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Overview

Inspections are the core workflow of the system. Each inspection represents a scheduled fire safety assessment at a property, with associated form fills that technicians complete on-site.

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Creating an Inspection

1

Navigate to Inspections

From the main menu, click Inspections → New Inspection
2

Select Property and Customer

Choose the customer, then select the specific property being inspected.
Properties are filtered by customer to make selection easier. You can also create a new property from this screen if needed.
3

Configure Inspection Details

  • Date: When the inspection will occur
  • System Category: Type of fire safety system (Fire Alarm, Sprinkler, etc.)
  • Interval Category: Inspection frequency (Monthly, Annual, etc.)
  • Technician: Assign to a user with Technician role
  • Job Number: Optional reference number
4

Automatic Form Creation

The system automatically creates form fills based on your selections:
  • Main inspection form (matching system + interval categories)
  • Deficiencies form
  • Additional Risers form (if applicable)
  • Corrected Deficiencies form

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Inspection Model

Inspections are represented by the Inspection model located at app/models/inspection.rb:1: 
class Inspection < ApplicationRecord
  belongs_to :property
  belongs_to :form_template
  belongs_to :user
  has_many :form_fills, dependent: :destroy
  
  delegate :customer, to: :property
  
  validates :date, presence: true
  validates :property_id, presence: true
end

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Inspection Status Workflow

Inspections progress through several statuses:

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Status Descriptions

StatusDescriptionActions Available
pendingScheduled but not startedStart, Cancel
in_progressTechnician is on-siteComplete, Cancel
completedFinished and PDF generatedView, Email, Re-open
canceledInspection was canceledDelete, Re-activate

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Updating Status

Technicians can update inspection status from the inspection detail page: 
def update_status
  new_status = params[:status].presence || "completed"
  
  if @inspection.update(status: new_status)
    TransferDeficienciesJob.perform_later(@inspection.id) if new_status == "completed"
    redirect_to inspection_path(@inspection), 
      notice: "Inspection marked as #{new_status}."
  end
end
When an inspection is marked as completed, the system automatically transfers deficiencies to the Deficiencies module for tracking and follow-up.

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Form Fill Structure

Each inspection contains multiple form fills:

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Main Form Fill

The primary inspection form, matching the system and interval categories: 
main_form_template = get_form_template(inspection_params)
@inspection.form_template_id = main_form_template&.id

FormFill.create!(
  name: "#{property.property_name} - #{system_category} - #{interval_category}",
  form_template: main_form_template,
  inspection: @inspection,
  form_structure: main_form_template.form_structure
)

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Supplementary Forms

Automatically created if templates exist: 
deficiencies_template = FormTemplate.find_by(name: "Deficiencies")
FormFill.create!(
  name: "#{property.property_name} - Deficiencies",
  form_template: deficiencies_template,
  inspection: @inspection
)

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Completing Inspections

Technicians complete inspections by filling out the associated forms:
1

Open Inspection

Navigate to the inspection from the calendar, dashboard, or inspections list
2

Fill Out Forms

Click on each form fill to enter data:
  • Text fields for equipment details
  • Checkboxes for Pass/Fail/N/A selections
  • Photo uploads for visual documentation
  • Signatures for certification
  • Deficiency tracking for failed items
3

Review Form Counts

The inspection detail page shows summary statistics:
@form_counts = @form_fill&.calculate_form_counts
# Returns: { pass: 15, fail: 2, na: 3 }
4

Generate PDF

Click Generate PDF to create the final inspection report. This merges:
  • Main inspection form
  • Deficiencies (if any)
  • Additional risers (if applicable)
  • Photo annex pages
  • Signature pages
5

Mark Complete

Update status to completed to finalize the inspection and transfer deficiencies for tracking

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Auto-Fill Header Fields

The system automatically populates common header fields when an inspection is created: 
HeaderAutoFillerService.new(@inspection).call
This fills fields like:
  • Inspection date
  • Property address
  • Customer name
  • Technician name
  • Job number
The HeaderAutoFillerService scans form structure for common field names (case-insensitive):
  • date, inspection_date, Date_Completed
  • property, property_address, location
  • customer, customer_name, building_owner
  • technician, inspector, performed_by
It then populates these fields with data from the inspection, property, and customer records.

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Inspection Calendar

View all inspections in a monthly calendar interface: 
def calendar
  @current_date = params[:date] ? Date.parse(params[:date]) : Date.current
  month_start = @current_date.beginning_of_month
  month_end = @current_date.end_of_month
  
  @month_inspections = policy_scope(Inspection)
    .where(date: month_start..month_end)
    .order(:date)
end
The calendar shows:
  • Inspections grouped by day
  • Color coding by status
  • Technician assignments
  • Quick links to inspection details

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Dashboard Metrics

The inspection dashboard provides real-time statistics: 
def dashboard
  @total_inspections = Inspection.count
  @pending_inspections = Inspection.where(status: "pending").count
  @completed_inspections = Inspection.where(status: "completed").count
  @this_month_inspections = Inspection.where(
    date: Date.current.beginning_of_month..Date.current.end_of_month
  ).count
  
  @upcoming_inspections = Inspection
    .where(date: Date.current..1.week.from_now)
    .where(status: %w[pending in_progress])
    .order(:date)
end

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Property Inspection History

View all inspections for a specific property: 
def by_property
  @property = Property.find(params[:property_id])
  @inspections = @property.inspections
    .order(date: :desc)
    .page(params[:page])
    .per(10)
  
  @total_inspections = @property.inspections.count
  @completed_inspections = @property.inspections.where(status: "completed").count
end
This shows:
  • Historical inspection records
  • Compliance trends
  • Recurring deficiencies
  • Upcoming scheduled inspections

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PDF Generation

When a technician clicks “Generate PDF,” the system creates a comprehensive inspection report:
1

Queue Background Job

The form fill is marked as generating and GeneratePdfJob is enqueued
2

Fill PDF Form

The PdfFormsParserService fills the original PDF template with inspection data
3

Add Signatures

Digital signatures and handwritten signature images are applied to signature fields
4

Merge Supplementary Forms

Additional risers and deficiencies forms are appended if they have data
5

Append Photo Pages

Photos are organized by section and added as annex pages with captions
6

Save and Attach

The final PDF is attached to the form fill and marked as completed
PDF generation happens asynchronously. Large inspections with many photos may take 30-60 seconds to process.
The inspections index supports multiple filters: 
@inspections = @inspections.where(status: params[:status]) if params[:status].present?

if params[:customer_id].present?
  @inspections = @inspections.joins(:property)
    .where(properties: { customer_id: params[:customer_id] })
end

if params[:from_date].present? && params[:to_date].present?
  @inspections = @inspections.where(
    date: Date.parse(params[:from_date])..Date.parse(params[:to_date])
  )
end
Available filters:
  • Status: pending, in_progress, completed, canceled
  • Customer: Filter by customer account
  • Date Range: From/to date selection
  • Technician: Filter by assigned technician

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Best Practices

Schedule in Advance

Create inspections 1-2 weeks ahead to ensure technician availability and customer coordination

Complete On-Site

Fill forms during the inspection rather than afterward to ensure accuracy and reduce forgotten details

Photo Documentation

Take photos of all equipment, deficiencies, and corrections for comprehensive records

Review Before Completing

Check form counts and verify all required fields are filled before marking as completed

Form Management

Create and customize form templates for inspections

Photo Management

Upload and organize inspection photos

Digital Signatures

Capture technician and client signatures

PDF Parsing

Understand how form templates are created from PDFs

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