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Varlink, the specialist Mobile Computing, Auto ID and EPOS Distributor, announces the date of their 14^th annual Meet the Manufacturer (MTM) event, set to take place on Wednesday 13^th February 2019 at the King Power Stadium in Leicester.

This industry event which since its inception has become a key date in the diary, brings together leading manufacturers including Janam Technologies, Zebra Technologies, Honeywell and DataVan, with UK IT Resellers, Solution Providers and System Integrators.

Sponsored by Janam Technologies, MTM will see global AIDC and EPOS hardware manufacturers exhibit alongside complementary product and service providers as part of Varlink’s Alliance Programme.

Delegates can be assured of an exceptional return on their time, with new product demonstrations, future technology roadmaps and key IT Channel stakeholders all under one roof, enabling businesses to keep ahead of the curve.

Varlink CEO, Mike Pullon, said, "We are looking forward to holding yet another successful MTM, where we bring together many of our customers and Mobile Computing, Auto ID & EPoS suppliers. MTM provides our customers with the ideal platform to see the latest products from our long established and recently added suppliers as well as the opportunity to talk to our Alliance Partners about their complementary products and services.

As the rate of technical innovation and product development continues to quicken, MTM is the ideal forum for our customers to try out and discuss the products that will be increasingly demanded by end users over the coming months."

MTM’s convenient drop-in format recognises the difficulty to get away from the office, and with pre-arranging meetings with vendors and the Varlink team encouraged, delegates really can get the most out of their visit, regardless of the time they can commit.

Robert Hurt, General Manager EMEA at Janam Technologies, said, “We are thrilled to sponsor this year’s MTM event. With a continued commitment to providing mobile solutions with the right features at the right price, we are excited to showcase the most innovative products in our history.”

MTM2018 takes place between 9.30am and 3.00pm on Wednesday 13^th February at the Kind Power Stadium in Leicester. For more information, exhibitor line up and to register your place please visit www.varlink.co.uk/mtm2019/ or call Varlink on 01904 717180.

Experts from Accenture, Daimler Trucks North America, Spartan Motors, Carlisle & Company, Bocconi University and Syncron share strategies to succeed in the years ahead...

To help manufacturers navigate one of the most transformative times in history, Syncron^TM, a provider of cloud-based after-sales service solutions focused on empowering the world’s leading manufacturers to maximise product uptime and deliver exceptional customer experiences, today published “2019 After-sales Service Predictions: Powering the Journey to Servitization Through Maximized Product Uptime.” Service experts from Accenture, Daimler Trucks North America, Spartan Motors, Carlisle & Company, Bocconi University and Syncron shared insights on the time, resources and technology manufacturers will need to win in 2019 and beyond. 

Servitisation – where organisations transition from selling one-off products to selling the outcome or value those products deliver – is leading manufacturers to evolve their after-sales service operations from reactive, break-fix models focused on repair execution, to a new paradigm focused on dynamic repair prevention and maximising product uptime. In this new white paper, Syncron unveils how manufacturers can succeed in this shift to servitisation. 

“In this new era of servitisation, the responsibility for ensuring maximised product uptime is shifting from the end-user to the manufacturer,” said Gary Brooks, CMO at Syncron. “This new business model will require manufacturers to find ways to increase cost efficiencies throughout the entire value chain, ultimately driving them to completely transform business logic, company cultures and product development strategies. Today’s global manufacturers are at a pivotal point in their storied histories, and those that adapt to the changing climate will be the ones to come out on top.”

The key predictions included in the white paper include: 

1. The time for manufacturers to begin shifting to servitisation is now
2. Manufacturers must intelligently allocate the resources behind an evolving industry
3. Adopting the right technology is crucial to making servitisation a reality

In addition, the white paper includes a foreword by Syncron CEO, Anders Grudén, plus further details about the future of after-sales service and immediate next steps for manufacturers to take as they begin 2019.

“We interviewed multiple industry experts – the best-of-the-best around the globe, to compile this expert advice,” continued Brooks. “This white paper will serve as an ultimate guide for manufacturers to establish business plans for not only 2019, but also several years down the road.”

Key contributors to “2019 After-sales Service Predictions: Powering the Journey to Servitization Through Maximized Product Uptime” include: Kurt Ranka, Principle Director, Accenture; Carlo Alberto Carnevale Maffè, Professor of Strategy, Bocconi University; Nate Chenenko, Manager, Carlisle & Company; Jay Johnson, General Manager, Daimler Trucks North America; Jon Dickinson, Director of Aftermarket Sales, Spartan Motors; Anders Grudén, Chief Executive Officer, Syncron and Gary Brooks, Chief Marketing Officer, Syncron.

Click here to read “2019 After-sales Service Predictions: Powering the Journey to Servitization Through Maximized Product Uptime” in its entirety. To learn more about Syncron and its suite of after-sales service solutions, visit syncron.com.

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Asolvi has brought about a digital transformation at Cryptex Security, a London-based specialist in home and business security systems. This has not just enabled the company to go paperless, reduce admin staff and acquire a competing business. It’s also let co-founder and finance director Ian Zeff fulfil a lifelong dream to live and work abroad...

Cryptex specialises in harnessing the power of the Internet of Things (IoT) to make people and buildings safer. Its intruder alarms, access control and CCTV systems are embedded with sensors and software that enable them to interact with each other via the internet and are capable of being controlled by computer or smartphone. This provides occupiers with more extensive and comprehensive security as well as greater ease and flexibility in how they use it.

Maintenance in this industry is more important than in any other because of the disastrous implications of a security system going down. IoT technology is vulnerable to cyber threats as well as physical threats, which is why the maintenance of smart security systems has to be intensive and meticulous. It also means that providers need a foolproof maintenance management system to ensure not just that nothing falls through the cracks, but that there are no cracks. 

Cryptex operates rigorous preventative and corrective maintenance programmes on all security assets, both on-site and, leveraging its IoT capabilities, remotely. Since April 2016, all of these programmes have been managed through Tesseract — Asolvi’s pan-industry solution, suitable for field service businesses of all types — which Cryptex chose over several market-specific options.

 

Going paperless

One of the reasons Cryptex chose Asolvi was because it wanted to automate its service processes, including workforce management and invoicing, and go paperless. “The efficiency gains we’ve made since implementing Tesseract are radical,” says Ian Zeff. “We’re now completely paperless. Our printing and postage costs are zero. And being in the security industry, we used to have to do huge amounts of shredding. Now we do none. The fact that there’s no wastage has made Cryptex much greener.”

 

"Our printing and postage costs are zero. And being in the security industry, we used to have to do huge amounts of shredding. Now we do none."

 

The elimination of paperwork also enabled Cryptex to swap an administrative staff member for a new engineer. “Thanks to Tesseract, we no longer needed a junior administrator doing filing, printing, posting etc. This meant we could employ another field engineer in their place. And engineers are our bread and butter. The work they do is our business. So having an extra engineer on our books is enabling us to do more work and bring in additional revenue.”

 

The power to scale up

Tesseract has given Cryptex the power to grow, something that its old, manual, paper-driven service management system would have made too difficult. It’s partly because the efficiency gains that come with Tesseract cut out a lot of administrative red tape when taking on new customers, contracts and workers. It’s also because of how easy it is to input new data and users into the Tesseract system.

“In May 2018, we purchased a local competitor, Henry Gates Security Services,” says Ian. “Tesseract gave us the power to make this acquisition, because of how easy it was to input data and users and get visibility of the new company straight away. We were able to take on nearly 700 new contracts instantly. The integration process was a breeze.”

 

A more enjoyable work life

Since implementing Tesseract, the most exciting change for Ian personally is that he’s moved abroad and performs all his management responsibilities remotely.

“My favourite thing about working with Asolvi is that they’ve helped me emigrate!” he says. “It was always a dream of mine to move to Israel. Now I can be in the office without physically being in the office. The fact that our data is in the cloud, our processes are automated and everyone’s connected via a central point has made that possible.”

 

"Now each person is at his or her desk driving the business forwards with a few clicks of the mouse..."

 

The rest of the people at Cryptex are also experiencing radically improved working conditions. Ian explains, “Our staff no longer have to get up and walk to a cabinet, check a file, find that something’s missing and have to look for it, wait for things to print, deal with printer jams, stick things in the post, lick envelopes. Now each person is at his or her desk driving the business forwards with a few clicks of the mouse. And our engineers are happier too. They loathed paperwork and having to lug around files. Now they have everything they need on their phones and it means we’re not chasing them for forms and timesheets.”

Ian continues, “The way Tesseract has changed our service operation is nothing short of the digital transformation that everyone in the industry is talking about. The automation, the mobility and the seamless lines of communication between us all — it’s exactly what digital transformation is all about.”

 

Automated scheduling for customers

A new development at Cryptex is about to make its people’s lives even easier. The company will soon adopt the Tesseract customer service portal, which gives customers direct access to the Tesseract system. They will be able to log incidents, monitor progress and escalation, and run reports. They will also be able to use Tesseract’s automated scheduling functionality to book appointments directly through the portal. This is a new feature and something that many field service management software providers don’t offer.

Ian explains, “Now that we’ve got the bug for automation and making everything run faster and slicker, we wanted to foster a culture of customers booking their own service visits. At the moment we have to tell customers when maintenance is due and book the visits ourselves. With the new functionality, when maintenances become due, customers will receive an automated email telling them to book their appointment through the portal or call the office, in that order. This will save even more time for our office staff and give customers more control over their service needs.”

 

Forward-thinking development

Asolvi is committed to strengthening and adding to its solutions in an effort to make field service operations, particularly those of SMEs, faster and smarter. Ian says, “What I like about working with Asolvi is that they’re looking to drive their business forwards and continually refine what they offer. This can only be a good thing for customers.”

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The number of active fleet management systems deployed in commercial vehicle fleets in Australia and New Zealand was almost 0.8 million in Q4-2017 according to a new research report from the leading IoT analyst firm Berg Insight.

Growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 16.4 percent, this number is expected to reach nearly 1.7 million by 2022. A wide variety of players serve the fleet telematics market in Australia and New Zealand, ranging from small local vendors to leading international solution providers. Though there is a myriad of very small players, the number of providers with large installed bases in the region is however relatively limited and the market is comparably consolidated in terms of market share.

The top-10 players in Australia and New Zealand account for almost 60 percent of the active units on the market, and more than 40 percent is even represented by the top-5.

Berg Insight ranks Teletrac Navman as the largest solution vendor in Australia and New Zealand, being the only player which has surpassed the milestone of 100,000 active units in the region.

“The runners-up are Verizon Connect, EROAD, MTData and Netstar based in the US, New Zealand, Australia and South Africa respectively”, said Rickard Andersson, Principal Analyst, Berg Insight. He adds that MTData is now owned by the Australian operator Telstra since 2017.

Other vendors with comparably sizeable subscriber bases in Australia and New Zealand include the local suppliers IntelliTrac, Smartrak, Coretex and Digital Matter, as well as international players including MiX Telematics and Fleet Complete. “Also a notable number of commercial vehicle OEMs have introduced fleet telematics solutions in the region, either independently or through partnerships with established telematics providers”, continued Mr. Andersson. Examples include Isuzu, Volvo Trucks, UD Trucks, Scania, PACCAR, Toyota, Hino, Mercedes-Benz and Mitsubishi.

Additional players including international aftermarket telematics providers and vehicle manufacturers as well as local actors are expected to expand in the market in the coming years. “The fleet management market in Australia and New Zealand is currently influenced positively by a number of different drivers including regulatory developments related to health and safety regulations, chain of responsibility legislation and road user charges”, concluded Mr. Andersson.

Download report brochure: Fleet Management in Australia and New Zealand

 

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Technology buyers are in favour of spreading the cost of equipping their mobile workforces with notebooks, tablets and handheld devices, the latest research reveals.

78% of UK technology buyers said they would be interested in a subscription-based solution to equip mobile workforces.

Currently, buyers say their top considerations when purchasing mobile devices for their workforce are cost (72%) and life expectancy of the product (54%). Yet the majority of buyers still expect to replace their mobile workforces’ devices every 2-3 years.

Buyers said an “As a Service” approach for mobile hardware, as opposed to paying out in advance with a large, one-off capital expenditure, would help them to purchase up to date technology more quickly (54%), manage costs better (49%) and free up budget to purchase more accessories (34%).

 

"53% said it would help them to maintain and dispose of devices more effectively and 33% agreed it would be a more secure way of disposing of mobile technology..."

 

The new approach of payments for hardware spread over three years at 0% interest, with helpdesk support and secure, end of life disposal was also attractive to buyers for reasons beyond cash flow. 53% said it would help them to maintain and dispose of devices more effectively and 33% agreed it would be a more secure way of disposing of mobile technology.

The service elements buyers most wanted to be included in the subscription model were a three-year warranty (65%), a payment plan with 0% interest (46%), and delivery of devices straight to the workplace (46%). Optional extras they were keen to see offered included Insurance (45%), extended standard warranty (43%), accidental damage warranty (43%), accessories (39%), specialist software applications (34%) and a trade-in programme (34%).

Despite the enthusiasm for the service, 69% of buyers were unaware of companies offering the service-based solution with 0% interest.

The independent research, carried out by Opinion Matters on behalf of Panasonic Toughbook, questioned 250 UK technology buyers of notebooks, tablets and handheld devices for mobile workforces.

“With the rapid advances in design and functionality of mobile devices and the resulting productivity gains for mobile workforces, businesses are keen to keep up to date with the latest developments,” said Kevin Jones, Managing Director for the Panasonic Mobile Solution Business in Europe. “This is resulting in an expensive capital expenditure every two-three years. But buyers are telling us that they would much rather move to a new subscription-based model, similar to the growing popularity of software as a service. Panasonic’s new Toughbook as a Service Solution helps our current and future customers overcome this challenge.”

 

Toughbook as a Service

Panasonic launched its new Toughbook-as-a-Service (TaaS) earlier this year. It’s a unique, interest-free, monthly payment model for rugged devices. Businesses can now equip their mobile workforces with any rugged Panasonic Toughbook notebook, tablet or handheld device without having to worry about large upfront costs in capital expenditure.

Toughbook-as-a-Service is an end-to-end subscription, powered by European digital services provider, Econocom. It allows companies to pay for their Toughbook devices monthly, over a three-year period. Uniquely TaaS subscribers pay the same as a cash purchase, even though payments are spread over a longer term - eliminating the need for large upfront costs and allowing organisations to benefit from an OPEX-based solution rather than CAPEX.

 

"Toughbook-as-a-Service is an end-to-end subscription, powered by European digital services provider, Econocom..."

 

TaaS solutions include access to Panasonic Toughbook devices, delivery, 3-year warranty, helpdesk support, and end-of-life services such as collection, recycling and data wiping. As well as the rugged hardware, customers can choose to add into the monthly payment, on the same 0% interest terms*, options for their solution including vehicle mounts, docking stations, specialist software applications and other device accessories, as well as extended and accidental damage warranties.

Customers can also choose to personalise their TaaS subscription with a number of optional extras, including a trade-in programme, which allows businesses to upgrade their technology without losing the value of their existing estate. TaaS also provides the ability to bundle in airtime, MDM and data analytics, for example. 

* TaaS is a 0% finance OPEX solution, including up to 20% soft costs. If the transaction requires more than 20% soft costs/software, the interest rate over 3 years will be higher.

 

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International automotive technology provider ERM Advanced Telematics whose products have been installed in more than 5 million vehicles worldwide, is accelerating its penetration into the Latin American market with its offering for fleet management and solutions for Stolen Vehicle Recovery (SVR).

ERM plans to take advantage of its network of business partnerships throughout the region. In parallel, the company is planning to strengthen its reach and to increase the penetration of its telematics and fleet management solutions, including the StarLink modular telematics product line as well as products like eSafe for driving behaviour monitoring and eFuel, which is designed to provide alerts on fuel theft.

ERM is already active in a number of Latin American countries and is expected to utilize its teams, technology and know-how to customize the company’s products to meet the specific demands of the Latin American markets. This will enable ERM to offer dedicated and customized solutions to its local partners’ needs and allow the provision of various additional options such as white labelling products with the branding of the partner incorporated into the product.

“The demand for telematics solutions in Latin America stems from the need for vehicle security and tracking systems, which provide immediate support in emergency cases - such as panic buttons for vehicle hijacks, tracking for recovery of stolen vehicles and voice options for further assistance,” says Eitan Kirshenboim, CMO at ERM Telematics. “Many of the fleets in the region use basic fleet management tools, which limit their ability to monitor and improve the fleet performance in order to reduce costs."

 

"ERM is introducing to the Latin American market a line of unique solutions, that are backed up by patents and are flexible in design and customization abilities..."

 

Kirshenboim continued: "We believe that ERM’s advanced solutions and business strategy can help these fleets to improve their fleet performance, lower their operational costs and maximize their ROI.” He adds that ERM is introducing to the Latin American market a line of unique solutions, that are backed up by patents and are flexible in design and customization abilities, to support a wide range of scenarios and a variety of needs.

Kirshenboim notes that the company welcomes cooperation with leading players in the automotive and fleet management sector in Latin America. ERM’s business model is based on its customers being long-term partners, with whom the company is in close and ongoing relations, enabling them to define their demands and for ERM to supply a customized technological and service solution, backed up by a Spanish website, salespeople and customer support.

ERM offers different solutions for fleet management and Stolen Vehicle Recovery operations. The solutions vary from basic implementation to more comprehensive solutions, in order to better control and manage the fleets and to assist in the retrieving of vehicles and to enable each of ERM's partners to adopt a solution that is best suited for them.

ERM’s SVR basic implementation consists of vehicle location tracking and added accessories such as immobilization system, which requires drivers to identify themselves by using a code or other identification methods. Additional accessories include an alarm system, break in sensors, tow detection, remote door and windows control. Some of the more sophisticated technological solutions include CANbus integration for advanced diagnostics of the vehicles' mechanical and computerized environment. The diagnostics helps evaluate in real time the use made of the vehicle and helps to remotely identify in advance events which might affect the vehicle’s performance.

 

"The add-on features are based on the wide range of ERM sensors and hardware applications, as well as applications from third-party vendors..."

 

Some of the more comprehensive solutions offered by ERM include tracking devices equipped with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth capabilities, and a variety of add-ons to enable safety and fuel monitoring, voice capabilities and other alerts. The add-on features are based on the wide range of ERM sensors and hardware applications, as well as applications from third-party vendors.

Some other possible solutions for assisting ERM’s partners in SVR operations include a patented solution for jamming mitigation that enables the tracking of jammed vehicles by transmitting a distress message that is being picked-up by nearby vehicles. Another patented solution is designed to locate leased vehicles whose owner stopped its payments – “Parking Habits”.

The need for SVR solutions in Latin America is backed up by a market study by Berg Insights, which found the level of car theft in Brazil is four times that of the U.S. and that the situation in other Latin American markets like Mexico, Argentina and Venezuela is about the same.

 

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The rapid proliferation of service-based models, including Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) and asset management, is attracting new market participants to the analytical instrumentation space. In just a few years, analytical SaaS instrumentation and cloud-based alternatives to legacy solutions will dominate the industrial sector due to the shift in customer focus from instrumentation features to the ways in which the technology can help enhance business outcomes.

"As the data collected from instruments can potentially deliver more value than the hardware, there is high demand for analytical instruments that mine data and convert it into actionable insights,” said Mariano Kimbara, Senior Industry Analyst, Industrial Group at Frost & Sullivan.

"Consequently, service providers are delivering software solutions that help digitize lab operations by intelligently connecting people, processes, data, and instruments. These solutions will allow users to target services more strategically, better utilize assets, reduce downtime, and plan program schedules."

Frost & Sullivan’s recent analysis, Advanced Services in the Analytical Instrumentation Market, Forecast to 2022, identifies new areas of advanced services, including asset management services, radio frequency identification (RFID) inventory control services, laboratory intelligence services, consulting services, and compliance services. It also offers a deep dive into new data-driven business models.

For further information on this analysis, please visit: http://frost.ly/2ze

"In the current connected era of continual business transformation, there is an intense need to consolidate all work order management activity into a unified, automated data platform to optimize costs," noted Kimbara. "System vendors are, therefore, offering new, unified platforms that remove organizational silos and ensure connections among cross-functional divisions, linking sales, procurement, finance, logistics, suppliers, and scientists."

In addition to developing integrated service capabilities, market vendors could explore the growth opportunities present in:

 

• Delivering an OPEX model. Create an asset management service that increases visibility into the condition of existing assets.
• Shifting from a reactive business model to a proactive business model. A central data platform with automated allocation of instruments and inventory based on project demand and timelines can help anticipate events and lower costs.
• Tapping opportunities to cross-sell. The growth of asset management services could lead to revenue opportunities from rental services.
• Delivering offline and online measurement services. They can expand service lines through partnerships with software analytics providers.
• Making available expert, multi-vendor instruments service support for instruments in the entire laboratory.

 

Advanced Services in the Analytical Instrumentation Market, Forecast to 2022 is part of Frost & Sullivan’s global Test & Measurement Growth Partnership Service program.

 

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Ericsson has been selected by Swisscom, the largest telecommunications service provider in Switzerland, to enhance the consumer experience for its subscribers through deployment and integration of the Ericsson Expert Analytics solution into its existing big data ecosystem.

Ericsson’s solution will deliver data analysis and actionable insights for the service provider’s 5.3 million 4G mobile broadband subscribers using video and other OTT applications on the nationwide mobile network.

Daniel Staub, Swisscom, says: “Delivering a superior experience to our customers is at the very centre of Swisscom’s strategy, and Ericsson Expert Analytics will help us to pursue this vision even further by providing us with end-to-end visibility of our services across our 4G mobile broadband network. With this solution, we will now be able to monitor and proactively optimize our service level performance, as well as take action on any issues we see."

Arun Bansal, President and Head of Ericsson Europe and Latin America, says: “Satisfied customers are loyal customers. Not only will Ericsson Expert Analytics enhance the customer experience and improve network quality for Swisscom, but it also paves the way for smoother entry to 5G, IoT and cloud services with the solution’s advanced capabilities. We will continue to provide Swisscom with the most advanced network technologies and support as they move rapidly toward commercial availability of the next generation of connectivity.”

Swisscom is a pioneer for 5G services with Ericsson as its strategic partner. The two companies have already achieved a number of significant milestones in making 5G a commercial reality, highlighted recently by Europe’s first end-to-end, multivendor 5G Non-Standalone (NSA) data call on 3.5 GHz band. Swisscom was also the first announced customer for Ericsson’s strengthened end-to-end mobile transport solutions.

 

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