What follows is an interview with First Group who has implemented a stock control system developed by Simply Mobile.
Store Manager
"Simply a major leap forward for the transportation business"
An interview with Gary Dunn, Logistic Support Manager for First Group Bus
First Group Bus are Britain's largest bus operator running more than one in five of all local bus services. A fleet of nearly 8,500 buses carries 3 million passengers a day in more than 40 major towns and cities. They also operate Greyhound UK providing regular services each way between London and Portsmouth and London and Southampton.
The transportation industry is not known for being an early adopter of modern technology but as we have discovered there is a company that is forging the way forward - First Bus Limited. First Bus installed an innovative new product called "Store Manager" in an attempt to improve the efficiency of their stock taking systems. We talked with Garry to discover how one simple change made such an impact on their organisation.
Q: Garry, what was the process like before you installed new "Store Manager"?
A: Before, when one of our people needed a part for a vehicle they had to go through a very time consuming and tedious process. Firstly they would have to fill out a request form which they would then pass to the store keeper. The Store Keeper then had to check on his computer to see if the part was in stock. If the part was available then the Store Keeper would authorise the mechanic to take the part from a parts bin. The store keeper would then have to manually enter the job information and the job costings into his system before he could create an issue to that vehicle.
At night time, when the Store Keeper had left for the day the process was even more complicated. The mechanics on the night shift would have to fill out the forms using pen and paper and leave them on the Store Keeper's desk. In the morning, on his return, the store keeper would have to input all the requisitions from the night before into his computer by hand. As you can imagine it was a long and mundane process - our staff didn't like it at all.
Q: And so what's the process now using Simply Mobile's 'Store Manager'?
A: It's much simpler now. The entire process can be done through one easy to use handheld unit with bar code technology, every part of the process is now bar-coded.
The employees identification number, the reason and repair codes and the parts bins - they're all bar-coded now. All our people have to do is scan the 'Store Manager' unit acrosst the appropriate barcode, key in the quantity and the job is done with all the data held neatly on the unit.
At the end of the process the unit is placed into the docking cradle attached to the Store Keeper's PC. The data is then downloaded automatically onto the central system. At this point, if any stock needs to be replenished, it's automatically highlighted in the purchasing department. This enables real-time communication between departments, enabling everyone to do their job more efficiently.
Q: Simply Mobile claim that their 'Store Manager' unit can reduce mistakes in stock taking, would you agree with that?
A: Definitely. We can do the whole stock taking process on the unit. As our Stock Keeper moves from one parts bin to another all he has to do is key in the number of parts. The part identification has already been logged through bar code technology, the unit then automatically moves you on to the next bin.
Q: It sounds great but is 'Store Manager' cost efficient?
A: After doing a thorough cost analysis the results show that it is extremely cost effective. In fact our figures show the system has already paid for itself.
Q: How did the people on the shop floor react to the introduction of this new technology?
A: I was really surprised to find so many of them really enthusiastic and positive. Of course we had some concerns from some of the staff who weren't really confident with using new technology. But once they saw how simple it was to use and how it eliminated some of the more boring parts of the job, everyone was behind it.
Q: What are your plans for "Store Manager" in the future?
A: Because "Store Manager" has been so successful for us, we have now introduced another function to the system; goods return - whereby the staff can return parts to the store and automatically update the stock levels. It's safe to say that using "Store manager has been very good for us"
What follow is an interview with Richard Humphries IT Project Manager at
Trinity House
Trinity House (TH) is the General Lighthouse Authority for England, Wales,
the Channel Islands and Gibraltar, responsible for a range of aids to
general navigation, from lighthouses to radar beacons. The Merchant Shipping
Act 1995 (MSA 1995) vests in TH the superintendence and management of all
lighthouses, buoys and beacons within its area of jurisdiction. This
statutory responsibility requires TH to inspect annually the aids that are
provided by the various port and harbour authorities around the coast to
ensure that they are maintained in good and efficient order for the safety
of the mariner.TH is required to communicate the results of the inspections
to the authorities and to make general reports to the Secretary of State on
the same. There are more than 10,000 aids to navigation thatneed to be
inspected.
Q: Richard, describe the process before Simply Mobile
were involved?
The results of the inspections were recorded by hand against pre-printed
lists of aids to navigation. The results were then forwarded to TH Head
Office where they were entered into a central database.
Q: What were the problems / challenges with the
existing process?
The process necessitated the use of pen and paper, sometimes at night and
sometimes in difficult and wet
weather conditions. The process required condition codes to be written on by
hand and these in turn were
again transferred by hand into the central database.
Q: Why did you chose Simply Mobile?
Simply Mobile had provided bespoke development for hand-held devices to the
company that had written the
core software that we use for recording inspection results. It was suggested
that they may be able to write a
suitable bespoke solution for us to enhance the initial recording of
inspection results.
Q: Tell us about the solution developed by Simply
Mobile?
The new process allows for a list of the aids to navigation to be emailed to
an inspector and then uploaded to a PDA running the bespoke software
developed on our behalf by Simply Mobile. The inspector can inspect each of
the aids and enter a condition code by selecting from a list of available
codes. Once the inspection is complete the results can be emailed back to
Head Office. The results can be reviewed and uploaded into the
central database for further analysis.
Q: What you like about the solution developed by
Simply Mobile?
The solution helps to ensure that the data is recorded and held
electronically throughout the process. It avoids unnecessary duplication of
effort.A list of aids to be inspected can be emailed out to an inspector and
once complete, the inspection results can then be emailed back in. The
results now only need to be entered in once at the point of inspection. The
solution allows the selection of condition codes from a drop down list.
Q: Any savings in time / money / effort?
Yes. It saves time and effort required to send out inspections and to
transcribe results.
Q: Can you say more about the level of support
provided by Simply Mobile?
Simply Mobile aided in interpreting our requirements and in ensuring that
they could be adapted to a mobile device with particular emphasis on the
effective use of the available display area. They developed our solution and
helped in testing as well as in selecting a suitable device for our needs.
Q: Would you use Simply Mobile again?
If the need arose, Simply Mobile would be considered for further mobile
device bespoke development work in connection with the aids to navigation
inspection regime.