Overview
Use this article to find and fix common snow issues, from setup through invoicing. Issues are grouped by the stage of the season where you're most likely to run into them. Select a problem to see why it happens and what to do.
Aspire Mobile
Snow work doesn't show in Aspire Mobile
Why it happens
While Snow Mode is on, Aspire Mobile only shows snow work in the Snow division. The work is hidden if the service or the route isn't in the Snow division. The opportunity's division doesn't affect what crews see.
What to do
Put the snow services in the Snow division, and set the route's division to Snow.
Crews or subcontractors can't find a property or service
Why it happens
One of these is missing:
The property isn't on their route, and Show New Ticket Button in Aspire Mobile is off.
The route lists services in its Services section, and the service they need isn't one of them.
For subcontractors, their company doesn't have an auto expense for that service on the property's opportunity.
What to do
Add the property to the route, or turn on Show New Ticket Button in Aspire Mobile for the route.
Add the service, or its service type, to the route's Services section.
For subcontractors, add an auto expense for their company from the opportunity service's Service Details screen. You can add one even after the opportunity is won.
Crews can't clock in to shop time or other indirect work
Why it happens
The route lists services, and indirect services weren't included.
What to do
Add the indirect services to the route.
Can't open another crew's route to help out
Why it happens
Restrict Mobile Route Visibility is on for your company, and the user doesn't have View all Routes in Mobile selected.
What to do
Select View all Routes in Mobile on the user's details screen in Administration > User Management > Users, or clear Restrict Mobile Route Visibility in Administration > Configuration, on the Application tab. They then download the route from the route filter in Aspire Mobile. The tickets stay on the original route on the Schedule Board unless you move them.
Snow Mode toggle missing in Aspire Mobile
Why it happens
Snow Mode isn't turned on in Administration, or the person logged in without a user record. Crew members who log in without a user record don't see the toggle.
What to do
In Administration > Configuration, on the Application tab, turn on Enable Snow Mode in the Mobile section. If it's already selected, have the crew leader log in with their user record.
Snow materials don't display when adding materials
Why it happens
While Snow Mode is on, Aspire Mobile only displays catalog items whose item category contains the word "snow."
What to do
Go to Administration > Estimating > Item Catalog, and set the item's Category to one that contains "snow," such as "Snow Materials." If it still doesn't display, check the item in the Item Catalog. Materials you stock need Inventory Item and Available to bid selected. Equipment, and materials your subcontractors supply, need Allocate from Mobile selected.
Can't complete a per occurrence or T&M ticket in the field
Why it happens
The service is marked Multi-visit.
What to do
Use Multi-visit only on seasonal services. Until you clear Multi-visit on the service, complete these tickets from the office.
Can't tell which seasonal properties are done
Why it happens
Fixed Payment tickets never show as complete in Aspire Mobile, because they stay open all season.
What to do
Let crews know which properties are finished. Per Service and T&M tickets show Complete once they're done.
Can't pull work while offline
Why it happens
Aspire Mobile can't create or view unscheduled service tickets while offline.
What to do
Have the crew leader reconnect, pull the ticket, and keep the app open until it uploads.
Subcontractors
Subcontractors can't pull work in Aspire Mobile, but crews can
Why it happens
Enable Sub tickets to be created from Aspire Mobile is turned off. Subs can still log time on tickets that already exist.
What to do
Turn on Enable Sub tickets to be created from Aspire Mobile in Administration > Configuration, on the Time Reporting tab.
Subcontractor can't log in to Aspire Mobile
Why it happens
The subcontractor doesn't have a user record, and Enable Sub Access to Aspire Mobile isn't selected. They need one or the other to log in.
What to do
Select Enable Sub Access to Aspire Mobile in Administration > Configuration, on the Time Reporting tab. Or create a user record from their contact record: select the three-dot icon to open the action menu, then select Create User. For more information, visit Setting Up Snow Subcontractors.
Subcontractor can't see their routes in the portal
Why it happens
The subcontractor's contact isn't tied to a company, isn't the Crew Leader on the route, or is in a different branch than the route.
What to do
Open the contact record and check the Company and Branch fields, then confirm the contact is the route's Crew Leader. To see which contacts belong to a company, open the Companies tab in the Properties module.
Crew member missing when a subcontractor adds time
Why it happens
The portal only lists contacts that belong to the subcontractor's company.
What to do
Open the crew member's contact record and set the Company field to the subcontractor's company.
Subcontractor didn't get the portal invite
Why it happens
The email address on their contact record is missing or wrong, or the invite was missed.
What to do
Check the Email field on their contact record. Then, in the Subcontract Portal Access section, select Resend Invite.
Expected subcontractor expenses missing from the Purchasing Assistant
Why it happens
The Scheduled Start Date filter doesn't include them, or the auto expense didn't generate. On a seasonal (Fixed Payment) service, the most common causes are a Flat Fee auto expense or expenses that haven't been triggered yet.
What to do
Widen the Scheduled Start Date filter. For a seasonal service, change the auto expense's fee type to Hourly or Catalog Item, then on the Work Tickets list select Bulk Actions > Trigger Auto Expense Creation with a date that covers the visits. If they still don't appear, visit Troubleshooting Auto Expenses That Didn't Generate.
Seasonal subcontractor expense shows too many hours
Why it happens
A Fixed Payment service gets one work ticket for each occurrence, usually one for the whole season, so hours add up across every visit. Per Service and T&M work creates a ticket for each occurrence, so each expense covers one visit.
What to do
To pay a set amount instead of the total hours, change the quantity in the Purchasing Assistant before you create the purchase receipt. Entering "1" pays one unit at the auto expense rate.
Subcontractor wasn't paid for a day they worked
Why it happens
The time for that day was missing when you triggered auto expenses, or the trigger date didn't cover it.
What to do
Add or accept the missing time on the work ticket in Time Entry, then on the Work Tickets list select Bulk Actions > Trigger Auto Expense Creation with a date that covers the missing day. Triggering again doesn't create duplicates. Aspire skips visits that already have an expense and picks up only new ones. The Anticipated Start Date field in that window is the date expenses generate up through, not the opportunity's start date.
Subcontractor missing from the Vendor list
Why it happens
The subcontractor has a company record but no vendor record.
What to do
Add the vendor at Administration > Application > Lists > Vendor, or set it up in your accounting system and sync it.
Contracts and opportunities
Snow work was set up as work orders
Why it happens
Work orders are for one-time jobs and use different invoice types than contracts.
What to do
Create snow work as contract opportunities with a Fixed Payment, Per Service, or T&M invoice type.
Snow service missing when building an estimate
Why it happens
Contract Service isn't selected on the catalog service, so the service is only available on work orders.
What to do
Go to Administration > Estimating > Service Catalog, open the service, select Contract Service, then select Save.
As Needed option missing on a seasonal service
Why it happens
Aspire doesn't display it on Fixed Payment services. Seasonal work gets one ticket for each occurrence on the service, usually one for the whole season.
What to do
Nothing to fix. Mark the service Multi-visit instead.
Heavy winter is eating seasonal contract margins
Why it happens
The seasonal services have no cap, so every extra visit is free.
What to do
Cap the service by visits or date, and link an As Needed T&M service for work beyond the cap.
Can't link a Per Service service after a seasonal cap
Why it happens
A capped service can only link to an As Needed T&M service.
What to do
Link a T&M service, and add a "Plow per push" item at your push price for crews to allocate each push.
Can't renew a snow contract
Why it happens
The contract runs longer than 12 months.
What to do
Keep snow contracts to 12 months or less.
One season's numbers are split across two opportunities
Why it happens
The contract follows a 12-month maintenance year that starts or ends mid-winter.
What to do
Use a snow-only opportunity with dates that cover the whole season.
Snow revenue shows up in summer months
Why it happens
Snow is on a year-round maintenance opportunity, and your company uses Invoiced Revenue.
What to do
Put snow on its own opportunity, with dates that cover the snow season, and bill it only in snow months.
Monthly seasonal tickets earned revenue in a month with no snow
Why it happens
With Earned Revenue, completing a monthly ticket earns its share of the season price, even with no costs.
What to do
Consider one ticket for the season instead.
Can't add a subcontractor auto expense to a seasonal service
Why it happens
The catalog service isn't marked Multi-visit. On a Fixed Payment service, Add Subcontractor Expenses only displays when you select the three-dot icon on the Service Details screen and the service is Multi-visit.
What to do
Select Multi-visit on the service in Administration > Estimating > Service Catalog, then return to the estimate.
Limit Fixed Price Services section missing on a seasonal service
Why it happens
Enable Limiting Fixed Price Services isn't selected, or the service isn't a Fixed Payment service. The section only displays on Fixed Payment services.
What to do
Select Enable Limiting Fixed Price Services in Administration > Configuration, on the Application tab. You can't clear it after you save it.
Error when adding visits to a capped seasonal service
Why it happens
The service reached its limit and doesn't have a linked T&M service.
What to do
Open the service's Service Details screen, and select an As Needed T&M service in the Switch To column.
Linked T&M service expired when the seasonal cap was reached
Why it happens
The seasonal service is limited by Contract End Date, which uses the opportunity's end date, and the T&M service ends on or before that date.
What to do
Give the T&M service an end date at least one day after the opportunity's end date. You can't extend the opportunity's end date after it's won. Contact Aspire Support if you need to extend it.
Crews can't start the linked T&M service in Aspire Mobile
Why it happens
Aspire Mobile and the Subcontractor Portal hide a T&M service that's linked to a capped seasonal service until the cap is reached or the contract end date passes. This keeps crews from billing overage work by accident.
What to do
To use the T&M service before the cap, have someone in the office schedule it, such as by dragging it onto the Schedule Board. Crews see the new ticket in Aspire Mobile and can work it as usual.
Scheduling and storm day
Crews can't pull tickets, or Schedule an Event is empty
Why it happens
Today's date is outside the opportunity's start and end dates.
What to do
If the start date hasn't arrived yet, services display once it does. If the end date has passed, create a new contract opportunity for the work. Next season, set wide dates, such as September 1 through June 1, before you win the contract.
Can't dispatch or bill As Needed work for a late storm
Why it happens
The storm fell after the opportunity's end date, so As Needed tickets aren't available.
What to do
Set snow contract dates wide enough to cover early and late storms, such as September 1 to June 1. For work already past the end date, create a new contract opportunity.
Schedule an Event missing from the Schedule Board
Why it happens
Your user role doesn't have the Schedule an Event permission, or a ticket window is open.
What to do
Add the permission under Work Tickets in your user role, close any open ticket window, and on the Schedule Board, select the three-dot icon to open the action menu.
Duplicate tickets for the same properties after a storm
Why it happens
The office scheduled an event for a route whose crew also pulls their own tickets.
What to do
Use one method per route, and filter crew-pull routes out when you schedule an event.
Event visits are in the wrong order, such as 1, 10, 11, 2
Why it happens
Sequence numbers 1 through 9 sort as text.
What to do
Start sequence numbers at 10 and count up.
All of an event's tickets landed on one route
Why it happens
The services don't have a default route, so Aspire puts them on the route you pick in Route (if needed) on the Create/Schedule Visits screen.
What to do
Set the route and sequence number on the Schedule an Event screen before the season.
Properties added to a route don't get it as their default route
Why it happens
A route's properties only control what crews or subs can pull. Default routes are set separately.
What to do
Set default routes on the Schedule an Event screen.
Range billing event list pulls every depth range
Why it happens
The list includes the depth range services.
What to do
Filter the list to only the service you dispatch, such as your lowest depth range. Swap to the right depth range after the storm.
Seasonal visits show zero hours on the Schedule Board
Why it happens
The service's Per Visit Hours is 0, so visits created when you schedule an event in bulk have no length.
What to do
Open the service's Service Details screen on the estimate, and enter Per Visit Hours.
Route Snow Planner
Route Snow Planner is empty for a route
Why it happens
The Division filter isn't Snow, or the date is outside the contract's start and end dates. The route may also have no way to pick up work: no property on its Property list, no service with the route as its default on the Schedule an Event screen, and no visit scheduled for that date.
What to do
Set Division to Snow and choose a date within the contract dates. If you're checking setup before the season, pick a date on or after your contracts start. Then add properties to the route, set default routes, or schedule visits.
Expected service missing from the Route Snow Planner
Why it happens
The service is optional, it isn't in the Snow division, or the route lists services or service types in its Services section and this service doesn't match.
What to do
Add the service or its service type to the route's Services section, or check the service's division. Optional services don't appear on the report.
Property shows on a route with nothing scheduled
Why it happens
The property is on the route's Property list, or one of its services has the route as its default on the Schedule an Event screen. Neither needs a scheduled visit.
What to do
Nothing, if the property belongs on that route. If it doesn't, remove it from the route or change the service's default route.
Service's operations notes don't show
Why it happens
The property has Snow Notes, and the report shows those instead of the service's operations notes.
What to do
Add the details crews need to the property's Snow Notes.
Service hours don't match the visit
Why it happens
The visit is scheduled for 0 hours, so the report shows the labor estimated on the service instead.
What to do
Nothing. Use the estimated hours as the expected labor for the visit.
Time and payroll
Snow hours are on the regular pay code
Why it happens
The snow service's Default Pay Code wasn't set, or the opportunity was built before you set it. The old default stays on that opportunity.
What to do
Set the Default Pay Code on the service in Administration > Estimating > Service Catalog. For existing opportunities, update it on the service's Service Details screen in the estimate. On a won opportunity, the change only affects visits that don't have time logged yet. To change the default pay code on a won opportunity, you need the Edit Default Hourly Pay Codes in Any Stage permission.
Employee was paid the pay code's rate, not their own snow rate
Why it happens
The employee doesn't have a pay code override for the same snow pay code that's on the service. The override only applies when the pay codes match.
What to do
Open the employee's contact record and add an override for the snow pay code that's on the service.
Snow pay code causes payroll export errors
Why it happens
More than one of Premium Dollars, Premium Percent, or Fixed Rate has a value, or the pay code doesn't match your payroll provider's code.
What to do
Open the pay code in Administration > Application > Lists > Pay Code. Enter a value in only one of Premium Dollars, Premium Percent, or Fixed Rate, and match the Pay Code to your payroll provider's code.
Review and invoicing
Seasonal ticket is in Pending Approval
Why it happens
Someone completed it before the season ended. This usually happens when time is accepted in Time Entry, but it can also happen from the work ticket.
What to do
Uncomplete it so it can take time from later storms.
Range billing ticket priced at the wrong depth
Why it happens
The ticket was created for one depth range, and more snow fell. This happens when you dispatch the low-range ticket or the forecast was wrong.
What to do
Swap the service to the right depth range before the ticket is invoiced. If the ticket is already Complete, uncomplete it, swap the service, and then complete it again. Marking snow services Requires Approval helps here, because completed tickets wait in Pending Approval instead of moving to invoicing.
T&M invoice has a minimum charge line you can't remove
Why it happens
The T&M service has a minimum charge or minimum hours set.
What to do
Avoid minimums on snow T&M. Minimum hours also count only labor items, not equipment.
Per Service or T&M ticket missing from invoicing
Why it happens
The ticket isn't complete or approved, or the crew's time and materials haven't been entered.
What to do
Check that all time and materials are on the ticket, then complete and approve it. In the Invoicing Assistant, check that the As of Date is on or after the ticket's completed date.
T&M ticket bills more than you can justify
Why it happens
T&M bills all the time and materials reported.
What to do
Override the price when you approve the ticket.
Equipment missing from a T&M invoice
Why it happens
The crew didn't clock in to the equipment, or it was added after the ticket was completed.
What to do
Add the equipment as a material in time entry. If the ticket is complete, uncomplete it from the work ticket, add the equipment, and complete it again.
Seasonal invoice missing from the Invoicing Assistant
Why it happens
The Invoicing Assistant only shows seasonal invoices for the month of the As of Date.
What to do
Set the As of Date to the month the invoice was due.
Invoicing Assistant line has no checkbox
Why it happens
Something the invoice needs is missing, such as billing terms or a tax jurisdiction. The line's status shows what's missing.
What to do
Select the line and fix what its status shows.
Partial Occurrence not available on a ticket
Why it happens
The ticket is complete, its invoice type isn't Per Service, or the user doesn't have permission.
What to do
Uncomplete the ticket, or check its invoice type. To apply a partial occurrence in Aspire, you need the Partial Occur permission and either Full Access to Schedule Board, Read Only Access to Schedule Board, or System Admin. For crews to enter one in Aspire Mobile, their mobile role needs Partial Occurrence, and Enable partial occurrence to be specified from Aspire Mobile must be turned on. For more information, visit Snow Administration and Configuration.
Weather event problems
Logging Weather Events has its own troubleshooting list, including events missing from the Related Event list or the Weather Events report, missing ZIP codes, and event details that don't print. For more information, visit Logging Weather Events.
Materials
Allocate from Inventory shows an error
Why it happens
One of the selected items isn't an inventory item, so Aspire doesn't allocate any of them.
What to do
Clear the item that isn't an inventory item and try again. Buy that item on a purchase receipt instead.
Materials came out of the wrong inventory location
Why it happens
The allocation used a different Inventory Location. Each branch has a default location, but you can change it on each allocation.
What to do
Check the Inventory Location every time you allocate, and change it when the materials came from somewhere else.
Material or subcontractor cost posted to warranty
Why it happens
The purchase receipt's Received date is after the ticket's completed date.
What to do
Select Unapprove, then Unreceive. Correct the Received date, then receive and approve the receipt again.
Snow lists
Snow list is empty
Why it happens
Your snow services aren't in a division named exactly "Snow," or the filters don't match your invoice types.
What to do
Check the division name on your snow services, and check the list's invoice type filters.
List is missing tickets
Why it happens
A list only loads a set number of records at first.
What to do
Select the database icon at the right end of the toolbar to load every record.
Teammate can't see your list
Why it happens
The list isn't shared with them.
What to do
Open the list, select Save, and add them under Share With.
Can't share a list with a role
Why it happens
Only users with the System Admin permission can share lists with roles.
What to do
Share the list with individual users instead, or ask your administrator.