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Category: Case Study

BigChange Mobile Workforce Management Software Drives Business Growth for Brewster Bros.

Brewster Bros. employee holding a jobwatch mobile device
Posted on by Martin Port

Recycled aggregates and waste management specialist Brewster Bros. has doubled its business with the help of the latest mobile workforce management technology from BigChange.

The cloud-based system has completely automated the sales process, from initial enquiries through to order fulfilment and invoicing, as part of a move to paperless working. Providing an end-to-end solution, BigChange is also reducing the back-office administration required to manage the mobile operation and is improving customer service with an online booking and tracking portal.

Scott Brewster, Managing Director of Livingston-based Brewster Bros commented:

“We initially introduced BigChange’s JourneyWatch product when we took over the company a few years back to monitor driver behaviour and track our vehicles”.

“We just needed to know who was doing what, where and when! However, after six months we realised the full jobbing system has so much more to offer. BigChange is now fundamental to our business and has helped us grow the operation by around 100 per cent from 2018 to 2020.”

A resource management company for the construction industry, Brewster Bros operates across the central belt of Scotland. Offering environmentally compliant waste disposal as well as supplying quality recycled aggregate products, Brewster Bros. can transport up to 500,000 tonnes of waste and product per year in its fleet of HGV tippers. 

Brewster continued:

“Heavy bulk haulage is quite different from other types of haulage as it is local, high frequency work and our drivers have to return to base and/or visit the same customer site multiple times per day. “

“Prior to BigChange we were heavily reliant on large volumes of paperwork which could be incorrect, incomplete or even go missing, and therefore consumed a significant amount of back-office resource to support.”

Brewster concluded:

“Using BigChange, we have complete visibility of the whole transport function of the business. We know where our vehicles are, how they are being driven and even when they tip! We capture this data, including complete proof of delivery and waste transfer note evidence, to improve our customer service offering, ensure regulatory compliance and expediate our accounting, which is improving cashflow and in turn fuelling continued business growth.”

Providing a single platform CRM, Job Scheduling, Vehicle Tracking and Mobile Workforce App, the BigChange solution is further supporting Brewster Bros as the business continues to expand. It is hoped the recently introduced BigChange powered portal will help customers self-serve, booking and tracking collections and deliveries online, and automating waste transfer and delivery notes and invoices.  

Brewster Bros. vehicle using BigChange to boost efficiency

BigChange Boosts Revenue and Supports Growth at Securitay

Securitay
Posted on by Martin Port

Security specialist Securitay has witnessed a 10 per cent increase in revenue following the introduction of mobile workforce management technology from BigChange. By switching from paper-based planning and reporting, Securitay has improved the efficiency of job allocation, completion reporting and invoicing, which has resulted in a significant increase in income from the existing client base.

The Dundee-based company has also been able to respond to an exponential growth in demand, because of COVID restrictions, without having to employ additional staff. 

Richard Jennings, Deputy Managing Director at Securitay commented:

“To put it simply BigChange allows us to do more with less, with BigChange we can empower every team member to do what they are employed to do rather than spending time on paper forms and reports, and, because everything is automated, there are less mistakes and fewer omissions. 

He continued:

“BigChange works across the operation from senior management looking at contract reporting and KPI’s, to Emergency Response Officers accessing schedules and filing job reports, HR use BigChange, Accounts use BigChange, Sales use BigChange, we use BigChange to manage our fleet and our drivers, and we use BigChange to communicate internally and with clients. In fact, I’m not sure how we managed before BigChange.”

Securitay provide a range of security services covering guarding, mobile patrols, key holding, lone worker, and CCTV Monitoring. Working with clients such as the NHS, Arnold Clark, Graham & Sibbald and various local authorities, Securitay also subcontracts for G4S, Mitie and Securitas, offering a local solution for national contracts. With offices in Aberdeen, Dundee, and Inverness, Securitay currently employs more than 100 operational staff supported by a back-office team of around 20.    

Using the single platform CRM, Job Scheduling, Mobile App, Vehicle Tracking and Online Portal, from BigChange, Securitay has completely transformed the management of its mobile operation from paper forms and reports, produced in Word and Excel, to a fully automated planning, scheduling and reporting workflow. Real-time updates combined with easy access to time-critical information, enabled the company to respond to a 30 per cent increase in demand for key holding and void property services, due to COVID-19 restrictions, using the same workforce. 

BigChange also supports Securitay’s SIA (security Industry Authority) Approved Contractor Status and its vision to improve standards across the private security sector. 

Jennings added:

“The health and safety of our staff and customers is an integral part of our success. Using BigChange we can undertake regular driver behaviour, welfare and lone worker checks, allowing us to identify and resolve any issues before they become problems. This is evident in our staff retention and our published Corporate and Social Responsibility to the communities in which we work. BigChange has also allowed us to manage new staff inductions, ongoing training and appraisals, safely and on-time, whilst maintaining a complete audit trail.” 

Securitay control room

Magicman Takes a Shine to Paperless Working with BigChange

Magicman deploying BigChange
Posted on by Martin Port

Magicman, the company that repairs almost any hard surface ‘back to new’, has transformed its nationwide repairs services with a 5-in-1 system from BigChange. 

Providing a single cloud-platform for CRM, job scheduling, mobile app, vehicle tracking and management reporting, BigChange provides Magicman with real-time 24/7 visibility of operations, improved control, customer service and productivity.

Established for over 25 years, Magicman has built a reputation as the go-to company for hard surface repairs having developed techniques for the complete repair/restoration of anything from ceramics to wood, stone and acrylic surfaces. Magicman’s innovations and craftsmanship have led to a resurgence in ‘repair don’t replace’. Enabling domestic customers, insurers, construction companies and cruise ship operators to save up to 80 percent against the cost of replacement.

Over the years Magicman has used various CRM and booking systems. It has been a struggle to find a system that integrates with other systems and fully meets their needs. However, after a number of years the company became frustrated with progress and took a fresh look at commercial offerings.

Discovering BigChange was a complete revelation according to Niall Pollard, Head of Magicman Insurance Services:

“With BigChange we had at last found a system that could be adapted to meet our needs and with worksheets and reports that we could easily customise ourselves. The fact that it was easy to use was also a big bonus as we knew there would be resistance to change from the previous system that had been used for many years”.

BigChange is used as a complete end-to-end solution for the business, integrating with Sage for accounts. Magicman services both business and domestic customers and there is a growing insurance division; an area where BigChange has been particularly useful due to stringent operational and reporting requirements. 

Magicman has a large fleet with multi skilled technicians working remotely across the UK delivering a fast-response service. Work can include almost anything from cracked sanitary ware, chipped or burnt worktops, damaged UPVC window frames, damaged stonework to high quality refurbishment within international cruise ships all around the world. In addition to indistinguishable repairs, there are savings on cost, customer disruption and of course landfill when avoiding the replacement of damaged items.

Jobs are booked into the BigChange CRM and then scheduled to the nearest available technician who receive the worksheets on their mobile phones. Using the BigChange app, technicians have a handy tool that replaces all previous paperwork, providing navigation to site, risk assessments and job sheets supported with before and after photographs to show work completion. 

The biggest benefits for Magicman come from the visibility that BigChange provides, allowing management and customer service teams to see where technicians are, the real-time status of each job and the ability to easily book in new work from a well categorised outstanding work system.

Niall Pollard commented:

“With BigChange we are much more efficient.  In the office we have been able to re-deploy 2 or 3 staff by eliminating paperwork and the insurance team is saving several days’ work a month providing monthly reports and real time data to insurers with a single click, it’s still early days and there are many more useful features we have yet to use. BigChange is however a key to productivity and our efficiency has certainly improved, wasting a lot less time now.”

Repair service magicman deploys bigchange

MEDLEC Boosts Productivity by 40 percent with BigChange Mobile Workforce Tech

MEDLEC employee hoding a BigChange mobile device
Posted on by Martin Port

Electrical contractor MEDLEC has seen a 40 percent improvement in worker productivity since introducing a mobile workforce management system from BigChange.

The 5 in 1 system has allowed MEDLEC to completely eliminate paper by equipping field engineers with mobile devices linked to vehicle trackers giving the company real-time 24/7 visibility of the status of all jobs.

MEDLEC is a fast-growing multi-discipline electrical contractor covering the South of England. Although MEDLEC works in all sectors, they specialise in retail, hospitality and leisure, operating across a variety of facilities and sites. Working closely with prominent companies such as Mitchells and Butlers – whose headline brands include All Bar One, Miller and Carter, Harvester, O’Neil’s and Toby Carvery – MEDLEC also work for Everyman Media and famous Michelin Star restaurants.

“BigChange really has transformed the way we work, having replaced all the paperwork our engineers and admin staff had to process, therefore making our working day more productive”

Christian Tonna, Managing Director of MEDLEC.

“The system has put an end to laborious paperwork and data entry, and as jobs come in they are instantly available to our engineers. It means we can be more reactive and efficient with our time, therefore around 40 percent more productive, allowing us to take on more work with the same resources.”

BigChange is an all-in-one platform CRM, job scheduling, mobile app and vehicle tracking and management reporting solution, and it manages all of MEDLEC’s stringent compliance requirements. As part of a seamless end-to-end business solution, MEDLEC has taken advantage of full integration with their Xero accounting software with a new API interface that gives improved management insight into financial performance.  MEDLEC first implemented BigChange in 2018.

MEDLEC offers a rapid response service, so being informed and in control is crucial to delivering good customer service.  BigChange means that the company is better equipped to deliver that service and now achieves a 92 percent first-time fix rate across 120 jobs a day.  It also ensures there is complete transparency across operations. Clients are kept informed instantly, receiving ETA updates and completed job sheets that include time-stamped and geo-located photographs captured on the engineers’ tablet.

Tonna commented:

“BigChange gives us complete visibility, and we can access everything we need anywhere, at any time. It’s really the ultimate management tool and enables us to deliver an exceptional level of service at the same time as making us a lot more efficient. This is an advantage for both the client and us and we couldn’t be happier.”

MEDLEC also discovered an added bonus from being a BigChange customer, and that was the BigChange Network that connects other BigChange users across the country. Through the network MEDLEC recently connected with SES Homecare, a major provider of plumbing and heating services also headquartered in Surrey.    

Tonna explains:

“Thanks to the BigChange Network, we are now the recommended SES Homecare contractor for electrical services, which has been fantastic to offer our services and the best thing is our engineers use exactly the same BigChange platform, so for SES, it is completely seamless with reports being received in exactly the same way as reports from their own engineers.”

MEDLEC Van

A&S Contractors Boost New House After-Care Services with BigChange Mobile Technology

A&S Newbuild Aftercare
Posted on by Martin Port

After-care specialist A&S Contractors has turned to the latest technology to improve the management of its nationwide workforce operation. 

The roll out of a 5 in 1 BigChange mobile resource management system, which sees 65 technicians equipped with rugged tablets, is boosting customer service and efficiencies on site with productivity gains of 20 percent.         

Established just 7 years A&S Contractors has become a leading player in the fast-growing market for new build after-care.  The company works with the major house builders, such as Taylor Wimpey, Countryside, Bellway, Vistry and McCarthy & Stone.  A&S employ multi-skilled and specialist trade teams to work alongside the customer service and construction departments, carrying out NHBC remedial claims, assisting with high volume build programmes, remedial repairs and providing a technical report facility.

Providing a single cloud-platform for CRM, job scheduling, mobile app, vehicle tracking and customer portal, BigChange provides A&S with real-time 24/7 visibility of operations, improved control, customer service and productivity. BigChange, which replaces a previous workforce management system, also links seamlessly with Sage accounts.

Sean Coldrick, Managing Director at A&S Contractors stated:

“Delivering an exceptional service and best value is our mission and we need a system that would support that.”

“More than anything we chose BigChange because the system was clearly backed up by real people; a team of professionals that have since proven to be invaluable in the roll-out of the system.”

A&S employs 65 mobile technicians able to deal with mechanical, electrical, gas, assisting their technicians covering all other building trades. The company sets itself apart in the market by being able to provide a turnkey operation.

With a head office near Chester, the company has expanded from the North West to the North East and to the Midlands, recently opening a new office and national training centre in Market Drayton.  BigChange is having most impact on the mobile workforce and fleet operations, improving job scheduling, resource allocation, health and safety and productivity, as well as reducing mileage.

Using the BigChange mobile app, engineers manage all work on-site aided by on-screen workflows to ensure all the correct procedures are followed and information recorded.  It is completely paperless and job cards are completed with accompanying on-site photographs, generating contra-charge reports at the click of a button. BigChange also has fully integrated vehicle tracking, providing time and location data, routing, customer ETA alerts and driver performance reporting.

A&S is very enthusiastic about the BigChange customer portal facility, that will allow its customers to book jobs and access all information on their jobs.  The system is also being used to overhaul stock management, with real-time stock control and replenishment enabling increased stock on vans and the ordering of parts and materials by engineers via their tablets, again increasing on-site productivity.  

Coldrick continued:

“BigChange has allowed us to really streamline our mobile operations.  Technicians are now much more self-sufficient; journeys to the depot are rare, first fix rates are improved and there are fewer wasted hours.  We are already seeing workforce productivity up by around 20 percent.”

“We know we are at the forefront of the new build after-care industry and we see BigChange as an important partner.  Like us they have a forward vision and ambition to grow; that fits very much with our own ambitions.”

Working alongside their customer base, A&S has developed technical innovations such as special glue bond procedures to resolve microcracking, and the bespoke on-site fabrication of retrofit cavity trays.  The innovations not only improve remedial work but also provide long-term solutions to provide best value for clients and their customers. The implementation of the new mobile technology has been the obvious next step.

A&S Newbuild Aftercare employee driving a branded van

BigChange Helps Clearground Clean up on Workforce Health and Safety

Clearground workforce
Posted on by Martin Port

Facilities maintenance service company Clearground is using workforce management technology from BigChange to improve health and safety across its nationwide operation. Specialising in waste management, commercial window cleaning and drainage services, Clearground is using the cloud-based, 5-in-1 solution to ensure the safety of operatives with automated, dynamic risk assessments.

BigChange is also helping Clearground identify potential issues at customer sites with intelligent incident analysis, comparing callout rates between similar sites and reviewing historical and current activity.  

“Safety and compliance are key to the welfare of our staff and customers and also to the success of our company, in fact, it’s one of the reasons we selected BigChange. The ability to create customised, dynamic risk assessments and make their completion on-site mandatory goes beyond other systems we looked at. It is more than just a box ticking exercise; it means our operatives really must consider the environment in which they are working and understand what risks that may pose.”

Claire Piercy, General Manager at Wirral-based Clearground.

She continued:

“BigChange also helps us look after our staff and customers in other ways, the driver behaviour alerts allow us to identify driving styles that may lead to problems which, when combined with the scoring system, allows us to performance manage drivers to ensure safe working practices. From a customer care perspective, we can monitor the number and type of incidents in relation to agreed KPIs and work with clients to prevent future occurrences.”

From its inception in 2003, Clearground has expanded its operation and now works with organisations such as global student accommodation provider Campus Living Villages, residential rent developers Watkins Jones Plc and premium bar operators Revolution Bars Group. Working across the UK, Clearground provides facilities maintenance services including high-level access window cleaning, industry compliant kitchen extractor fan cleaning as well as industrial and high-pressure cleaning.   

Clearground selected BigChange to replace disconnected systems used for timesheet logging, purchase order tracking and basic workforce management. A single-platform CRM, Job Scheduling, Mobile App, Vehicle Tracking and Online Portal, BigChange has already eliminated repetition of data entry between systems, reducing back-office resource and minimising the potential for errors, and has eliminated virtually all paperwork used in the management of the mobile workforce.

Clearground is also using the BigChange platform to schedule routine maintenance jobs and ad-hoc callouts, manage staff holidays, absences and sickness and provide automatic alerts for out-of-hours vehicle use or toll-road driving. Available from any internet-connected device, BigChange gives total visibility of the sales process, from initial enquiry, through quotation to invoicing, something Clearground plans to build on with pipeline analysis and automated marketing campaigns.

Piercy concluded:

“One of the major differences between BigChange and other suppliers is they listen and then they respond, and, like us, BigChange is a progressive company, so I am confident that as we continue to grow, they will grow with us.”

Clearground cleaning windows

BigChange Drives Efficiency with Paperless Working at Fleet Dynamic

Fleet Dynamic
Posted on by Martin Port

Fleet Dynamic, a commercial vehicle rental and leasing company, is using the latest mobile workforce management technology from BigChange to transform their fleet management.

Providing complete automation across the entire hire and leasing lifecycle, the cloud-based, 5-in-1 solution from BigChange has helped Fleet Dynamic switch to paperless working. BigChange has also contributed to a 30 percent improvement in workshop efficiency as well as a reduction in lost charges and operating costs. 

“Before BigChange, all parts of the process, from hire request through to delivery ticket, were paper-based. We couldn’t attach additional information such as photographs, essential information including vehicle or customer details were often not captured and retrieving data to resolve queries was difficult, now, with BigChange, every time a customer account is touched, a digital record of the interaction is made, and every time a vehicle is sent out its every movement is recorded. This has helped us become paperless, which was timely in view of the pandemic as we wanted to eliminate the handling of paperwork to minimise the risk posed by the virus.”

Terry Stockwell, Sales and Marketing Director, Fleet Dynamic

With headquarters in Wigan, Fleet Dynamic was established in 2009 with the aim of providing customers with a one-stop solution for all their vehicle requirements. A comprehensive vehicle rental and leasing service includes cars, vans and a full range of specialist vehicles, for example 4 x4 double cab pickups and seven-seater welfare vehicles. The company also provides a range of interior and exterior corporate signage and Health & Safety signs as well as a ply lining business for bespoke vehicle interiors. Fleet Dynamic is a multi-award winning company and includes Manchester City Council amongst its client base. 

Using the single-platform CRM, Job Scheduling, Mobile App, Vehicle Tracking and Online Portal from BigChange has enabled Fleet Dynamic to remove paper forms and reports from its hire and lease operation. Hire requests, delivery tickets, on-hire and off-hire details are all digitally recorded by drivers using mobile devices or office-based staff using PCs. This information is then available, 24/7, from any internet-enabled device giving management total visibility of the mobile operation. Fleet Dynamic also uses the BigChange asset tracking system to provide additional intelligence and security for its corporate account customers.

Stockwell continued:

“The capture and sharing of intelligence means we can effectively manage the fleet, monitoring downtime and forward planning for servicing and MOT events. This has contributed to more efficient use of workshop time with savings of around 30 percent. Additional savings have been achieved as a result of a reduction in missed recharges and the fact we no longer have to pay for specialist software, such as an HR platform, as BigChange does it all.”

Fleet Dynamic Fleet

BigChange Mobile Workforce Technology Helps Veriflo Plan Business Expansion

Veriflo Bigchange
Posted on by Martin Port

Veriflo, a clean water and leakage management business, has experienced significant business expansion underpinned by mobile workforce management technology from BigChange. Operating across London and the South-East and West, Veriflo provides planned works, emergency response and risk management services for organisations such as Thames Water and Morrison Utility Services. As the business has expanded so has its use of the 5-in-1 cloud-based BigChange solution, with reactive planning and scheduling tools, real-time vehicle tracking and alerts for routine jobs and health and safety checks.

“We used to manage and communicate with our workforce using emails, messages and telephone calls. However, as our operation has expanded so have our requirements and BigChange has been a vital part of our business growth.”  

Kirsty Scott, Director of Kent-based Veriflo

Operating a team of project and admin support, together with planned and emergency response field teams and project managers, Veriflo operates a 24-hour operation providing specialist clean water asset services including mains isolations, reservoir outages and asset investigations. Veriflo also supports civil engineering and water companies with disinfection services, hydraulic reports, and network risk assessments.

Veriflo uses BigChange across its mobile operation. An end-to-end, cloud-based solution, BigChange replaces paperwork and synchronises in real-time with centralised management software. Providing a single platform CRM, Job Scheduling, Mobile App, Tracking and Customer Portal, the BigChange solution is helping Veriflo plan routine jobs and emergency call outs, in real-time, and with complete visibility for both office and field-based staff. 

“The role of BigChange within our business has been vital, without it we would not be able to plan as effectively, and the ongoing expansion of the business would have been a logistical nightmare. BigChange just fits with our people and the way we work, and it continues to adapt to our growing and changing requirements.”  

BigChange also supports other aspects of Veriflo’s mobile operation with real-time GPS tracking for monitoring engineer’s driving hours and current locations, alerts for routine equipment testing and calibration and reminders for weekly vehicle checks. Veriflo has even used the BigChange mobile app to create a Health Check-in for all staff to ensure they are fit to work, complete with a checklist to make sure they have all the tools and equipment they need. This functionality has proved especially useful during the Coronavirus pandemic with technicians able to report symptoms and request additional safety equipment as needed.

Scott concluded:

“BigChange support is first-class. The RoadCrew team are quick to respond and there is always the sense that nothing is too much trouble.”

Veriflo Offices