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Logging Technician Hours on a Customer Order

Learn the two methods for manually logging technician time on a Customer Order: Hours Only or Time In / Time Out.

Blackpurl gives dealerships two methods for manually logging technician hours on a Customer Order — logging hours only, or logging a specific time in and time out. This article explains both options and where to configure the setting.

Before You Start

This article applies only to dealerships that use the manual log entry on the Customer Order > Service Jobs / Deal Service / Internal Service Jobs screen to record technician time. The technician hours method is controlled by a single shop setting described at the end of this article.

The Two Logging Methods

Option 1: Hours Only

The Hours Only method lets users record how many hours a technician worked without entering a specific start or end time. This is the simpler of the two options.

For example, if technician Cathy Price worked on a Service Job for 2 hours, the dealership records only the total hours — no clock times required.

To log time using this method:

1. On the Customer Order, click Log time.

2. In the Log technician time dialog, select the Technician.

3. Review the date and change it if needed.

4. Enter the number of hours in the Hours logged field. The Time In and Time Out fields will be greyed out and are not required.

5. Click Log time to save.

Shows a dialog box titled 'Log technician time' with form fields. Left side has: Technician dropdown showing 'C P', Date


Note: Blackpurl does not recommend the Hours Only method if your dealership reviews Technician Productivity reports. Without time in/time out data, productivity reporting will be incomplete.

Option 2: Time In / Time Out

The Time In / Time Out method requires users to enter a specific start time and end time. Blackpurl calculates the total hours automatically based on those entries.

When using this method, make sure the times entered do not overlap with other job clocking entries or manual entries already recorded in Blackpurl for that technician.

Configuring the Technician Hours Method

To choose which method your dealership uses, navigate to System Settings > Settings and Controls > Shop Settings and locate the Technician hours method on jobs setting.

Shows a settings interface with various options. Near the bottom is a section highlighted with a red border containing '


Use the dropdown to select either Hours Only or Time In / Time Out.

Shows a dropdown menu for 'Technician hours method on jobs' with two options: 'Hours only' and 'Time-in/Time-out' (which
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