We built SMART CMS, a web and mobile complaint management system for Military Engineer Services (MES) of the Pakistan Army. It logs every repair complaint, assigns a skilled worker, tracks the clock against target hours and sends a workload report to officers on WhatsApp every night. It is in daily use at the stations of 1, 2, 10 and 11 Corps.
The client
Military Engineer Services is the engineering and construction organisation behind the Pakistan Armed Forces, headquartered in Rawalpindi. It maintains buildings and services at stations across the country.
The system is used at all stations of 11, 10, 1 and 2 Corps. Its nightly reports go to the CMES, ACE and the Garrison Engineers.
The problem
Complaints were written in paper registers. A register can record a complaint, but it cannot assign it, time it, remind anyone or add it up.
- Reports were not managed, so officers from Garrison Engineer level upward had no reliable daily view of open work.
- Skilled workers, each with a trade, supervisor, attendance and work history, were managed separately from the complaints given to them.
What we built
Hierarchy and access
Data follows the real structure: country, zone, area (station), sector and colony, down to buildings, floors and homes. Each role sees only its own part.
Complaint intake on four channels
Complaints come in through the web, a facilitation centre, the mobile app or WhatsApp. Each gets a number, category, sub-category, optional before photo and a printable record.
Priorities and target hours
Complaints are Immediate, Urgent, Routine or Differed. The first three carry target hours set per area. A Differed complaint needs a reason and has no clock.
Skilled worker management
Workers are registered with trades, designations and supervisors, imported in bulk from sheets, with attendance uploads and work time recorded per complaint.
WhatsApp assistant in Urdu and English
Residents pick a language, then register a complaint or check status, with one open complaint per person. Staff confirm and classify each WhatsApp complaint before work starts. We build similar bots as a service: see WhatsApp chatbots.
Nightly WhatsApp reports and dashboards
Every night each station’s recipients get counts, priorities, delayed complaints, top categories, stock issued and a dashboard link. Zone recipients get a zone total followed by one message per station. Dashboards show trends, delay bands, resolution time, ratings and attendance.
Stores, ratings and exports
Stock issued against each complaint is recorded per sector store. On completion the resident rates the work from 1 to 5 on WhatsApp, and a rating is needed to close the complaint. Daily, category, worker, store and rating reports export to print, Excel or CSV.
How it works
- Raise: staff, the facilitation centre, the app or WhatsApp logs the complaint.
- Confirm: WhatsApp complaints wait for staff to set category and priority.
- Assign: a skilled worker is given the job, the clock starts and the resident is told.
- Repair: the job is closed with before and after photos and any stock used.
- Rate: the resident scores the work from 1 to 5.
- Report: counts feed dashboards and the nightly WhatsApp report.
What changed
- Complaints moved from paper registers to a system where each one is logged, assigned and tracked.
- Skilled workers are managed in the same system as the complaints they handle.
- Reporting is automatic through dashboards, exports and nightly WhatsApp messages. According to the project owner, the CMES, ACE and GEs receive their daily workload on WhatsApp and are satisfied with it.
The dashboard and WhatsApp screens shown on this page are layout illustrations. No real complaint data is shown.
Key facts
| Client | Military Engineer Services (MES), Pakistan Army |
|---|---|
| Users | All stations of 1, 2, 10 and 11 Corps |
| Priorities | 4: Immediate, Urgent, Routine, Differed |
| WhatsApp languages | 2: English and Urdu |
| Nightly report | 1, to CMES, ACE and GEs |
| Platforms | Web and mobile app |
Questions
What is a complaint management system?
It is software that logs maintenance complaints, assigns them to workers, tracks time against targets and reports on open and closed work. SMART CMS adds stores, ratings, dashboards and WhatsApp reports.
Can residents register complaints on WhatsApp?
Yes. They choose English or Urdu and can register a complaint or check its status, with one open complaint at a time. Staff confirm each one before work starts.
What is in the nightly report?
Station counts, the split by priority, top categories, the most delayed complaints with hours over target, stock issued, and a link to the dashboard.
Does it replace paper registers?
Yes. Each complaint is entered once and tracked until it is rated, and the record can be searched, printed and exported.
Can it be set up for another department?
Yes. Hierarchy, categories, priorities, target hours, roles, reports and WhatsApp messages are all configurable. See our custom software development page.
Need something similar? Tell us how your team works today and we will scope it with you. Contact Ezitech or WhatsApp us, 24/7. Our office is at #304-G Amna Plaza, Main Peshawar Road, Rawalpindi.