What Emser Tile achieved with FexaAI
Emser Tile operates with an innovative approach to luxury tile across a network of branch locations in North America that depend on fast, accurate facilities maintenance.
Mike McClure, National Facilities Manager from Emser, saw that there was an opportunity to improve how work orders were created and dispatched.
Before, branch managers were submitting vague ticket descriptions, and the facilities team spent too much time chasing down basic information before vendors could even be dispatched. This resulted in frustrated branch managers waiting for fixes, technicians arriving unprepared, and Mike’s team stuck in the middle translating between the two.
When Fexa introduced FexaAI’s Work Order Agent, Mike saw a solution that aligned with his existing comfort level with artificial intelligence and his practical need to reduce ticket turnaround time. He had already been using AI extensively in his work for communications, reviewing statistics, and gathering information, so it wasn’t a question of whether AI would work for the team, but how it could help him get better work-life balance and efficiency in his daily operations.
The Challenge: Incomplete Tickets Slowing Everything Down
Emser has been enjoying the benefits of Fexa CMMS for a long time, including automated workflows, real-time status updates, streamlined vendor dispatch, and comprehensive data analytics.
However, Emser was still facing a problem that is common in multi-site facilities management: branch managers were creating work orders without enough detail for the vendors to show up prepared.
A light that was out might generate a ticket, but without specifics about things like location or fixture type could cause everyone to spend more time trying to gather the right information, rather than fixing the problem at hand.
Mike had already been using call avoidance features in Fexa, which worked by creating problem trees that would ask troubleshooting questions before a ticket went through. However, this still required bandwidth that Mike didn’t have to create, update, and maintain these decision trees as issues evolved.
The Turning Point: AI That Makes Sense
Mike had zero skepticism about FexaAI because he had already seen what AI could do in other parts of his business. His perspective was straightforward: “Don’t let AI freak you out. It’s not here to take your job, it’s here to make you more efficient.”
Mike was excited about FexaAI’s ability to address the low quality work orders. The system would gather the right information up front, helping branch managers move quickly while still documenting troubleshooting details so vendors could arrive prepared.
At Emser, FexaAI is a tool that takes care of the branch managers, freeing him to focus on higher-value work. He was excited for it to grow and become more of an assistant to help him achieve better work-life balance while improving overall efficiency.
“The amount of information that comes through in AI-enriched work orders is phenomenal. With clearer scope, troubleshooting context, and fewer missing details, my team spends less time clarifying and vendors show up prepared.“Mike McClure, National Facilities Manager, Emser Tile
The Transformation: Simple Questions, Significant Impact
Once Emser’s team started using FexaAI, Mike noticed immediate improvements that might sound simple but proved transformative in practice.
It’s a simple but effective solution: FexaAI asks the right questions up front. Branch managers who are in a hurry and just want to create a ticket for a light being out or similar issues now receive targeted prompts that enrich their work order descriptions.
In addition to supporting the facilities team, the work order agent has proven extremely valuable to the vendors who receive the work orders. “The amount of information that comes through in AI-enriched work orders is phenomenal”, said Mike McClure. “With clearer scope, troubleshooting context, and fewer missing details, my team spends less time clarifying and vendors show up prepared.”
Measurable Results: Time Savings at Scale
FexaAI provides more than just feel-good improvements. The changes at Emser were measurable and concrete.
In the initial control group of locations, teams were given a simple choice: use FexaAI or stick with the standard work order creation form. With zero mandates and no training required, 70–80% of work orders were created using the AI form, showing immediate pull from the field and sustained adoption driven by ease of use.
As usage scaled, Emser saw a ~30%+ reduction in work order triage and rework time, returning ~60 hours per Facilities Manager per year across the team—time redirected from ticket cleanup and back-and-forth into higher-value vendor coordination and proactive support. “It’s like having an extra set of hands on every ticket,” said Mike McClure. “FexaAI captures what we used to chase down, so my team can focus on moving work forward instead of turning tickets.”
Today, all locations across Emser’s portfolio are using FexaAI, bringing consistent work order quality and operational lift across the entire network.
Looking Ahead: AI as an Operational Assistant
Mike is extremely excited to see additional use cases that Fexa develops for AI capabilities. Being able to quickly and easily mine data for both branch managers and his facilities team would be a substantial time saver.
He is looking forward to:
- Branch managers producing monthly self-audit reports on open tickets, using AI
- Being able to use FexaAI as an assistant for facilities managers
- Applying potential asset management applications
The Flexibility Factor
Throughout his experience, Mike has appreciated the flexibility of Fexa as a platform, noting that it has made his work-life balance substantially better. Having FexaAI as an additional tool streamlines operations even more, and he’s confident that Fexa will continue to grow and evolve the technology with additional use cases that will only get better over time.
His approach remains consistent: “Don’t let AI intimidate you, embrace it as a tool that makes you more efficient rather than something that threatens your role.”
Key Results
- 70–80% AI usage in the initial control group with zero mandates and no training required
- ~30%+ reduction in work order triage and rework time, returning ~60 hours per Facilities Manager per year
- Phenomenally improved work order descriptions, giving vendors comprehensive information up front
- Fewer callbacks and follow-up requests for additional information, photos, or clarification
- Faster vendor response times, without branch managers needing to change their process
- Facilities team freed from “turning tickets” to focus on vendor management and strategic support
- AI-enriched work orders include troubleshooting documentation that helps vendors arrive prepared
- Zero-training implementation enabling immediate adoption by branch managers
- All locations across Emser’s portfolio are using FexaAI
Try FexaAI for Yourself
Are you ready to reduce work order turnaround time while improving vendor preparedness? Watch a demo of FexaAI’s Work Order Agent, and contact us so that we can show you how you can get similar results.
