Is live streaming video the answer to a number of key field service challenges? Kris Oldland, Editor-in-Chief, Field Service News takes a look at the latest technology in live streaming video and what makes this emerging technology a must for...
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Jan 08, 2016 • Features • Live video streaming • Mobile video streaming • field service technology • Technology
Is live streaming video the answer to a number of key field service challenges? Kris Oldland, Editor-in-Chief, Field Service News takes a look at the latest technology in live streaming video and what makes this emerging technology a must for consideration by field service companies in the very near future...
Video footage has long been incorporated into various field service tools from driver training through to knowledge sharing and, of course, s a tool for protecting parts both in a warehouse environment as well as in vehicle.
However, the technology has recently taken a giant leap forward with the advent of continuous live streaming.
But what exactly is the difference between the live streaming video technology emerging today and the current technology that is already in place?
One company that are currently at the cutting edge of this industry is TFS who are already working with a number of high profile organisations including the many law enforcement agencies force and blue chip organisations in the telecoms sector to help them harness the latest in live streaming video technology.
‘Live video capture is out there it is being used elsewhere in the world, so it’s tested technology but in the UK it doesn’t seem to be in any shape or form being used to the extent it could be,” explains PJ Connelly, Managing Director, TFS.
Existing technology
Of course the biggest question is around just how far a leap forwards this technology is compared to the existing solutions on the market.
Let’s be clear here, TFS aren’t re-inventing the wheel, and neither are they claiming to have done so. To use a motoring metaphor, it’s more a case of introducing alloy wheels. Yes, the steel wheels out there being used at the moment are adequate and can get a job done, but alloy wheels just add that extra level of performance.
Generally your current video camera set-up involves cameras that are recording either to an on-board hard drive or a remote location.
Some systems claim to be able to offer live streaming but this can be all too often misleading
“There is some live streaming technology that claims to be live streaming, and is in essence live streaming, but you have to be 'x' amount of feet away from a hub. If you move too far in the wrong direction you’ll lose signal and it essentially becomes useless.”
“The fact that our solution is using 3G and 4G technology means you will be able to use it wherever there is that connection and those connections are only getting better and better.” He adds.
“Those products that are out there are mainly collision recording products so in the event of a collision immediately the camera will kick in and take pictures.”
“But live streaming gives you the opportunity to dial in and have conversations with the driver because it has audio input on it as well,” comments Paul Hagan, a consultant to TFS who has experience within the service logistics industry having worked with organisations such as ByBox amongst others.
“It’s also the ability to stream for long periods at a time. There are some products that might give you 20 seconds of a stream, which is just nowhere near enough.”
“It’s compressing the data to a point so you can constantly stream it because of the small amount of bandwidth it’s taking up. That’s the true breakthrough.” concludes Connelly.
Live streaming today
Live streaming means being able to access the footage of the camera as it is filming from a remote location in real time...
The technology has recently become quite popular within smart homes - Google-owned Nest, for example recently launched a camera with such capabilities, which sits neatly in the smart home security sector.
However, as Connelly states, the technology TFS are delivering goes one step further by being fully mobile - unlike the NEST cam or other similar devices which are dependent on a Wifi signal, TFS cameras are able to also operate on 3G and 4G networks (as well as having GPS built in which opens up a number of further possibilities.)
This inclusion adds a complete degree of mobility to the technology and this added mobility means that the potential applications of video recording can become far wider reaching than the traditional security and collision-event use cases we see implementations being used for today.
Look out for Part 2 of this feature when we'll be taking a closer look at how Live Streaming can be applied in different field service scenarios and the potential benefits
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Jan 07, 2016 • Features • ABB Robotics • big data • Case Studies • Internet of Things • IoT
The Internet of Things is enabling ABB Robotics to transforms its customer service offering, explains Magnus Sävenäs, VP Customer Service, Head of Global Field Service & Training at ABB Robotics.
The Internet of Things is enabling ABB Robotics to transforms its customer service offering, explains Magnus Sävenäs, VP Customer Service, Head of Global Field Service & Training at ABB Robotics.
The ABB Robotics division comprises of robot applications and automation systems across numerous industry sectors, including automotive, foundry, packing, metal and plastics manufacturing.
Over 250,000 robots have been sold worldwide. The majority (35%) are used in machine tending and materials handling, 35% in welding, 8% in painting and 22% in other processes.
The Robotics division has sales and service operations in 53 countries in more than 100 locations and employs 5,500 people.
The company’s motto is “easy to buy, easy to service”, but with such a diverse spread of industries and with customers ranging from large organisations with large “fleets” of robots to small SMEs, providing excellent customer service is challenging to say the least - each customer requires a specific service model, explains Sävenäs.
The robots are often employed in mission-critical operations such as manufacturing, so uptime is critical. No production plants are identical and neither are their service requirements. So service agreements are fully flexible, where customers can make their own choices from a variety of available services.
The company recognised it needed to change from being a cost-based reactive division into a value-based proactive one and that the Internet of Things would be a key enabler.
The service operation is now a data-driven business, with five key components: installed products database, service organisation, remote service, customer access to information, and knowledge management.
Product database
Each robot has a “birth certificate” and “medical journal” of all equipment during the entire lifecycle up to “disposal / replacement”. it includes a physical map of all equipment by product group, customer account and location, keeping track of warranty status repairs and changes, updated on-line at every service visit.
Service Management
Maintenance services from ABB Robotics includes preventive maintenance, remote condition monitoring, life cycle assessment, inspection and diagnostics.
In operations where equipment failure impacts severely on operations, Total Time To Fix performance is a critical KPI. For the Robotics service with its global customer base, this was particularly challenging and depended on several elements: initial diagnosis, parts identification, travel time and repair time.
Where equipment failure impacts severely on operations, Total Time To Fix performance is a critical KPI.
Remote Service
- Troubleshooting
Wireless connectivity tools allow ABB to provide a virtual dedicated troubleshooting expert within 5 minutes – an expert on-demand, remote support assistance in the event of a specific problem or failure. The service technician is transformed from a repair guy in the van to a process consultant/technician who can guide the customer remotely through any fault issues.That increases productivity for ABB Robotics and deliveries enhanced support to the customer because uptime is increased. - Condition monitoring
Remote Service is also used to monitor the health of robots 24/7 to increase robot uptime and productivity while reducing the cost of ownership. The robot system is continuously monitored and an automatic alert is generated when the robot condition changes or a problem arises.Regular system health checks and reports are provided utilising secure emote connections. During scheduled sessions, data is downloaded and measured against established performance benchmarks. Based on the findings, maintenance recommendations can be provided.Conditioned-based, predictive and remote monitoring has improved Mean Time Before Failure and reduced Mean Time to Repair statistics. - Maintenance scheduling
Remote Service can generate a maintenance schedule on the basis of actual usage to help reduce maintenance costs.Up to 50% of unplanned stops can be prevented, while robot systems can be brought back into production remotely, avoiding valuable production losses.
Knowledge management
ABB Robotics was previously heavily reliant on the experience, knowledge and skills of its technicians. The company’s Smart Service Information (SSI) platform means no individual is now expected to carry all the information.
Technicians can quickly search all documentation, and there are 3D animated maintenance procedures called ABB Siminstructions. The Smart Device for Service (S4S) is a “Two Pair Of Eyes” solution for problem resolution
Self-serving customers
Customers have a single point of access for all service information and contacts via the “my ABB” self-service portal. It’s an easy-to-use, service deliver eBusiness channel.
Customers can view a physical map of their equipment, their equipment status, service needs, parts and so on. They can view status and health of myRobot fleet; interrogate the system with queries such as “Show me equipment close to running out of warranty”, “Show me equipment in the later part of the life cycle (due for upgrade) and ”Show me event log of robots”.
Internet of Things, Services and People – IoTSP
There’s lots of discussion in service management about the Internet of Things and Big Data. ABB has been developing a broader strategy which it calls the Internet of Things, Services and People – IoTSP.
ABB has been developing a broad strategy which it calls the Internet of Things, Services and People.
For over a decade ABB has been working to develop and enhance process control systems, communications solutions, sensors and software for the IoTSP. These technologies enable our customers in industries, utilities and infrastructure to analyse their data more intelligently, optimize their operations, boost their productivity, and their flexibility.
ABB is advancing the IoTSP by helping customers develop their existing technologies, while keeping sight of our enduring commitment to safety, reliability, cyber security and data privacy.
The Internet is enabling a revolution in industry is connecting intelligent machines and the collective data generated from a growing number of electronic sensors. We are ‘seeing, hearing, and feeling’ our industrial processes like never before and this empowers the decisions we make to optimise performance.
This revolution allows us to operate machines more safely, with greater efficiency, and with lower environmental impact, not just individually, but as complete systems, working in harmony to enhance power and productivity for a better world.
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Jan 06, 2016 • Features • Hardware • Xplore Technologies • Bobcat • hardware • rugged tablets
Next up in our Hands On series reviewing some of the key contenders in the rugged device sector is Xplore Technologies’ X Slate B10 rugged tablet.
Next up in our Hands On series reviewing some of the key contenders in the rugged device sector is Xplore Technologies’ X Slate B10 rugged tablet.
It’s been a very busy year for Xplore Technologies. With neighbours and fellow rugged tablet manufacturers Motion suffering from the closure of a parts supplier, Xplore made the bold move of launching a takeover. It was a definite case of the little fish eating the bigger fish and a move that caught many in the industry by surprise.
However, whilst certainly a bit of a shock from an outsider’s viewpoint the coming together of the two companies certainly makes sense on a product level. Xplore has established a reputation as being the company to go to for ultra-rugged devices with their XC6 range, which are fully submersible, drop tested to the highest existing standards and are pretty much the most rugged tablets out there. Needless to say Xplore was a name well recognised in defence circles.
Motion’s devices on the other hand sat more towards the larger fully rugged sector, so whilst devices such as the Motion F5M could still take a pounding, they are more geared towards the average field based worker, who needs a tablet that can cope with being shunted about from vehicle to work-site but still provided both the computing power and range of peripheries needed to get an engineer through the day whether it be on the road or back at HQ.
So whilst there was some crossover in technologies the two companies actually complement each other very, very well and are now a major player in the rugged tablet space (in fact only Panasonic now have a bigger market share).
So with the potential for cross development spanning both sets of R&D talent it was with excited anticipation when I received the demo unit to put it through its paces. Just how much influence would both the design team at Motion and their counterparts in Xplore have in the look, feel and performance of this new device - the first device to come out of the Xplore stable since the merger? Would it be a Motion looking tablet or Xplore, or perhaps like most babies a mixture of both parents?
Let’s get hands on and find out...
What the manufacturer says...
Designed to meet the needs of the mobile professional who requires a supremely rugged Windows-based PC that can weather any environment, the XSlate B10 addresses both processing and connectivity concerns directly.
The powerful and fast XSlate B10 accelerates through workflows in the field, in real time, resulting in a more efficient and productive workforce that reduces errors and costs, while improving customer experience
First impressions...
Well she’s certainly got her mother’s eyes. Whilst this is the first tablet to come to market since Xplore's acquisition of Motion there is no denying that the XSlate B10 is very much from the same stable as the Bobcat, which we reviewed last year - check out our report here.
Whilst this is the first tablet to come to market since Xplore's acquisition of Motion, there is no denying that the XSlate B10 is very much from the same stable as the Bobcat.
And for me this is no bad thing. I felt the Bobcat was a well-made, aesthetically-pleasing device especially when held up against the F5M which always feels a little clunky to me because of the moulded integrated handle. Yes, I know it’s a functional inclusion, and many will appreciate the ease with which the F5M is carried around but if I’m honest I’m glad that Xplore have stuck with the detachable hand-strap, in the same manner as they opted for in the Bobcat.
The handle also acts as a neat holder for either of the two styli that the device comes with.
When it comes to the feel of the tablet again one need look no further than the Bobcat for an easy comparison. Both devices appear to share exactly the same chassis, including a magnesium alloy mid-frame to add further strength.
When reviewing the Bobcat, I pointed out that the design had a feel of something akin to a ‘more -robust-than-average’ consumer tablet to it. Given the shared body, this remains true of the XSlate as well. The XSlate we received had a lot more optional extras than the Bobcat we reviewed and these certainly add to the bulk of the device even if they do add functionality. However, this is the price you pay for customisation and any of Xplore’s competitors would face the same challenge in terms of keeping additional accessories sleek and unobtrusive.
Optional extras certainly add to the bulk of the device even if they do add functionality...
Like the Bobcat, the X-Slate B10 feels sturdy and with a base weight of 1.09 kg it’s in a similar weight bracket as Panasonic’s FZ-G1 and significantly lighter than the Getac F110 - both of which would be comparable devices to the XSlate.
Finally, when it comes to button layout control power, volume and a screen orientation lock all remain on the right hand side whilst a Windows button remains front facing in the centre.
One nice addition on the XSlate missing from the Bobcat is a fingerprint sensor, adding an additional layer of security where required.
Processing power
There really is very little difference between the two siblings under the hood. With its Intel Core i5-5350U processor capable of 2.9Ghz of boosted processing speed (there is also an option for – Intel Core i7 vPro) coupled with 8GB memory, the XSlate sits right at the top of the tree amongst rugged tablets. Only its stablemate, the Motion F5M, is built to a higher specification and even then, that would only be for the very top customisation level.
The XSlate also comes out ahead of the competition when it comes to the graphics card as well – one area that the Bobcat was lacking in compared to the competition. In fact the X-Slate’s Intel Integrated HD 6000 Graphics Card is one of the best performing cards on the market currently and with this alongside its superior CPU then the XSlate should be able to handle pretty much any program that is thrown at it.
Operating system
Officially the XSlate B10 comes with the option of Windows 7 or 8.1 although as soon as we booted it up and logged into the device it automatically offered us a free upgrade to Windows 10.
Particularly interesting is the announcement of the XSlate D10 - basically the B10 but in Android flavour
The Ins & Outs
The shared chassis means the XSlate B10 has an identical I/O set up to the Bobcat - a major plus point in our opinion. The standard models in both tablets are identical apart from the XSlate’s having an optional HDMI-in socket.
Like the Bobcat, the B10 comes with two separate USB3.0 ports - a feat unmatched by all of their competitors. It can sometimes be something of a challenge to fit in ports left, right, and centre and most rugged tablet manufacturers tend to shy away from this challenge so it is great to see Xplore include two USB ports again.
Like the Bobcat, the XSlate B10 comes with two separate USB3.0 ports - a feat unmatched by all of their competitors.
Should your engineers need to give presentations of the work being undertaken at any point then the micro HDMI out will allow them to easily share directly from the B10.
Other ports on the B10 include a RS232 serial Ready Port, headphones/speakers mini-jack stereo port plus DC power input.
Connectivity:
Connectivity is of course vital for the field engineer and this is yet another area in which the X Slate excels, again sharing a number of its systems with the Bobcat. These include the latest standard in mobile internet including an 802.11ac wireless LAN (wifi) receiver, providing both 2.5GHz and 5GHz bandwidths and enhanced speeds. A 4G LTE mobile broadband receiver is optional giving fast connectivity outside of WiFi coverage provided that is mobile network connectivity.
The integrated GPS has improved accuracy and Bluetooth 4.0 allows the device to be paired with other tools being used by your team.
Finally, the XSlate has options for including Near Field Communications (NFC) reading capability and Barcode scanning both of which can be useful tools when updating parts inventory.
Ruggedness:
As one would expect from a manufacturer of ultra rugged tablets, the X Slate is absolutely ready for even the most clumsiest of field engineers. With a MIL-STD 810G certification the tablet is both water and dust resistant and can operate in a range of temperatures ranging from -20°C through to 60°C which should cover all but the absolute extreme of field service environments.
The XSlate is capable of surviving a 5 foot fall and thanks to its lightweight rugged magnesium mid-frame the LCD and electronics are also particularly well protected should the device be accidentally dropped on more than one occasion.
Battery Life:
Finally the battery life of the X Slate is certainly capable of lasting an engineer throughout their day. The full battery life is listed as up to 8 hours however with the inclusion of shot swappable batteries could potentially last for up to 20 hours with moderate usage.
Conclusion:
Having given the Bobcat a relatively good review it is impossible to not give the X Slate anything but a glowing recommendation.
The device is good looking, the buttons intuitively placed and the processing power is right at the top-end of the spectrum. It’s also highly certified in terms of ruggedness and has great connectivity specifications. Overall this is a fantastic tablet for somone working in a reasonably hostile environment but needs a powerful device with lots of CPU power.
Ultimately what the XSlate does is take the strong form factor of the Bobcat and delivers a truly high-end tablet to further increase the competition with Panasonic.
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Jan 05, 2016 • Features • future of field service • Kirona • research • Research • Bill Pollock • field service • field service management • Strategies for Growth
Are UK field service companies keeping pace with the rest of the world? In this exclusive four-part report for Field Service News, Bill Pollock, President & Principal Consulting Analyst, Strategies for Growth SM, explores how UK companies compare...
Are UK field service companies keeping pace with the rest of the world? In this exclusive four-part report for Field Service News, Bill Pollock, President & Principal Consulting Analyst, Strategies for Growth SM, explores how UK companies compare with their global counterparts.
Download the full report! Click here to download it now!
Each year, Strategies For Growth (SFGSM) conducts a series of Benchmark Surveys among its global outreach community. The content of this report is derived exclusively from the UK/Europe responses to our 2015 Field Service Management (FSM) Benchmark Survey and, thereby, represents a geographically-specific universe base from which to identify key FSM usage patterns and trends. The research coverage was sponsored by Kirona.
For example UK/Europe survey respondents identify the following as the top factors, or challenges, currently driving their desire to optimise field service performance (compared to the overall global results):
- 56% Customer demand for quicker response time (up from 52% overall)
- 47% Need to improve workforce utilisation & productivity (up from 43% overall)
- 47% Need to improve service process efficiencies (up from 40% overall)
- 41% Customer demand for improved asset availability (up from 35% overall)
Thus, the data clearly reflects that UK/Europe Field Service Organisations (FSOs) appear to place somewhat more emphasis on each of these key market drivers, focusing on customer demand and workforce utilisation, productivity and efficiency, than their worldwide respondent counterparts.
Therefore, it should come as no surprise that they are also planning to invest more in mobile tools in support of their respective field forces than other global geographies represented in the overall survey universe.
However, in order to effectively address these key challenges – and strive to attain Best Practices status – UK/Europe respondents then cite the following as the top strategic actions they are currently taking:
- 64% Develop / improve metrics, or KPIs, used to measure field service performance (up from 52% overall)
- 49% Invest in mobile tools to provide field technicians with real-time access to required data and information in the field (up from 42% overall)
- 35% Integrate new technologies into existing field service operations (i.e., iPads, Tablets or other devices, etc. (up from 34% overall)
Improving the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) used to measure performance is cited as a top strategic action by 64% of UK/ Europe respondents, compared to only 52% overall.
In fact, the percentage of UK/Europe FSOs currently developing/improving their respective KPIs, at 64%, is higher than the 62% cited by the survey’s Best Practices respondents (i.e., those attaining at least 90% Customer Satisfaction and 30% Services Profitability).
The remainder of this report provides insight into each of these and other related areas that may be influencing your organisation’s quest to attain Best Practices, as well as highlighting those resources that the leading UK/Europe organisations already have in place – or are planning to implement in the next 12 months.
Field service as profit centres
The survey results reveal that 65% of UK/Europe respondent organisations currently operate service as an independent profit centre (or as a pure, third-party service company), similar to the 66% reflected among the overall survey respondents, but far fewer than the 81% cited among Best Practices organisations.
Even so, there are still more than a third (35%) that operate as cost centres in support of product sales.
While there appears to be some consistency or continuity in these percentages from other surveys conducted by SFG℠ over the past few years, this nearly 2:1 ratio strongly validates the fact that profit centres now represent the dominant business model within the UK/Europe services community and, based on responses from other questions in the survey, this trend is likely to grow even stronger over time.
It is noted, however, that the percentage of organisations running service as an independent profit centre varies – sometimes significantly – by size of organisation (based on annual revenue or turnover).
The percentage of organisations running service as an independent profit centre varies – sometimes significantly – by size of organisation.
Not surprisingly, organisations reporting total annual service profits of greater than 30% come in at 76% – one of the highest levels charted among all of the segments covered in the survey.
As such, they are not only operating service as a profit centre – they’re actually making a significant profit by doing so!
Bespoke or out-of-the-box
More importantly, the UK/Europe respondent base clearly confirms that the predominant mode of Field Service Management (FSM) solutions currently being deployed is mainly off-the-shelf, either with some customisation (53%; compared with only 37% overall), or basically right out-of-the-box with no customisation (2%; compared with 6% overall), comprising more than half (55%) of the respondent base in total.
This figure is 9% higher than that cited by global Best Practices organisations (i.e., 46%)
Roughly one-quarter of UK/Europe respondents are either using home-grown, or internally-developed automated systems (15%), or bespoke solutions developed by a systems integrator (9%).
As such, UK/Europe organisations are far less likely to deploy a bespoke solution either internally, or by a systems integrator, compared with the overall survey respondents, but are far more likely to deploy an off-the-shelf solution and, then, have the specific types of customisation they require built-in to tailor it to their organisation’s requirements.
However, the most perplexing statistic may be the fact that nearly one-in-four UK/Europe organisations (22%) are still running their field service operations basically via a series of manual processes (and spreadsheets) – higher than the 18% attributable to the overall respondent base!
Download the full report! Click here to download it now!
Watch out for Part 2 , where Bill Pollock reveals the key drivers for European and UK field service organisations.
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Jan 04, 2016 • Features • Future of FIeld Service • future of field service • field service • IoT • servicepower
Marne Martin CEO of ServicePower explores how new challenges in field service are resulting in a delicate balance between digital innovation and industry pressures.
Marne Martin CEO of ServicePower explores how new challenges in field service are resulting in a delicate balance between digital innovation and industry pressures.
The field service industry is teetering on the edge of a precipice.
On one side are emerging technologies like mobile workforce management software, route optimisation, wearables, enterprise mobility software, operational analytics, IoT/M2M connected devices, and social collaboration. On the other is the shifting environment, including the changing workforce, the emergence of the millennials, legislative challenges and increasing competitive pressures.
Where the Age of Enlightenment that occurred from the 1600 to 1700’s was about cultural and intellectual change in Western Europe, based on new ideas around reasoning, analysis, and individualism, the ‘Age of Digital Enlightenment’ is very different.
It has created a digital effect on field service which requires that each organisation utilises technology, analysis and information together to enable new, better ways of delivering service, while meeting its business goals.
Emerging technologies, digital technologies, in particular can be transformational to field service. However, field service organisations must balance new technologies to meet compliance and productivity goals, and ultimately achieve the highest levels of customer satisfaction and profit for the business.
Field Service Challenges
Field service organisations are continually challenged, by not only increasing competition, declining margin and changing customer expectations, but also a myriad of other issues, including:
- Evolving business strategy - Business strategy must be continuously adapted to address changes in the competitive environment, changes in customer’s communication preferences and changes in labor supply.
- Legislation - Legislative changes absolutely impact how field service organisations operate. Legislation must be identified and business process designed or changed to accommodate them.
- Emerging technologies - Social, mobile, analytics, cloud, wearables, and IoT/M2M are transformational and absolutely should be evaluated for impact to the business.
- Emerging millennial workforce - The workforce is aging. The millennials are increasing backfilling the ranks. They grew up with mobile and social technology. They are motivated differently than their more experienced peers.
- Competitive pressure - The competitive environment changes every day, with new entrants and early technology adopters, like Uber.
Impact on the sector
Field service doesn’t stand still. Established organisations continue to be threatened by new market players.
Meanwhile, the field service industry is reinventing itself, eliminating manual processes and schedules which are costly and inefficient. Field service recognises now the value of field based resources. People are our greatest opportunity and highest costs. We must fight for talent, especially as the labour pool shifts towards millennials.
Bridging that precipice, between the digital effect and the industry challenges, requires quick and decisive action
These challenges, these impacts on the industry, are the biggest threats to field service; they are also our biggest opportunity.
Navigating the Future of Field Service
All challenges that face field service organisations today can be addressed with emerging technology that transforms operations.
- Real time optimisation improves productivity and efficiency, while also reducing costs.
- Mobilised on-site processes improve first time fix rates and the customer experience.
- Operational and business analytics improve oversight and operational performance.
- IoT/M2M connected devices facilitate the evolution from reactive repair based models to proactive, less costly and more customer friendly models.
- Social collaboration leverages the comfort of millennials workers to improve first time fix rates and reduce field based overhead.
Bridging the Divide
Bridging that precipice, between the digital effect and the industry challenges, requires quick and decisive action.
- Act strategically – Look at what technology delivers the greatest return on investment and prioritise your investment where it matters most.
- Recognise that field service (people, process, IT, parts, etc.) usually crosses multiple aspects of the organisation.
- Be sure to gain alignment and recognise that every function has a vested interest in success.
- Don’t forget to build a business case and agree the metrics for success.
- Employ creative thinking to challenge the status quo and rethink how that strategy can be delivered.
- Work with technology vendors that understand innovation and what’s possible.
Field Service is a critical part of most businesses today. Field based resources are often the only touch point with your customer post sale.
Take advantage of new technologies to build a platform for success which improves visibility and increases flexibility across the service value chain. Adapt faster and more efficiently to external change and new company strategies.
Productivity drives profits in your business! Your competitors, and even businesses you don’t know about yet, are heading that way so Cross that bridge now before it is too late.
Dec 24, 2015 • Features • Coresystems • future of field service • resources • WBR • field service • field service europe • servicepower
Field Service Europe returned to Amsterdam this autumn. Field Service News was keen to find out what delegates liked about the event and what their key take-aways were. Active technology, IoT progress, mobile device management, task-based scheduling...
Field Service Europe returned to Amsterdam this autumn. Field Service News was keen to find out what delegates liked about the event and what their key take-aways were. Active technology, IoT progress, mobile device management, task-based scheduling and a shift to customer-focused services were among the hot topics and there was growing recognition that European service organisations face different challenges compared with their their US counterparts.
Here are some of the conversations we had….
Marne Martin, CEO, ServicePower
FSN: Why did you decide to come to Field Service Europe?
The greater Europe and EMEA region is an important one for ServicePower, so definitely being able to meet with customers that cover all these territories is a fantastic opportunity.
I think also it was wonderful to see many of the presentations and companies at various stages of their maturation in field service. We the more mature end with Airbus and what they were doing with IoT but also that there are still companies that don’t understand the difference between scheduling, manual or drag and drop, versus the real power of optimisation.
FSN: Do you find that the European challenges are slightly different to those faced by US based organisations?
I think it’s different. In the US you have larger field forces so the complexity of the size has driven them into optimisation in advance of some of the European companies. However, the European companies have the same pain points in service and now they are also having to effectively do more with less - the new regulations that count travel time to and from a job as working time actually increases demand for productivity-enhancing technology.
I think it is really important that we talk about active technology, technology that you can continue earning a return on investment on..
I think it is really important that we talk about active technology, technology that you can continue earning a return on investment on. Again the drivers for technology purchases are a little bit different between regions but the pain points in field service are pretty much the same.
Alec Pinto, Associate Director Field Service Central, QIAGEN
FSN: Why did you decide to come to Field Service Europe?
Firstly it was the opportunity to meet with our peers and learn new ideas and see what other companies are doing so we can benchmark against what they are doing and find out what the next steps are for us to grow our service offering.
I normally come away with 20 or 25 ideas for what we can put into place for the next three years, so from a mid-term goal perspective it’s always useful. I’m also with Peak service: we are always looking for new partners so these opportunities are the second big reason we are here. In summary, it’s networking and business opportunities.
FSN: Have there been any significant key take aways for you this year?
What GE healthcare is doing is amazingly good. They’ve got some really good ideas: the concept of categorising the tasks that you do not the engineers ties in well with what we are looking to do - identifying tasks by complexity and grouping them, creating training plans, regional plans and dispatch plans based around that. The idea is something we’ve been playing with, but how to make it concrete is something that just clicked with us this time.
The internet of things is not really taking off like people think it is. It’s not something that will become real in the next three years.
Paul Rogers, Support Engineer Instrumentation Products, Pall Corporation
FS News: Why did you attend FS Europe?
Within our corporation we have a dedicated support team that is now a separate entity in itself. My boss and colleagues in the USA have already attended the Palm Springs session. They thought it would be a good idea for me to come to this conference with a fresh pair of eyes. I guess what we’ll do when I get back is have a round table discussion.
I will then need to see which direction we are already moving in and probably reach out to some of these technology partners and see what is available in terms of compatible systems, look at some of the things that look quite exciting, some of the technology offerings, the use of smartphones and our engineers having something simplistic to improve their workflow.
At the moment, I guess our support is complex - it needs to move into newer technologies. This is a great place to start and a way forward for our company. We’re doing a very good job at what we do at the moment but we have to work very hard to do that. What we are doing now is moving things up.
In terms of eureka moments what a lot of it will come down to is if things could be implemented in a machine’s design with embedded sensors reporting back so we are able to tailor an instrument’s servicing based on its usage.
Things like that we can maybe start feeding back to the design teams – things that they may or may not be aware and that they may or may not have even thought about. Exciting times are ahead and that was one Eureka moment I guess.
The other ones were just seeing the level of complexity that some of these providers can offer. If you want to go to that level it’s there.
Oleg Huber, Director of Sales, Coresystems
FSN: Why did you decide to come to Field Service Europe?
it was a natural decision for us to be here again this year - we were here a year ago , two years ago, so we know the community already. We know we meet the right people here, we’ve done business here.
FSN: Has there been a difference in the conversations you are having this year compared to previous years?
The delegates are better informed. When people were talking about Internet of Things or M2M communication or service automation two or three years ago mostly we were looking to tell them this is what it is all about; now it is more of a future based discussion.
At the moment they are really in the process of evaluating. A bit down-to-the earth again because after evaluating a year ago they realise, OK, we are not really there yet, so we need to first fix a couple of things internally before we can go to the Internet of Things or such fancy strategic things. But people are much better educated, I think.
FSN: Do you find on the whole companies are looking to upgrade legacy systems or are there still many companies with no FSM system at all?
A system is always in place whether it is paper-based or automated: they have a system they work somehow. Many companies are working either in spreadsheets or even paper and they come to us and they ask for best practice ; what are your unique selling points; why should we talk to you instead. The demand is there and they really want to see how we can help them move forward.
Jonathan Massoud, Divisional Director & Market Analyst, for WBR, organisers of FS Europe
FSN: What have been the big trends at this year’s Field Service Europe Conference?
In terms of the European market, last year conversations were very much about how to offer services and what to offer for services, how to get it down, present it, package it, market it.
At the end of 2015 a lot of the topics have been about refining that value proposition: putting yourself in your customers’ shoes, taking a step back and working towards a ‘what’s good for the customer is good for the company’ type of approach. Shifting towards that sort of mindset and having the technicians follow suit and recognise that is definitely a step along the path for European manufacturers.
An ongoing issue is a move from what can you market to how do we go from free to fee offerings of services and getting customers to pay for them. .
Other themes his year were around the path towards preventative services. Last year, companies were not talking about the technologies embedded into certain products. This year there have been advances in putting IoT into the thought process and companies looking at connected devices.
FS News: You've just hosted Field Service East in the US . Would you say that the delegates here, who are mainly European, have more pain points?
[quote float="right"]The different regions within Europe is the main differentiator between the US and the European manufacturers.
It’s not just that they have customers that vary with preferences, characteristics, what they expect and their customer demands but their own field workforces are also pretty diverse. European manufacturers struggle to get their own technicians to flex their soft skills to their regional customers as well.
You can even see it with the attendees here versus the attendees in the States - their personas are completely different. Our European constituents are very aware of personal boundaries, for example I’m French you’re German, we’re going to conduct business like this, I expect this it’s my nature. We don’t get that in the US.
In the European market a lot of these guys do business based around their relationships. That makes the community that we are trying to build here even more important. That’s how these guys build their relationships, it’s how they build their levels of trust.
FSN: Has there been any one technology showcased at this year’s conference that leapt out as one to keep our eyes on this year?
Device management has been big. Mobile device management has been one of the things that has been presented here.
Whilst Internet of things has been more of a loftier conversation, practicality and the technologies that were presented on mobile device management, having apps built for customers, creating a service app for your organisation that has been a big differentiator for some of the companies that we have seen presenting here and a big take away.
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Dec 23, 2015 • Features • mobile apps • mobility platform • BYOD • ERP • Software and Apps • solarvista
Mobile app design has come a long way. Paul Adams, Marketing & Development Director at Solarvista Software, talks about the change in conceptual approach.
Mobile app design has come a long way. Paul Adams, Marketing & Development Director at Solarvista Software, talks about the change in conceptual approach.
At Solarvista, we launched our first mobile app way back in 2002, called Mobile Worker. It was designed to operate as field service mobile application with our existing field service management back office ERP suite. It did it very well.
But… that’s all it did. Yes, you could receive jobs. Yes, you could order parts. Yes, you could capture signatures, take pictures etc. And it worked offline as well as online. In fact it did all of the things that we could think that service technicians wanted to do.
It was (and still is) a great application. In fact, it’s used to this day for thousands of users. But times change. And architectural practices have improved beyond all recognition in the last decade.
Whilst our Mobile Worker app is flexible, it’s flexible within constraints. The reason for this is that the application was specifically designed to do specific functions in a specific way. It was designed to work with existing Solarvista ERP back office applications and, practically speaking, only those applications.
For our next generation of mobile apps, we didn’t want ANY constraints… at all. We didn’t want specificity in any shape or form. The days of “hard-coding” were over.
Our conclusion?
We wanted to build a PLATFORM, not an application, which we then applied to business problems to deliver elegant solutions.
“For our next generation of mobile apps, we didn’t want ANY constraints… at all. We didn’t want specificity in any shape or form. The days of “hard-coding” were over.”
Oh… and in 2015, we need to support “Bring Your Own Device” too, so it needs to work on ALL platforms… Android, iOS and Windows. And we mustn’t forget offline working too.
It was quite an ambition. Especially when we consider the need to build for three different environments. Of course, we would use the platform to create apps for field service personnel operating in organisations that ran Solarvista ERP suites. But we also wanted an app that would work with everything else too.
We had lots of prototypes that we ended up throwing away. Each one took a different architectural approach but there was always a snag. Eventually, after three years development, we produced Solarvista LIVE Mobile… a PLATFORM not just an app.
It’s not a platform in the sense of development environments from the likes of Microsoft, Apple and Google… no one is going to compete with those guys. But it is a platform in the sense of building mobile apps for people who have work to do in the field.
In the old days, we would create a function by “hard coding” programs and providing another version. Now, we just create a text file that defines what the app should do, when and how. Workflow, texts, labels, logic, validation etc...
All done in a file updated over the airwaves in seconds. In fact, our customers can soon create e-forms to do anything using a simple web-based tool.
So, yes it does all the things that the original did and to most users it just feels like a normal app. But underneath, it’s a platform… and that means it’s ready for the future.
Users can get started easily with standard features/ functions that just work. But when needs change… as they always do… the platform can adapt in flash.
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Dec 21, 2015 • Features • Advanced Field Service • resources • white papers • White Papers & eBooks
Resource Type: White Paper Published by: Advanced Field Service Title A guide to delivering service excellence Download: Click here to Download the white paper here
Resource Type: White Paper
Published by: Advanced Field Service
Title A guide to delivering service excellence
Download: Click here to Download the white paper here
By downloading you agree to the T&Cs listed available here
Synopsis
To satisfy direct customers or retain the business of contract customers, field service companies must provide professional service time after time.
Overview
This guide outlines how you can deliver winning service at a profit by strategically deploying today’s field service technology including the following sections...
Provide a professional response
Whether you operate in the business-to-business or consumer/domestic markets, you’ll need to consistently meet basic criteria, such as responding within the set timeframe or appointment window.
A field service solution helps you to deploy your engineers with maximum efficiency and equip them with everything they need to know to do a proficient job, from the customer’s contact details to inspection sheets. Technology gives you the option to send the customer the engineer’s estimated time of arrival by SMS or email.
Live capture of onsite data
The information engineers enter remotely through their PDAs feeds back to your call control centre and back-office reporting and billing systems. Customers can be sent up-to-date compliance certification within minutes after the job is completed.
While not strictly speaking a customer service issue, having fast efficient billing processes reinforces your image as a professional service provider and helps to speed up payments and improve cash flow.
Collect customer feedback
Rating product suppliers and service providers has become a way of life. Customers are accustomed to completing online surveys and logging their opinions on review sites.
Without bombarding customers with survey requests, you can collect their feedback using standard forms on the engineer’s PDA or schedule a survey to be emailed to them after the job is complete.
Improve customer satisfaction through self-service
In a highly competitive market, customers will always expect you to add more value to your basic service.
It sounds a contradictory statement but enabling your contract customers to access information about their service history online improves their perception of the service they receive, without adding to the workload of your service administrators. Customers can download their certifications, view weekly and monthly statistics, the progress of any jobs, invoices…a whole wealth of information.
Rather than having to navigate spreadsheets and other documents, a graphical dashboard can give them an at-a-glance view. This information can be made available to customers on their tablet devices and branded with your corporate identity.
Conclusions
Your delivery of service excellence is reinforced by how you handle information: sending information out to your field-based teams, capturing information from your engineers and flowing it into your back-office systems, sharing information with customers…
Modern field service technology makes all this possible in a way that would be unthinkable using manual systems or older technology. Mobile devices and web technology add another layer of agility by making location no object in being able to collect and publish this information
Click here to Download the white paper here
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Dec 21, 2015 • Features • management • IFS • scheduling • Software and Apps
As we enter the final few working days days of 2015 it's a good time to reflect on what we did well this year and of course what we can do better next year...
As we enter the final few working days days of 2015 it's a good time to reflect on what we did well this year and of course what we can do better next year...
However whilst the world is certainly a better place financially than it was a few years ago we still live in an age of austerity. More and more companies have quite rightly moved their service departments to their own P&L as the shift from cost centre to profit centre becomes more common for a service division.
However, whether your field service operation is a necessary cost or a profitable division of your business, the ability to achieve more next year than you did this year with the same level of resource is one that can push your organisation to a better market share, greater profits and of courser internally will do your career as a field service management professional no harm at all either!
Fortunately many of the arguments for adopting certain technologies within field service industries are based on a robust return on investment (R.o.I) basis that will ultimately pay for itself and deliver ongoing savings in efficiency - often within a 12 month timeframe.
Then of course there is optimised scheduling where not only will you see reduced fuel costs but also achieve higher job completion across a day so potentially not only reducing costs but simulataneously improving customer service also.
Then of course there is optimised scheduling where not only will you see reduced fuel costs but also achieve higher job completion across a day so potentially not only reducing costs but simulataneously improving customer service also.
However, as with many things in life which sound a bit too good to be true, such claims of operational improvements and cost savings can sometimes be met with cynicism. Indeed, optimised scheduling may not deliver huge benefits for all companies, those with a relatively simple work process or a small team for example may not see the same benefits as those with larger workforces or a more complex set of jobs being allocated.
The simple truth is there is no simple answer as to the type of company that will get the best gains from optimised scheduling.
However, what is well documented is that most companies will see some performance gains and many of those who implement optimised scheduling will see highly significant gains such as PHS who saved £2M in a year in fuel savings alone.
So in order to help our readers identify whether optimised scheduling would benefit their organisation, Field Service News has teamed up with specialist service management provider IFS to offer a free, no obligation Field Service Healthcheck that will identify exactly what efficiencies your business could make through adopting an optimised scheduler.
Simply click the link below to access the registration page.
Once there complete the brief form and instructions will be sent to you on how to undertake your free field service health-check and a scheduling expert from IFS will analyse your current workload and identify exactly how and where you could make improvements within three days of receiving your completed form.
So why sit in the dark about how much optimised scheduling could benefit your company. Find out for free right now...
Click here to access the free field service healthcheck now...
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Field Service News is published by 1927 Media Ltd, an independent publisher whose sole focus is on the field service sector. As such our entire resources are focused on helping drive the field service sector forwards and aiming to best serve our industry through honest, incisive and innovative media coverage of the global field service sector.
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