ARCHIVE FOR THE ‘bigchangeapps’ CATEGORY

The Apprentice winner 2015, Joseph Valente, adopts BigChange field service technology to springboard growth at his Impra-Gas plumbing business.

The winner of the BBC’s The Apprentice 2015 competition, Joseph Valente,  has selected BigChange's JobWatch platform to accelerate the growth of Impra-Gas, the plumbing business he owns 50:50 with Lord Sugar.

Impra-Gas is on a mission to revolutionise the plumbing industry, using the latest technology to offer people a faster, higher quality service.  The company looked at a number of software companies and after a rigorous tender process chose BigChange’s all-in-one Mobile Workforce Management system.

The team at Impra-Gas are totally focused on scaling the business, whilst delivering industry leading levels of service and convenience for customers. The paperless app-based JobWatch system allows Joseph’s management team to manage the entire operation from quotation all the way through to invoice, with integrated planning, management, job scheduling and real-time vehicle and resource tracking. The system also ensures consistent service quality and compliance with an app that guides plumbers through critical checks and procedures.

JobWatch is also enabling Impra-Gas to offer a seamless and convenient service experience for customers, with real-time booking on the company’s website as well as on a mobile app. Customers receive live updates that confirm the estimated time of arrival and on completion of work can make mobile payments. Automated electronic job cards and gas safety certificates ensure essential safety documents are safety stored and recorded.

BigChange founder and CEO Martin Port added, “BigChange exists to help ambitious businesses like Impra-Gas scale quickly, giving them everything they need to run a dynamic, profitable and customer focused operation. We’re really excited to have Joseph on board as a customer. His team will be receiving the same 5-star service and support that is there for every one of our customers.”

---

 

Be social and share this news

Replacing a manual paper-based job scheduling system with JobWatch software from BigChange Apps, has enabled Sheffield based DP Doors to achieve greater productivity across its 23 strong mobile team. Revenue is up 25%, there is a doubling of first-time fix rates, fuel savings of £5,000 and a 15% reduction in adminstration. 

DP Doors is an industrial door specialist. It  manufactures, install, maintains and repairs fire doors, roller shutters, steel security doors, PVC strip curtains and crash doors. The family run business employs 42 employees, including 23 field based engineers, serving a nationwide blue-chip customer base. Projects come in all shapes and sizes, including huge doors that are 14m high and 6m wide.

The company prides itself on delivering the highest levels of service and response. Industrial doors are mission critical for customers including food companies who need to separate frozen and chilled areas and maintain the integrity, safety and security of their products.

DP doors were looking for a mobile workforce system to address two key issues within their operation. One was to achieve higher first-time-fix rates. Secondly the business wanted to eradicate the excess paperwork that was hindering productivity.

The company chose JobWatch from Big Change, after careful comparison against two other solutions. “We chose JobWatch as the team at BigChange really understood our business. They had something out-of-the-box that really fitted with our requirements. Plus the overall system offers great value - combining mobile, back office and real-time workforce tracking,” said Managing Director, Alan Bolsover.

Paper work reduction

The company used to take several sheets of paper to every single job (a method statement, risk assessment, vehicle check and job card). In addition drivers had to visit the office to collect job information, adding extra travel time to each day. JobWatch has simplified the workflow, replacing paper job cards with electronic worksheets on rugged mobile tablet. Engineers can access job information instantly wherever they are and travel from home straight to the first job of the day.

 

“At times we were were overwhelmed with paperwork and the manual admin that goes with it. It’s time that we could be spending selling, marketing and developing the business. Admin isn’t adding value,”  pointed out Bolsover.

Smarter scheduling

Smarter scheduling has eased the challenge of planning work for the 23 engineers to locations nationwide. It’s maximising billable time, avoiding unnecessary travel and making the back-office team far more productive. Real-time visibility is avoiding multiple calls to the mobile team to check on status or location.

JobWatch is also helping DP Doors with Health & Safety compliance - an area that’s crucial in this industry and at the top of the agenda for blue-chip clients. Engineers were failing to complete or return their daily driver checks to the office. The JobWatch mobile app now makes it easy for drivers to do their checks at the beginning of each day - and the app won’t let them start work without it. Faults or defects can be logged instantly, ensuring that the maintenance manager is alerted to manage them to resolution. In addition JobWatch is ensuring that risk assessments and method statements are just a click away on the mobile tablet.

Integrated invoicing

Integrated invoicing is invaluable, says Bolsover. It enables jobs to be invoiced as soon as they are completed. Engineers can capture photos on-site for proof-of-service and can be shared with customers.

“We were waiting days for job cards to come back. If a job was on a Monday, we wouldn’t get the paperwork back till Friday. This could have a real knock-on effect on cashflow. With JobWatch we don’t have to wait for anything to be returned to the office - there are no documents that could get lost. Plus we’re able to bill accurately for time spent on site. We’re also looking to start using JobWatch for our invoicing too.”

Finally, JobWatch is helping DP doors to reduce their fuel use, one of the highest costs incurred across the entire business. Drivers are receiving a tailored de-brief at the end of each working day, with friendly encouragement towards safe and responsible behaviours. Line managers can see which drivers are achieving the best MPG and can reward the team accordingly.

 

---

 

Be social and share this news