We're stoked to release our Field App, and we’ve made a few hot improvements to Planner so communicating plans to site works like a dream... We've also managed to slip in some of your feature requests, and we can’t wait for these to make your planning life just that bit easier.
So today, we bring you a jam-packed March update, in the middle of April.
Aphex Field
Field is our brand new app. It's officially up, running and already being used across lots of Aphex projects. In just two clicks, Field allows you to bring everyone into the plan and push daily tasklists to site.
We heard it wasn't fun having to individually open your favourite columns day after day. So, we’ve done something about it - the new Column Picker doesn’t just look smarter, it’s much more intelligent too!
1 - Save your own personal configurations
A high contender on our ‘most-requested ever’ list is the ability to save a custom set of Gantt Columns to quickly toggle a specific set on and off.
2 - Assignee column
We've added a new 'Assignee' column under the 'User' group. This is your quickest way to assign your site team to Packages and Tasks - this simple option immediately populates their daily work-plan in Field.
Ordering and Structure
It's so important for teams to view plans in a way that makes most sense to them, so we’ve made massive improvements to your view control.
1 - Drag and Drop Packages
This might the number one request we’ve had. Ever. You’ll now be able to re-order your Packages on the Gantt by using drag and drop. Woohoo!
2 - Sub Groupings
In an effort to give you the ultimate flexibility over how you structure your Gantt, you can now choose your grouping, and sub-grouping, separately. The possibilities are endless...almost.
3 - New Structure
And, we’ve even added a new sub-grouping: Subcontractor.
4 - Advanced Right Click
It's now possible to Right Click a grouping (Package, WBS, Owner) to expand, collapse or add to.
The Task Right Click menu has new advanced options to move, or modify into a Parent Task.
Spaces
1 - Workspaces are now Spaces
To keep it as easy as possible to navigate between your work and others, Spaces are split between Personal Spaces and Team Spaces
Personal Spaces:
Owned Tasks
Assigned Tasks
All Tasks
2 - Customisable Team Spaces
By pinning Teams, you now have complete control over what will appear in your Team Space selector. So, instead of an endless list, you can choose which Teams you’d like to have quick access to.
3 - Remembered Spaces
Next time you open up Aphex, you’ll automatically be on the last Space you viewed.
Maps
One of the main things we learnt during our recent Field Beta was the daily Tasklist was a hit. A big hit. So, we’ve sprinkled a bit of magic over the Maps page to bring the same concept to life in Planner.
1 -Daily Tasklists
You can use the Maps page to see a daily, weekly, or monthly workplan for your whole Project. The new Tasklist features updated Task cards with the start and end date clearly visible. Did we mention this menu is now collapsable too?
2 - New Controls
Clicking into a Work Area instantly pops up with the basic Task information, allowing you to see details about the work without having to navigate to a different page or open up the entire Task Modal.
Packages
1 - Public Packages
You told us that 'Shared With' was unnecessarily complex and tricky to use, so we dropped it - threw it out the window. However, we still wanted to give teams the option to collaborate on Packages, together. So, we've introduced Public and Locked Packages.
Anyone can add work into a Public Package, whereas Locked Packages are reserved for the Owner.
New Status Rules
Many of you let us know it was difficult having to add delay reasons when moving Tasks showing in the past. Especially when there may not have been any delays - the work might've just been in the wrong spot originally.
1 - Promised Work
You'll only be prompted to record a Status Event for Tasks that have been Promised. This means Projects have total control over what modified work requires a delay reason.
Bug Fixes
In our continued effort to make the most reliable platform for you, we’ve been pedal to the metal eliminating some key bugs in the tool.
Delegates unable to edit resources
Contributors unable to see Location snapshot in Task modal
Most of these were caught by some of our eagle-eyed users - thanks for helping us keep Aphex as robust as possible!