FieldKit Pro: Day 1

New project. Day 1.

FieldKit Pro is a field data collection and inspection app designed for engineers and technicians who spend their time on-site rather than behind a desk. The idea came from watching people — myself included — juggle clipboards, spreadsheets, photos, and handwritten notes that all need to end up in a report eventually.

The Problem

Field work generates a lot of unstructured data. You take photos, jot measurements, note equipment conditions, flag issues, and then go back to your desk to assemble it all into something coherent. The gap between collecting data in the field and producing a deliverable is where time disappears.

Most existing tools are either too generic (just a form builder) or too locked into a specific industry. I want something that's flexible enough to handle different types of inspections and site visits, but structured enough that the output is immediately useful.

What I'm Building

The core idea is simple: capture structured field data on any device, online or offline, and generate professional reports without the manual assembly step.

Early feature thinking:

• Custom inspection templates — define what data you need before you go on-site
• Offline-first architecture — cell service in the field is never guaranteed
• Photo capture with annotations — mark up images right where you take them
• Auto-generated reports — structured data in, formatted deliverable out
• Location and timestamp metadata — automatic context for every data point

Tech Stack

Starting with Next.js and TypeScript on the frontend, likely with a service worker layer for offline support. The offline-first requirement is the most interesting technical challenge — syncing field data reliably when connectivity is intermittent.

For storage, leaning toward IndexedDB on the client side with a sync layer to a backend when online. Haven't committed to the backend yet — evaluating options.

Why Now

I've been building internal tools for a while and this is the pattern I keep seeing: people doing important work in the field, then spending disproportionate time turning that work into documentation. The tooling gap is real and I want to close it.

More updates as this progresses. Day 1 is just the starting line.