ARCHIVE FOR THE ‘field-service’ CATEGORY

The advent of Cloud computing has had a profound effect on field service management.

Indeed, there is no denying that the emergence of Cloud computing has been a core driver in the ability for smaller and medium-sized field service companies to be able to compete with their larger competitors - and such competition has raised the bar for service delivery in all corners.

Anecdotally, how often have you heard someone comment (or indeed thought to yourself) ‘how is it that say my local florist is able to give me a detailed overview of where the flowers I have sent to my wife are at any given point within their delivery and are able to give me a 30 minute window for when they will arrive, yet the multi-national organisation that provides one of the key widgets that is essential to my businesses productivity can only tell me that an engineer will be with me at some point between 8 and 5?’

Of course, the truth is that the delivery of flowers is far less demanding of expertise than that expected of a highly qualified engineer capable of fixing said widget – which of course means that the scheduling requirements are also equally less complicated for the local florist.

In addition to this, the local florist will, largely by definition, only be serving a local area – whereas the B2B provider of the widget will almost certainly serve a national market, if not an international one.

So it is unfair perhaps to compare one to the other, accusations of seeking the similarities between apples and oranges are in this instance somewhat understandable. Yet, ultimately in today’s connected world, we must remember that we are no longer competing solely with those companies within our direct vertical sphere.

 

"Today, we are competing very simply against the best service experience our customers have ever had, whether that be within their consumer or their corporate lives..."

 

Today, we are competing very simply against the best service experience our customers have ever had, whether that be within their consumer or their corporate lives.

However, what this anecdotal example does highlight with true clarity is how smaller service organisations, be they florists, electricians, HVAC engineers or any of the other array of small entrepreneurial companies that help keep our day to day lives running, have been able to harness the power of modern FSM solutions.

This development is mostly the result of the introduction of SaaS-based subscription-style licensing which makes access to such systems possible. It seems like a long, long time ago that Tesseract, an Asolvi product became the first company in the world to offer their full FSM solution in the Cloud and on a SaaS model. Indeed, today almost all FSM providers now offer their solution in such a manner.

This means that smaller companies can have access to tools like scheduling, stock and parts management and mobile work management applications for their field-based staff to access via a mobile device. Yet, they also have the advantage of being more agile, more streamlined and less weighed down by legacy systems and processes that their larger peers undoubtedly face.

 

"In a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) scenario keeping on top of MDM can sometimes feel like painting the Golden Gate Bridge – by the time you finish at one end it’s time to head back the other way and start all over!"

 

Many, many aspects of introducing an FSM solution can become more challenging the larger an organisation is.

Optimised scheduling engines need to be ‘taught’ the rules under which they are to operate – the larger the workforce and the more diverse the skill-sets within that workforce, the more ‘lessons’ that need to be fed into the scheduling system for it to operate as intended.

Also, let’s consider the devices that are being utilised by the field workers – mobile device management (MDM) is a challenge that few IT departments will relish.

In a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) scenario keeping on top of MDM can sometimes feel like painting the Golden Gate Bridge – by the time you finish at one end it’s time to head back the other way and start all over!

Even in an environment where devices are provided by the organisation, there may be a mix of options within one company, with different devices being provided that meet specific roles within the organisation – such as rugged devices for field-based technicians.

This can result in a mix of iOS, Android and Windows operating systems (possibly even more) which all need to be factored into the MDM equation.

Again, this is a challenge that becomes magnified by the scale of the workforce in question.

Of course, another challenge magnified by the scale of the workforce is the simple fact that the introduction of any new business technology, including an FSM solution, is inherently a change management project – and as any change management consultant will inform you – good change management is about people. It is a simple equation to understand that more people mean more effort and complexity when undertaking such a task.

In terms of FSM solutions, the shift to the Cloud has absolutely changed the competitive dynamics within various industries in favour of those smaller companies who are savvy enough to embrace cloud-based FSM and unencumbered by challenges such as the above which larger companies may face.

This has given smaller organisations to flourish and thrive in the modern business eco-system, but this increased competition has resulted in huge organisations like Thyssenkrupp or ABB further driving innovation as we have showcased in these pages previously.

Our sector is going through a huge evolution with non-competing companies pushing each other to achieve more through service delivery and the cloud has played a major role in that allowing us to do so.

 

---

Be social and share...

John Hunt outlines why when it comes to digitalisation, the focus should be on the end goals, not the technology...

There is a common thread being pulled by executive boards across the globe at the moment both in the field service sector and far beyond.

That is, of course, digitalisation.

In my role here at Astea, it’s a topic that our customers and new prospects are keen to talk to us about – almost every company I’ve spoken to in the last 12 months has broached it in one form or another.

However, there is a fundamental point I believe is often being overlooked by companies as they dive head first into weaving the digitalisation thread into their strategy – that is that digitalisation itself should be seen as an on-going process continuously woven in your field service tapestry rather than a one-time project, or a mere stitch in time.

 

An opportunity to redefine workflows

To start, let’s look at what digitalisation shouldn’t be.

Digitalisation shouldn’t be simply taking all of the previous steps your field service engineers used to undertake manually with good old pen and paper and dumping them onto a mobile device. Digitalising their workflow is an opportunity to re-evaluate some of these processes, re-order some things, maybe even remove others entirely all in the spirit of making your customer ambassadors happier and more efficient and effective. That happiness, efficiency, and effectiveness translates into better top and bottom line performance and most importantly, happier and more loyal customers.

 

"Those companies that get the most success from the implementation of a Field Service Management (FSM) solution are those who bring a selection of their engineers into the implementation process..."

 

Invariably, those companies that get the most success from an implementation of a Field Service Management (FSM) solution are those who bring a selection of their engineers into the implementation process. Just like product marketers use focus groups of prospective customers to fine-tune their product offering to maximise demand, so should you leverage a similar approach with your customer ambassadors, also known as the engineers. For example, by speaking with your engineers to understand what elements of your FSM system’s mobile app they use the most frequently, you can ensure that access to the relevant parts of the solution need are easily surfaced within the app.

The same of course also goes for your scheduling solution – digitalisation should be an opportunity to put the information your team needs at their fingertips, quickly and seamlessly to improve both service triage and first-time-fix rates. So who better to ask what information should be where than the folks on the front line that need access to such information each and every day? The happiness through efficiency and effectiveness you will weave throughout the services organisation will pay big dividends not only in the traditional operational sense but also in employee retention and the all-important increased customer loyalty.

 

A journey of continuous improvement.

The concept of continuous improvement is one that many field service professionals are fully aware of, yet all too often it doesn’t get factored into discussions around digitalisation.

Facebook is famously always in ‘beta’ when it comes to its development, and whilst I wouldn’t recommend such a fluid approach to something as mission-critical as field service operations, digitalisation certainly allows us the opportunity to tweak things here and there to find those sometimes hidden incremental improvements that can yield seemingly small efficiencies that stack up hugely in the overall picture.

For example, I recall speaking with one service director earlier this year who explained to me that by implementing a simple keystroke study of his dispatch staff across 3 months they were able to identify some simple yet effective changes to the menu structure of their system which brought some frequently used options to the front of the solution when they were previously tucked away behind a couple of sub-menus.

On an individual basis these changes sped up the dispatcher’s role by just a few seconds each time. However, the overall net benefit to the service organisation was millions of dollars per year as those seconds began to add up across the entire workforce just like a snowball accumulating more and more snow as it rolls down the mountain.

Digitalisation allows us to not only make these changes quickly and easily across a large user base but also to understand how, why and where these changes should be made.

 

Build processes today with an eye on tomorrow.

One final piece of advice I would give to companies embarking on their own digitalisation journey is remember you don’t always need to boil the ocean; digitalisation should be an iterative process.

For example, IoT is the hot topic in field service right now and rightly so as it is set to play a huge role in the future of service delivery. Yet, for many companies a full IoT rollout is cost prohibitive and requires a gargantuan feat of logistical planning.

 

"I’d suggest you don’t even need one asset connected before you start building in the processes of identifying key data you wish to collect – what is to stop your engineers noting certain key data points when performing maintenance?"

 

However, do you need to have every asset in your install base connected before you can start pulling data for analysis to dig out some key trends and insights that could be of value to your organisation and perhaps even more importantly to your customers? Of course not!

In fact, I’d suggest you don’t even need one asset connected before you start building in the processes of identifying key data you wish to collect – what is to stop your engineers noting certain key data points when performing maintenance? You can build the processes and collect the data that would form the backbone of a digitalisation strategy before a single asset is connected, and then introduce automation for these new processes across a much more manageable timeframe.

In doing so you will have already begun to think beyond the realms of what is possible today and begun to consider what can we build now that will improve our service delivery tomorrow.

And this at its heart is what good digitalisation strategy should be all about. There are already some masterpiece tapestries with shiny digitalisation threads prominently featured in the field service world today reaping big rewards with their own teams and customers; these will continue to grow and outpace the industry. The best time to have begun your work of art was yesterday. The second best time is today, so gather your thread and your team to design it and start weaving!

---

John Hunt, is Managing Director, EMEA, Astea, 

---

 

Be social and share...

JLT Mobile Computers, a leading developer and manufacturer of reliable computers for demanding environments, sees an increasing demand for Android within many of its core segments, including warehouse logistics, transportation, ports, mining and agriculture markets.

Responding to this trend, in March 2018 JLT launched its latest generation JLT6012™ vehicle-mount computer with Android support and is now expanding its Android operating system product suite with three new fully rugged portable computers.

Being by far the most common mobile operating system for smartphones and other consumer devices, Android, with its familiarity, ease-of-use and flexibility is now growing in popularity also in the enterprise and vertical market space.

“No doubt, there is a lot of interest in Android on mobile devices for professional use within our core markets,” observes Per Holmberg, CEO of JLT Mobile Computers. “By providing Android alternatives for our vehicle-mount computers and now also our portable computers, we help customers save on cost and training, and simplify maintenance by running the same OS on all devices deployed in their operation.”

The three new products are the 5-inch MH1005A™ rugged handheld, the 7-inch MT1007A™ rugged tablet, and the 10.1-inch MT2010A™ rugged tablet. All are IP65 dustproof and water resistant, capable of operating in temperatures of -10 to +50°C (14 to +122°F), built to withstand even the most challenging working environments, and tested to applicable MIL-STD-810G requirements.

Powered by ARM® Cortex™-A53 octa-core 1.3 GHz processors, all come with bright sunlight viewable displays, capacitive multi-touch screen, front and rear integrated cameras, as well as data capturing functions including NFC reader and optional 1D/2D-barcode reader. For maximum productivity, all include Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS, and mobile broadband and provide full-shift battery life or more.

The new rugged tablet and handheld units, which are available for immediate order, are offered with the same high level of support and services that JLT is renowned for. A wide range of accessories is available, including vehicle and desktop docks, high-capacity batteries, battery chargers, and hand and shoulder straps.

Contact JLT Mobile Computers today for more information about the new Android-based rugged handheld and tablets, or visit www.jltmobile.com to learn more about JLT, its products and solutions.

 

---

Be social and share... 

FSH, the one-stop construction company servicing the north of England, has transformed its business with a 5 in 1 management system from BigChange.  Operating as a cloud service linked to mobile apps used by workers onsite, the solution provides FSH with real-time operational information for improving efficiency, productivity and service.

Employing 132 mobile tradesmen and 65 office staff, the Castleford headquartered company has regional offices in Hull, Liverpool and Newcastle-upon-Tyne.  FSH specialises in insurance-related work, typically repairing flood or fire damaged properties.  A new construction arm handing reactive maintenance work is also driving expansion in sectors such as social housing and education.

“We work mainly for the UK’s biggest insurance firms and providing a consistently high-quality rebuild and refurbishment service is absolutely vital,” says Matthew Cappleman, Managing Director of FSH.  “The monitoring and reporting of our work on site is however just as important and that’s where BigChange comes in.  It gives real-time visibility of every job and provides an audit trail of all work.  We can manage the work better, improve customer service, and provide insurers with immediate job updates and evidence of work done.”

With a fleet of 132 BigChange equipped vehicles providing live data for managing operations, tradesmen are being equipped with rugged Samsung tablets running JobWatch.  Mobile apps completely replace paperwork with live data reporting and the devices capture useful time and location stamped photographs, as well as customer signatures.

"BigChange really does expedite everything as our tradesman can go straight to the job and put in a full, productive 8 hour day.  The system also ensures good work discipline and good practice as the tradesmen are in effect self-managing their work, backed up with their reports and photographs. With JobWatch there is no more sitting around and managers no longer need to go onsite to check the work.  Everyone wins,“ comments Matthew Cappleman.

Stuart Welburn, Finance Director at FSH agrees that BigChange has had a positive impact, adding “Certainly BigChange has been good for business and we estimate efficiency gains of 2 or 3 percent.  However, we anticipate it will improve our profitability not only through better utilisation of our resources but by generally improving our services to continually improve our reputation and win more business’.

 

---

Be social and share...

Claudine Mosseri outlines how in an age of increasing consumer power it is critical field service engineers are able meet SLAs and explains how technology in service logistics is making that happen...

News headlines would suggest that the high street is fast heading to a retail graveyard, with longstanding titans like Debenhams and House of Fraser the latest to face tough times.

Yet only after a period of turmoil, only one in 10 shops is vacant.

Factors such as the need to try before you buy, instant gratification and the convenience of returns are just a few of the factors that keep consumers returning to the high street.

The most successful stores are not only driving e-commerce, but also optimising the in-store experience by implementing new technologies and interactive features for customers.

We are starting to see the emergence of brand leaders such as Amazon Go, whose model is being mimicked by Tesco in its cashless store trial.

Whistl also discovered that over half of shoppers prefer unmanned tills to deal with cashiers, as it’s faster. As retailers become ever bolder in their use of tech, they rely more heavily on those integrated devices working flawlessly.

But as the old adage says, the best-laid plans often go awry. At some point, technology will fail, whether it’s a shopper-facing device or the datacentres serving them. When this happens, problems result for both consumer and retailer.

 

"ByBox recently surveyed 1,000 shoppers, two-thirds reported they had experienced problems and breakdowns in-store. For one-third of these dissatisfied consumers, this meant they were unable to complete their purchase at all..."

 

ByBox recently surveyed 1,000 shoppers, two thirds reported they had experienced problems and breakdowns in-store. For one third of these dissatisfied consumers, this meant they were unable to complete their purchase at all.

What was designed to be a positive customer experience can quickly turn into a negative with long term consequences when the technology fails.

Over a third (38%) of shoppers told us they felt angry or irritated because of these breakdowns.

Over a fifth complained to store staff about nonfunctional devices. And for a very angry one in 10, their opinions of the store were damaged in the long term.

With revenue and reputation at risk, it is vital that retailers implement strategies to limit risk and ensure rapid response times when the inevitable does happen and their tech lets them down.

It starts with making sure service providers are equipped to manage speedy same-day fixes.

Ensuring this needs to be the norm when it comes to setting service-level agreements.

There are new technologies that can support this requirement. For example, creating micro-FSLs (forward stock locations) by combining sophisticated software and smart locker technology, means repair items can be prepositioned using overnight or through the day deliveries. Shortening the mean time to repair (MTTR) can also limit the risk to retailers.

The world of retail is moving at a swift technological pace – but this isn’t the only sector where the support services for connected devices must move with the times.

If networks and other background tech systems fail the entire customer experience is interrupted, and it’s often the front-end business which bears the brunt of customer dissatisfaction and lost revenue.

Modern retail is all about convenience and ease for the consumer, delivering the fastest way to shop in the most seamless and engaging way.

As we see one ‘rush’ to improve the shopping experience by implementing new technologies, retailers should prepare for another – maintaining these innovations.

This will keep the high street alive and kicking.

 

---

Claudine Mosseri, is General Manager, ByBox 

---

Be social and share... 

Rugged devices are a hugely important tools available to field service organisations to empower their engineers with mobile tools that are designed to survive the rigours of remote working environments. However, for the uninitiated, there can be a bewildering amount of terms used by rugged manufacturers (and increasingly their consumer-focused cousin) so let’s take a quick refresher of some of the key language used in the world of rugged...

 

Fit-for-purpose

With no shortage of devices to choose from, deciding what’s best for your service operation is no easy task. Fit-for-purpose should be the starting point for any deployment, say the experts.

Indeed, the first question any company should ask when looking for new devices for their engineers or technicians is “what tasks will the device be used for?”

Mobile devices in field service are mission-critical – they are not just “nice-to-have”, they are the lynchpin of your operations essential to the efficient running of the operation. Ease-of-use of can have a big effect on productivity and user-acceptance – would an integrated barcode scanner, for example, be better than a more fiddly-to-use camera?

 

"The mobile device is more than your service technician’s new pen and paper; it carries the job schedule, customer details and equipment data..."

 

Remember, once you’ve made the shift away from paper, there’s no going back – the mobile device is more than your service technician’s new pen and paper; it carries the job schedule, customer details and equipment data.

Your customers will become used to the higher service levels.

So, above all, the devices you equip your field workers with need to be reliable.

Can it survive the technician dropping it? Are the processor and memory up to running several apps at once if that’s required? Is the screen readable in strong light? Will the touchscreen work if it gets wet? Can it last a whole shift without recharging the battery?

Is it Fit-for-purpose?

 

MIL-STD810G

Almost every rugged device you see will proudly boast the magical code MIL-STD 810G somewhere in the specs but what exactly does it mean and why is it just so important?

Well as you may well have guessed MIL-STD is actually short for Military Standard. In fact, it is an American military standard that although has it’s origins with the US Air Force is now upheld in a tri-service agreement between the US Army, US Navy and US Air force. However, the standard is widely adopted amongst commercial products that need to be able to hold up to rigorous environmental tests.

The G if you were wondering, relates to the current revision of the certification document and we have been at G since 2008.

General Program Guidelines

The first part of the MIL-STD-810G is a set of general guidelines that describes management, engineering, and technical roles in the environmental design and test the tailoring process. It focuses on the process of tailoring design and test criteria to the specific environmental conditions an equipment item is likely to encounter during its service life.

Laboratory test methods

The second element of MIL-STD-810G is focussed on the environmental laboratory test methods to be applied using the test tailoring guidelines described outlined in the general program guidelines.

With the exception of Test Method 528 (Mechanical Vibrations of Shipboard Equipment), these methods are not mandatory, but rather the appropriate method is selected and tailored to generate the most relevant test data possible.

The tests themselves are varied across a range of different environmental stresses which include:

 

• Temperature ranges
• Shock
• Vibration
• Humidity

 

Tested to. Vs. Engineered to

One problem with MIL-STD 810G testing is that it can be very expensive and it’s important to remember that MIL-STD-810 is not a specification per se but a standard. A specification provides for absolute criteria which must be satisfied to “meet the spec”. MIL-STD-810 as a standard provides methods for testing material for use in various environments but provides no absolute environmental limits.

Therefore, some OEMs will skip the whole second part of MIL STD 810G (the actual testing part) yet still claim their devices are engineered to meet MIL-STD 810G standards.

Whilst such devices may well be more than capable of surviving the rigours of your field engineers toughest day, the simple fact is that they haven’t been actually tested to do so.

That said most of the dedicated rugged players within the space such as Janam, Getac, Panasonic and Xplore et al will all have their own internal testing facilities and will also often engage with a third party to validate their findings.

 

IP Ratings

IP environmental ratings along with MIL standards (MIL-STD) are perhaps the most widely recognised yet also perhaps the least fully understood of the standard definitions of what makes a mobile computer or tablet rugged.

What the IP figures mean

IP ratings are defined by International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) standards and tell you how well devices are sealed against dirt and moisture ingress and the level of protection components have against whatever is thrown at them.

IP ratings have two numbers: the first indicates the degree of protection against dust, dirt and foreign bodies entering the device while the second is about how resistant the device is to the ingress of fluid from drops, sprays and submersion. Ingress protection ratings can be affected by the number of ports on a device and whether they are sealed or open, by keyboard design and a number of other factors.

 

"If like me, you’ve ever spilt tea or coffee on a computer keyboard, you’ll know that water ingress can be the kiss of death to electronic components.."

 

For field service, the numbers to look out for on a rugged mobile device are “5” and “6” for dust protection and 4,5,6, or 7 for water or fluid ingress. (In comparison, consumer devices typically have a rating of IP42 or lower although high-end consumer mobile devices are frequently now seen to have IP67 ratings)

Both are important when assessing devices: if like me, you’ve ever spilt tea or coffee on a computer keyboard, you’ll know that water ingress can be the kiss of death to electronic components. Less dramatic but in the long term just as damaging are ingress of dust and dirt particles. They can cause keys to stick and generally penetrate causing damage to components.

While “6” is dust-proof, a “5” rating doesn’t mean the device will prove unreliable, just that it isn’t completely sealed against dust ingress. It’s worth noting, too, that complete sealing against water and dust ingress may increase internal temperatures which in turn might impact on processor performance.

There are more numbers for fluid or water ingress: a “4” rating signals protection from splashes, “5” against water from a nozzle, “6” will cope with more powerful water jets or sprays, while “7” means you can submerge the device in water and it will still survive.

Again, which is best for your operations depends on the working environment – for many field-service environments, a “5” rating and even possibly a ”4 “will be perfectly adequate.

 

Touchscreens:

In a world of smartphones and tablets touch-screens have become a universally understood means of interacting with a device.

Whether it is inputting data or simply navigating through an operating system, I would put a hefty wager on the fact that anyone reading this article is both familiar and comfortable with using a touch-screen device, such is the prevalence of the technology today.

Touch-screens are an important, even critical part of the user experience of almost all modern tablets and smartphones. Yet at the same time, the screen is of course the potential Achilles heel and an obvious weak spot in a rugged device. The balance therefore between delivering a screen that is sufficiently capable of withstanding drops and knocks, whilst maintaining high usability, is absolutely critical for a rugged device.

So let's look at some of the various options you may find in differing rugged devices when it comes to the screen and explore exactly what these options actually mean.

Almost certainly the biggest debate when it comes to screen choices in rugged devices is whether capacitive or resistive screens are better suited for the task. But what is the difference between the two?

The older of the two technologies is resistive which relies on pressure to register input. This pressure can be applied by your finger, a stylus or any other object – think of the handheld computers that many delivery companies use, often covered in ink because when the original stylus is lost, the delivery driver often just uses a regular pen to collect a signature instead.

Resistive touch screens consist of two flexible layers with an air gap in between and in order for the touch-screen to register input, you must press on the top layer using a small amount of pressure to make contact with the bottom layer. The touch-screen will then register the precise location of the touch.

Rather than relying on pressure, capacitive touch-screens instead sense conductivity to register input—usually from the skin on your fingertip but also from dedicated styluses.

 

"The biggest debate when it comes to screen choices in rugged devices is whether capacitive or resistive screens are better suited for the task. But what is the difference between the two?"

 

Because you don’t need to apply pressure, capacitive touch-screens are more responsive than resistive touch-screens. However, because they work by sensing conductivity, capacitive touch-screens can only be used with objects that have conductive properties, which includes your fingertip (which is ideal), and special styluses designed with a conductive tip.

Initially one of the big advantages of capacitive touch screens was that they enabled multi-finger gestures – perhaps the most obvious example is pinching or stretching a document to zoom in or out. However, resistive touch screens have also supported multi-finger input for about three or four years now also.

The big advantage resistive screens have over their capacitive counterparts is the fact that the operator can still use the devices whilst wearing gloves – as the input is dependent on pressure rather than the electrical current being completed through a conductive material such as a finger.

An additional benefit is that light touch, such as rain landing on the screen, won’t register so the devices are far better to suited to being used in the wet.

Both of these factors are of course particularly useful in a number of field service environments.

However, another key factor for rugged devices is of course reliability and durability and in this respect, capacitive touch screens have the advantage – especially in heavy use applications.

Resistive screens can have a tendency to eventually begin to wear down in frequently used areas. Such areas may be prone to becoming faded and may ultimately even become unresponsive. Also in terms of reliability, if a capacitive touch-screen does happen to become pierced or cracked it is still likely to function – think how many times you have seen someone using a smartphone with a cracked screen?

However, a break anywhere on a resistive touch-screen will often mean that it no longer works.

In terms of field service, this is a potentially huge advantage for capacitive screens as it allows for a field service technician to continue to utilise their device until they can get the screen repaired.

Ultimately, there are many different rugged devices available these days ranging from rugged smart-phone style handhelds through to fully rugged detachable laptops. As we mentioned at the beginning of this feature ensuring the devices you select are fit for purpose is crucial.

In order to do this, we advise getting a real understanding of how your field service engineers and technicians are doing their job - what environments to they work in and what is there workflow. Get them in to give you some input or get out there on some ride-alongs. Because, if you have an understanding of this you will find a device that fits your needs.

 

---

Be social and share... 

Check out this excellent showcase of Dell's latest rugged range where NatGeo’s Mike Libecki trades a peak into expedition life for a look at Dell’s Latitude 7424 Rugged Extreme and Latitude 5424 and 5420 Rugged notebooks.

National Geographic adventurer Mike Libecki depends on Dell Rugged PCs to get to the most extreme locations and this great video he takes Rahul Tikoo, VP of Commercial Mobility Computing with him to Utah to give him a taste of expedition life through ascending, rappelling and climbing, whilst Rahul Mike the new Dell Latitude 7424 Rugged Extreme and Latitude 5424 and 5420 Rugged notebooks.

Find out more and check out the full Dell rugged product line here: https://www.dell.com/rugged

 

---

Be social and share...

For those on the outside, it may seem that OnPoint Warranty Solutions are a new entrant into our sector.

However, take a peek behind the curtain and you will find a senior exec team with an abundance of experience in the both service and technology. Heading up that team is CEO Chris Smith, a seasoned contract, service and Customer Experience (CX) executive, who has racked up over 32 years industry expertise with the likes of Samsung, AIG, GE and FSM solution provider ServicePower.

In fact, CVs that name check both ServicePower and GE are a common thread amongst 3 of the 4 members of the newly formed exec board driving OnPoint’s business strategy as both CTO Michael Baumer and CMO and COO Jenniffer Breitenstein are ServicePower and GE alumni as well.

What these shared backgrounds indicate is a collection of senior leaders within this young company that have a comprehensive and intimate understanding of what are foundational pillars within the field service sector – namely Customer Experience and how technology can be leveraged to improve service operations.

One final name to add into this impressive group is that of founder and president of OnPoint, Robert Christian.

 

"In fact, they provide solutions for Manufacturers, retailers, original device manufacturers, Service Providers and Consumers alike..."

 

However, Christian brings a different skill set to the team than that of his colleagues. With a background as a Property Casualty Underwriter and database marketing, he has been working in the warranty industry since 1994 and was also instrumental in the creation of Encompass Supply Chain Solutions.

Of course, as founder, it is Christian’s background that is the cornerstone and key influence on where OnPoint positions themselves in the market. However, the service-centric experience of Smith, Breitenstein and Baumer has allowed them to carve out a strong sense of unique identity and solution set.

In fact, they provide solutions for Manufacturers, retailers, original device manufacturers, Service Providers and Consumers alike with their suite of offerings that include customer service solutions ranging from underwriting to extended warranty and service contract programs, service fulfilment and technology, as well as logistics.

In their own words, OnPoint’s solutions have been architected to connect brands to their consumers, relying on “solid underwriting relationships, Omnichannel consumer technology, a robust, AI-driven service administration platform and an expertly managed network of service and part providers”, to deliver great customer service experiences.

“They are designed to mitigate risk and drive revenue for client brands and underwriters while delivering the best customer service experiences on new and existing products.”

Indeed, it is a broad array of solutions that appear to be leveraging the latest consumer-focused technologies and that are designed to take a fresh and dynamic approach to service delivery.

As Christian comments: “As we evaluated what was needed to help brands meet consumers expectations, we recognized that flipping the service paradigm is critical.”

“OnPoint is focused on the end-consumer first. Offering solidly backed warranties and service contracts, variable coverage options that maximize product lifetime values, real-time connectivity on any device, and great service delivered by vetted, technology-enabled service providers drive brand loyalty.”

“When OnPoint cares for the end-consumer, our customers can focus on creating, marketing and selling their brand, which consumers will come back to again and again,” he added.

Indeed, given the rapid emergence of smart home technologies with connected assets within consumer homes now becoming more and more prevalent, there is certainly a lot of potential for those companies who can ‘flip the paradigm’ to flourish as we enter a brave new world of IoT expectations.

 

"Within just a month of announcing their launch back in July 2018, OnPoint was able to announce their first major contract with a major white goods provider to provide field service for their latest line of refrigerator goods..."

 

As a matter of fact, OnPoint considers this a key growth opportunity for the business. Using technology to gather a complete inventory of connected and non-connected devices in consumer homes enables OnPoint to offer game-changing, subscription-based contract and service offers. Consumer not only gain the ability to intelligently cover products which they own with solid service coverage, but they can also change coverage on a month to month basis. In a world where mobile devices are upgraded every 12 months and appliance products no longer can be expected to last 10 years, consumers are empowered to cover what’s important to their household, today and tomorrow with OnPoint.

“The warranty and service business has experienced an evolution in just the last 3 years”, explains Smith.

“Emerging technologies like IoT and 24x7 connectivity through smart devices have transformed the way consumers buy, the way they communicate, and the way they evangelize or demonize a product, a service, or an experience.”

“OnPoint aspires to tap into the vast experience and talent of our team and our selected partners to seamlessly connect manufacturers, retailers and service providers to their consumers, providing great service, transparency and value to both our clients and their customers,” he asserts.

Indeed, within just a month of announcing their launch back in July 2018, OnPoint was able to announce their first major contract with a major white goods provider to provide field service for their latest line of refrigerator goods.

This announcement was then swiftly followed by further announcements of tech partnerships with Mize – another name in field service that has begun to gain impressive traction within the last couple of years in our sector and is a partnership, which can only bode well for the future development and growth of OnPoint.

Whilst it is of course early days for the start-up they have both the wealth of experience, understanding of the industry and an innovative approach that could see them offering services that will be in much demand amongst field service organisations, particularly in consumer industries, as our industry continues to adapt to the widespread impact of IoT in our daily lives.

Find out more @ www.onpointwarranty.com or help@onpointwarranty.com

 

---

Be social and share... 

Captec, designer and supplier of specialist computer platforms, has announced the launch of a brand new fully rugged tablet, built specifically for mobile workforces.

The lightweight, 8-inch VT 681 provides smaller fleets with an affordable Windows-based tablet and has been developed by Captec to disrupt the market currently dominated by more expensive rugged hardware.

Ruggedisation features include IP-67 protection and drop-testing to 1.2 metres, enabling the tablet to comfortably withstand the stresses of challenging environments including rough treatment, dust and water ingress and shocks.

With built-in GPS and an optional barcode scanner, the VT-681 supports the application needs of today’s mobile workforce across sectors including construction, field services, utility fleets and emergency services.

The addition of an integrated hand strap delivers maximum comfort on-the-go, while the active stylus pen increases the functionality available to field service professionals, even in wet conditions.

 

"With built-in GPS and an optional barcode scanner, the VT-681 supports the application needs of today’s mobile workforce across sectors including construction, field services, utility fleets and emergency services..."

 

For mobile workforces requiring use in and out of vehicles, Captec has also developed the IVM-681 vehicle dock, designed to accommodate the VT-681 tablet.

The new Captec dock is robust, compact and quick and easy to use. It features USB and power pass through and has been constructed to offer hassle-free, one-handed cost-effective docking.

To meet the critical safety requirements of in-vehicle applications, the dock has been tested for its ability to endure shock and vibration – enabling tablets to stay securely mounted, even in the event of a collision.

Gerard Marlow, Sales Director, Captec, said:

“We’re excited to be able to introduce this new rugged tablet into our range. Our aim is to provide mobile workforces with flexible, powerful and cost-effective mobile computing solutions that make their jobs easier and provide peace of mind that they’re equipped to withstand all the rigours associated with fieldwork.”

As well as developing the new tablet and dock, Captec offers a complete installation service. By fully managing everything from vehicle audits and custom cable looms to installation and through-life support, Captec optimise in-vehicle applications for reliability, safety and longevity.

Find out more about the Captec VT-681 rugged tablet here - https://www.captec-group.com/product/captec-vt-681-fully-rugged-tablet/

 

---

Be social and share...