Find out how this innovative tech is boosting safety, efficiency, and profitability in industries from pest control to lawn care.
Field service businesses, including pest control, tree services, and electrical repair businesses, are critical players in the physical economy. These industries operate under immense pressure to improve efficiency, ensure safety, and reduce risk.
While AI technology has garnered attention in sectors like logistics and construction, a type of artificial intelligence (AI) called computer vision is beginning to impact field services. Computer vision in this sector isn’t new, but its widespread adoption is more recent. Operators in lawn care, electrical repair, tree care, and similar industries rely on computer vision to automate tasks, improve safety, and increase production. Read on to see how field service businesses use computer vision to enhance the visibility, safety, and profitability of their operations.
What is computer vision?
Computer vision is a form of AI that enables machines to interpret and understand visual data from the environment. It has the ability to perform “perception” tasks, so it can detect objects, identify unsafe conditions, and monitor activities in real time. Field service companies can utilize these capabilities to ensure safety on job sites, improve resource management, and gain much-needed visibility.
Motive’s Physical Economy Outlook 2024 showed that 76% of leaders plan to use AI to gain greater visibility in their operations, while 71% are interested in generative AI to improve decision-making. However, with only 25% of businesses currently using AI, there’s a golden opportunity for field service companies to adopt this technology and gain a competitive edge.
Improving field safety and efficiency with computer vision
height, handling hazardous materials, or operating heavy machinery. Services like electrical repair, pest control, and landscaping keep homes safe, clean and green. But these professions are more dangerous than many realize.
Every day, field service workers fall victim to electrocution, chemical exposure, and slips and falls. Between 2011 and 2021, the landscaping industry lost 1,072 people in work-related accidents. And that’s not the only startling statistic.
In field services, safety oversight is crucial. Fortunately, modern technologies can prevent the biggest risks. Companies can use Motive’s AI Omnicam and and AI Dashcam to monitor workers for proper use of PPE, such as helmets and harnesses. This prevents accidents, helping fleets avoid costly fines, medical expenses, and legal liabilities while potentially saving thousands of dollars.
Boosting productivity with real-time monitoring
Optimizing resource allocation is another challenge for field service companies. Computer vision technology can help field service businesses make better, data-informed decisions. For example, in pest control, AI cameras can detect areas with high infestation levels, enabling technicians to focus their efforts where they’re needed most. This improves service efficiency and ensures faster, more accurate job completion.
Computer vision systems provide real-time visibility into the status of vehicles, equipment, and assets, allowing managers to proactively address maintenance issues before breakdowns occur. This minimizes downtime and ensures that technicians always have functioning equipment, improving operational efficiency and reducing repair costs.
Preventing theft and enhancing security
Equipment theft is a serious issue for field service companies, particularly when high-value tools are left on job sites overnight. Motive’s AI-powered cameras, such as the AI Omnicam, offer 24/7 surveillance of vehicles, equipment, and job sites. In the future, these cameras will be able to detect unauthorized access, alerting managers to potential theft and allowing for quick action. This reduces the risk of equipment loss, saves on replacement costs, and minimizes operational disruptions.
Improving compliance and quality assurance
Field service businesses must maintain high service standards to ensure customer satisfaction. Video is proof. Computer vision can capture video proof so businesses can be confident that proper procedures are followed and that work results in high-quality outcomes. Computer vision can even be used to confirm that customers adhere to agreed-upon rules.
The time to act is now.
Ready to learn how your business can benefit from computer vision? Read our 2025 Guide to Computer Vision to discover more use cases, what to look for in a vendor, and how your business can prepare.
