How to Build a Field Inspection App with Glide
You can build a field inspection app in Glide by creating an Inspections table, adding a form screen with photo and signature fields, and filtering the list by the signed-in inspector. Managers see everything; technicians see only their own jobs.
Why Not Just Use Paper Forms or a PDF?
Paper gets lost, photos end up in a dozen phone galleries, and nobody can query the results. A Glide app puts the checklist, the camera, and the submission button in one flow, then writes structured rows you can filter and export.
For a team running 20-100 inspections a week, the setup cost pays back in a fortnight of admin time.
How Do You Structure the Data?
| Table | Fields |
|---|---|
| Inspections | Date, Inspector email, Site, Status, Notes |
| Photos | Image, Inspection (linked), Caption |
| Inspectors | Email, Name, Role, Region |
The Inspector email column is your ownership key. Every visibility filter resolves against it.
How Do You Build the Inspection Form?
- Add a Form screen bound to the Inspections table.
- Include an image picker field so crews can attach photos on the spot.
- Add required fields (date, site, status) so no blank submissions slip through.
- Set a workflow action to email the site manager on submit.
Use a choice component for status instead of free text — it keeps reporting clean and stops typos from fragmenting your data.
How Do You Capture Photos and Signatures?
Glide’s image picker opens the native camera on mobile. For signature capture, use a drawing component if your plan supports it, or attach a signed PDF generated elsewhere. Photos land in the linked Photos table, tagged to the inspection row.
Watch storage. Photo tables grow fast; 50 inspections a week with four photos each is a few thousand images a year, which pushes you onto higher plans and larger storage quotas.
How Do Managers Get the Overview?
Give managers a role that unfilters the list. Add a chart component summarising inspections per site or per week, and a map view if sites are geographic. A quick filter for “Failed” or “Follow-up needed” is what managers actually open first.
What About Offline Use?
Glide apps need connectivity to sync. Brief drops are tolerable — the PWA caches some state — but a full day offline in a basement is not Glide’s strong suit. If your crews work with no signal for hours, look at a dedicated offline-first tool instead. Test on the actual devices your team uses before rolling out.
Quick Summary
- Build a Glide inspection app from an Inspections table plus a form screen.
- Anchor ownership on the inspector’s email for per-user filtering.
- Use choice fields for status and required fields to keep data clean.
- Photos and optional signatures capture evidence on the device.
- Glide syncs online; avoid it for crews working fully offline.
