Two products, not one portal. Dispatch emails a job link to a trade who does not need a Field Ascend account. Linked Company Work Orders is a second product for firms that already run Field Ascend. Pick the model that matches who you are sending the work to.
No shared spreadsheet. You still get a record you can review before the job is treated as done.
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Subcontractor management software gives field service businesses a structured way to send work to third-party companies while keeping operational visibility. For UK field service teams juggling multiple trades and sites, Field Ascend offers two products inside the same field service management platform. They are not one shared portal, and they do not merge into a single workflow.
Dispatch emails a secure job link. The subcontractor does not need a Field Ascend account, app, or password. They complete the work on the link. You review it and Accept into Job. After accept, notes go to Work Done, photos go to job documents, and the signature goes to Signatures when that copy is enabled. Dispatch is priced per active seat, with a 30-day trial. The directory has a map, trade filters, and an optional spend cap.
Linked Company Work Orders is the second product. Use it when the other firm already has Field Ascend. You invite their organisation, then issue a work order into their account. They process it as their own job, with their own engineers and planner. Both sides keep their own data and controls, and share a live, auditable status trail. That is not how Dispatch works.
Use Dispatch when the trade does not have Field Ascend. They never log in. You still review the submission before it becomes part of the job.
Store them in the Subcontractor Directory. Filter by trade, open the map, and set an optional spend cap so a dispatch cannot go out over the limit.
Send a secure one-job link from the job. No Field Ascend account, app, or password. Dispatch seats have a 30-day trial, then you pay for active seats.
They accept the link, add notes, upload photos, and sign on that page. Nothing lands on the job record until you say so.
Review the submission, then Accept into Job. After accept: notes go to Work Done, photos go to job documents, and the signature goes to Signatures when that copy is enabled.
This is the second product. Use it only when the other firm already has Field Ascend. From invite to invoice, here is that workflow.
Invite subcontractor companies by email. They accept via a secure link, creating a verified connection between both accounts. Manage sharing rules and permissions per subcontractor.
Create a work order directly from any job. Site details, equipment snapshots, scope of work, and pricing transfer automatically. Send instantly or save as draft.
Subcontractor receives the work order, reviews scope, and accepts. They process it into a job in their own system - with the customer, site, and equipment context already populated.
Subcontractor completes the job, marks the work order as complete, and flags it as invoiced. The parent company sees every status change live, with a full timestamped audit trail.
Parent reviews the completed work order and closes it. The lifecycle flowchart on the original job shows the full chain - job, work order, subcontractor status - in one view.
Either side can cancel a work order before work starts. Cancelled orders stay visible for auditing but free the original job for re-assignment. Full control, zero ambiguity.
This walkthrough shows Linked Company Work Orders: invite another Field Ascend firm, then issue a work order into their account. Dispatch (the email job link) is a different product and is not this video.
Email a secure job link. The subcontractor does not need a Field Ascend account. They complete the visit on the link. You Accept into Job before notes, photos, or a signature join the job.
Pick a contact from the directory map, filter by trade, and block a dispatch that would breach their spend cap. Seats are billed after a 30-day trial.
Linked Company Work Orders only. Token-based invitation with expiry controls. Link and unlink subcontractors at any time. Suspend connections instantly if needed. Existing work orders remain viewable for audit. Dispatch contacts do not get a Field Ascend login from this step.
When both firms run Field Ascend: work orders with line items, agreed pricing, priority levels, and due dates. Status moves from draft through to closed, with server-enforced transition rules. This is not the Dispatch email link.
Equipment details - make, model, serial number, location - transfer automatically from the parent job to the work order. Subcontractors arrive with the context they need.
The parent job's lifecycle view shows the work order as a visual node alongside quotes, invoices, purchase orders, and credit notes. One screen, full picture.
Control what subcontractors see. Toggle customer identity sharing, contact details, equipment access, F-Gas log permissions, and PPM defect reporting per subcontractor.
Every action - creation, acceptance, status change, cancellation - is logged with the user, company, and timestamp. Both sides see the same activity history.
When a subcontractor processes a work order into a job, Field Ascend automatically creates the customer record and site in their system with address and postcode parsing.
Configurable alerts when subcontractors accept, complete, or invoice work orders. Stay informed without logging in. Toggle notifications per event type.
If you manage jobs across HVAC, electrical, lifts, or plumbing and subcontract portions to specialist firms, this gives you structured visibility.
FM businesses using CAFM software often coordinate multiple subcontractor trades across sites. This brings all of those relationships into one tracked workflow.
When you take on more work than your in-house team can handle, subcontracting is the answer. This module ensures you scale without losing control.
If they do not have Field Ascend, Dispatch is the path: they open an email link, complete the job, and you Accept into Job. If they already run Field Ascend, Linked Company Work Orders lets them process the work in their own account with their own scheduling, engineers, and mobile app.
Both products sit on the same job. They do not replace each other.
Dispatch - email a job link from Assign & Schedule, then Accept into Job. Job management - issue a Linked Company work order from a job when the other firm already has Field Ascend. Lifecycle flowcharts - see that work order node alongside quotes, invoices, and purchase orders. Scheduling - a linked firm processes the work order into a job on their planner. Dispatch contacts do not get a planner login. Accounting integrations - a linked firm's invoicing stays in their own Xero, QuickBooks, Sage, FreeAgent, or Zoho Books sync. PPM - subcontracted planned maintenance stays on the parent job either way.
Each product turns on in settings. Businesses that do not need either leave them off. When you enable one, the matching navigation items appear and that workflow is ready to use.
It helps field service businesses send, track, and close outsourced work. Field Ascend has two products. Dispatch emails a secure job link (no Field Ascend account). Linked Company Work Orders is a second product for when the other firm already has Field Ascend. They are not the same workflow. Both sit inside your existing FSM platform. Confused by the wider category? See our guide to the 3 types of contractor management software.
It's designed for UK field service teams that outsource work to specialist firms - including HVAC, electrical, lift maintenance, plumbing, and facilities management companies. Dispatch suits trades with no Field Ascend account. Linked Company Work Orders suits firms that already run Field Ascend.
Not for Dispatch. You email a job link. They complete the work on that link. You review it and Accept into Job. After accept, notes go to Work Done, photos go to job documents, and the signature goes to Signatures when that copy is enabled. Dispatch is priced per active seat, with a 30-day trial. Linked Company Work Orders is different: the other firm must already have Field Ascend.
That is Linked Company Work Orders, not Dispatch. The parent company sends a secure email invitation. The subcontractor logs in and accepts, which creates a verified link between both accounts. Sharing permissions, customer identity rules, and notification preferences are configurable per relationship.
On Linked Company Work Orders, both firms use their own accounting integrations - Xero, QuickBooks, Sage, FreeAgent, or Zoho Books. The linked firm's invoicing stays in their process, and the parent sees invoiced status on the work order. Dispatch contacts do not get a Field Ascend login or accounting sync. Scheduling, PPM, and the mobile app stay on the parent job either way.
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