Mutiple Appointments on Service Orders

Question

Looking for a suggestion on what’s the best way to handle service orders that require multiple appointments spanning across multiple days especially when there is material involved that is marked for purchase order. It is not always necessarily the same tech.

If we add the material to the service order, cloning the appointment will also clone the material.

Any suggestions on how to proceed with scheduling these appointments and where the materials should be marked for PO for the most efficient workflow?

vdiaz · Accepted Answer

​@kgouldHi!Great question — this is a common multi-visit scenario, and the right approach depends a little on how the work is planned.First, on the cloning behavior you're seeing: that was a defect (AC-347464) where cloning an appointment copied the PO references onto the new lines. It's fixed in 2025 R2(you can find it on the release notes)— on that version and later, the clone no longer copies the PO Nbr / Status / Completed; only Mark for PO and PO Source carry over.Beyond the fix, here's how I'd approach the scheduling itself. There are likely two situations:ScenarioWhen it appliesHow to handlePlanned multi-visitYou know upfront the job needs several appointmentsCreate the appointments deliberately (either by using the Clone Appointment function or manually from the service order) and distribute the labor and materials across them. Put each material on the visit where it's actually installed and mark it for PO there, once — don't spread the same demand across every appointment.Reactive follow-upThe plan was one visit, but the tech runs out of time or needs a part they have to buySet the appointment line to Not Finished (started but incomplete) or Not Performed (not started that visit). The related service order line moves to Requiring Scheduling and the header sets Appointments Needed — so the next appointment automatically pulls those lines in.A few tips that apply either way:Let the service order be the master scope; each appointment consumes a portion of it.Mark material for PO on the single visit where it's consumed, and generate the PO from there — that keeps your purchase demand clean no matter how many visits there are.Use the Calendar Board to assign each appointment to whichever staff member is available — handy since it won't always be the same tech.So: on 2025 R2, cloning is safe with respect to PO references, but I'd still distribute demand intentionally rather than cloning material-heavy appointments. Reserve Not Finished / Not Performed for the follow-up cases.Hope that helps — let me know your version and I can suggest more specific advise!

Scenario	When it applies	How to handle
Planned multi-visit	You know upfront the job needs several appointments	Create the appointments deliberately (either by using the Clone Appointment function or manually from the service order) and distribute the labor and materials across them. Put each material on the visit where it's actually installed and mark it for PO there, once — don't spread the same demand across every appointment.
Reactive follow-up	The plan was one visit, but the tech runs out of time or needs a part they have to buy	Set the appointment line to Not Finished (started but incomplete) or Not Performed (not started that visit). The related service order line moves to Requiring Scheduling and the header sets Appointments Needed — so the next appointment automatically pulls those lines in.

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