile solution to capture GPS points and other tree related data in real time and facilitate the work of our field staff. With help from Idealist Consulting and Salesforce1 we are building a mobile application that meets our needs and is seamlessly integrated with our Salesforce.com database."
Sacramento Tree Foundation, (STF) educates property owners throughout the Sacramento region about the importance of the urban forest to our community and the vital role trees play in terms of environmental, economic, and public health benefits. STF provides expert advice about tree placement and species choice in order to maximize shade on buildings, reduce the urban heat island effect, and capitalize on all the benefits of trees.
Monetizing the benefits of trees is one way to ensure urban forests receive the attention they deserve and care they require. Carbon, air quality, and stormwater capture credits for urban trees are on the horizon and could play a major role in supporting the growth and care of our trees. To actualize these credits, the ability to map and monitor trees remotely must be possible. To address this need, STF desires to capture accurate GPS points and tree related data at the time of tree siting. STF sought the services of Idealist Consulting to create a mobile app that would be able to capture this information while also seamlessly interacting with their Salesforce instance.
Outcomes
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Foresters (STF Field staff) receive information on their mobile device (ipad) regarding a list of daily location visits.
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When on-site, they confirm contact and location details (noting changes into the mobile application) and then using a Google map accessible through the application, walk the property with the resident, identifying ideal tree planting sites and noting orientation details (via an input form) about each site.
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After the walk-through, Foresters review planting sites and make recommendations (noting in the tree input form via the mobile app) for which tree species would work in each location.
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All information about the site visit is captured in real-time in Sacramento Tree Foundation's Salesforce.com instance.
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After the site visit, tree planting location details are confirmed (back at the office) by a supervisor and a map showing the property with tree location sites and details can be generated (creating a .pdf document) and emailed to the resident.
Deployment Time: 3 Months (anticipated launch date March 2014)
Solution: Salesforce1 and Salesforce Enterprise Edition, Visual Force, Google Maps, PDF Conversion Customization.
Users: 15 users
Labor of Effort: 350 Hours
