Work With Multi-Step Jobs
A multi-step job is used when a vehicle repair involves more than one discrete phase — each with different skill requirements, bays, and technicians. This guide shows how to create, configure, and manage them.
→ Not sure what a multi-step job is? Read Concepts: Multi-Step Jobs first.
When to use a multi-step job
Use a multi-step job when the repair:
- Requires different skills at different stages (e.g., a panel beater for structural repair, a spray painter for paint application)
- Moves through different bays (e.g., workshop bay → spray booth → finishing bay)
- Has a natural sequence where each stage must finish before the next begins
- Will span multiple days across different technicians
For simple repairs that stay in one bay with one technician from start to finish, use a standard single-step job.
Create a multi-step job using a preset
Create a new job
From the Dashboard, click + New Job. Enter vehicle details, customer name, service type, and scheduled date as normal.
Apply a repair preset
After selecting the service, look for Apply Repair Preset. Choose the preset that best matches the work:
- Body Minor — Dent & Paint (5 steps)
- Body Major — Collision Repair (10 steps)
- Mechanical Major — Full mechanical job (6 steps)
- Any custom presets your workshop has built
The preset fills in the step sequence automatically.
Review the steps
BayWise shows the full step sequence before you save. For each step, check:
- Name — is it the right description?
- Required skill — does this match what the step actually needs?
- Estimated duration — adjust if your experience with this vehicle type differs from the default
Adjust steps if needed
You can:
- Change the order of steps by dragging
- Add a step if the preset is missing a stage your workshop uses
- Remove a step if it does not apply to this job
- Edit a step’s name, skill, or duration
Changing a preset’s steps on one job does not change the preset template itself. Each job gets its own copy.
Save the job
Click Save. The job is created with all its steps. You can now assign bays and technicians to each step.
Assign bays and technicians to steps
Each step in a multi-step job has its own bay and technician assignment, separate from the other steps.
Open the job detail panel
Click the job in the job list or on the calendar grid.
Go to the Steps section
Scroll down to the Steps section in the detail panel. You will see all steps listed in order with their current assignment status.
Assign each step
For each step:
- Click the step to expand its assignment fields
- Select the bay — BayWise filters to bays with the required equipment for that step
- Select the technician — BayWise filters to technicians with the required skill for that step
- Confirm the scheduled start time for this step
Assign dates across days if needed
For multi-day repairs, set each step’s scheduled date independently. Step 1 might be Monday, Step 4 (Structural Repair) might be Tuesday–Wednesday, and Step 6 (Paint Application) might be Thursday.
Manage a step in progress
Once a job is active, steps progress in sequence.
To start a step:
- The technician (or controller) opens the job and taps Start Step on the current pending step
- If Auto-Start is enabled in Settings, the next step starts automatically when the previous one completes
To complete a step:
- Open the job detail panel
- Find the active step
- Set any required completion tags (e.g., “panels_removed” must be tagged before the Disassembly step closes)
- Click Complete Step
To skip a step: Controllers can skip a step if it does not apply to this specific vehicle. Click the step, then select Skip. Skipping requires a reason.
Phase gates prevent a step from starting before its predecessor is complete. If you see a “Cannot start — previous step not complete” message, check the prior step’s status and completion tags.
Viewing multi-step jobs on the calendar
Each step appears as a separate card on the calendar grid, in the row of the bay where it is assigned. Cards for the same job share a linking colour or label so you can identify them as belonging to the same vehicle.
A completed step appears faded on the calendar. An active step pulses. An upcoming step is shown in its full colour.
Common questions
A step cannot start even though the previous step shows as complete. Check the previous step’s completion tags — if a required tag is not set, the step may show as complete in status but still be blocking the next step. Open the previous step and verify all tags are set.
Can I convert a single-step job into a multi-step job after creation? Yes. Open the job detail panel, click Add Steps, and apply a preset or add steps manually.
Can different steps in the same job happen at the same time? No. Steps within a single multi-step job are sequential. However, two different multi-step jobs can have steps running simultaneously — BayWise only enforces sequence within a single job.
What happens if I need to add a step mid-repair? Open the job detail panel, go to the Steps section, and click + Add Step. You can insert it at any position in the sequence. Steps that are already complete are locked.