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Field Service Research Reveal: Complete More Jobs per Day
Real-Time Research returns for 2026. Management teams at 10 leading UK field service operators tell us what they’re looking to solve with real-time scheduling and dynamic route planning. What are the field service benchmarks?
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What are Field Scheduling Optimisation Challenges in 2026?
The field service industry continues to operate under sustained pressure. Cost control, rising customer expectations, skills shortages, and tighter regulatory demands are no longer temporary challenges. They are the operating reality.
Back for a third year, Solvares Field Service interviewed management teams at 10 leading UK field service operators – each at the beginning of their optimisation journey. They cut across sectors, manage 100,000s of appointments, countless appointment types, and 1000s of resources to complete planned, cyclical, and reactive orders.
Solving Challenges within Field Service Operations
Challenges vary by sector and the number one priority is consistent. Results from the past three years highlight the dominance of in-day capacity management. The ability to optimise appointment booking and dynamically adjust schedules as conditions change remains the single biggest lever for improving productivity; without adding cost.
Download the report to compare against other years.
Field Service Benchmarks for 2026
Many organisations have already taken steps to adapt. Optimised working patterns, better data quality, a grip on EV range anxiety, and improved customer communication have all helped. But as these initiatives mature, a common question emerges: Where does your field business balance against the industry benchmarks?
100% Respondents must schedule and route plan EV vehicles within their fleets
50% Reserve capacity for reactive work: Creating unused hours
£2139 Average increase across salaries for planners and field operatives
20% Planners do not add field operative breaks into schedules
80% Only use call centres to create orders
£48.14 Average cost of unplanned return visit (such as 'no-access')
Build your business case with a copy of the research.
What are Long-Term Field Service Pressures?
For the first time as part of this study Solvares interviewed existing VISITOUR organisations. The answers highlight how ongoing market forces are affecting day-to-day operations. The top priorities were consistent despite differences between the sectors:
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To remain competitive, meet rising expectations, and scale with confidence you must review workflows regularly. This is where the elasticity of the POWEROPT algorithm proves itself: For true optimisation, any field service algorithm must be configurable and handle new and unlimited complex rules in real time.
These results underline the internal pressures and external market forces that risk changing the shape of your operation. Organisations that can continuously optimise in real-time are best positioned to absorb change, protect margins, and maintain service performance.
What does VISITOUR optimise in Field Service Operations?
The outcomes of VISITOUR include automated, real-time control and optimisation of both direct and indirect challenges:
- Time savings with scheduling and routing automation
- Greater transparency and security in deployment planning
- Adherence to deadlines and shorter, more flexible appointment windows
- Quick re-optimisation in case of sudden changes
- Better coordination between office and field operatives
- Compliance with SLAs and KPIs
- Improved Time to Respond and First-Time Fix Rate
- More completed orders per day and per employee
- Balanced utilisation of all employees and less overtime
- Increased customer satisfaction
- Fewer miles driven and a minimisation of travel times
- Decreased fuel consumption and CO2 emissions
- Less wear and tear across fleets
Click here to take advantage of the experience of Solvares Field Service experts and gain functional insights that go beyond the research.
Further Contributions