With an array of services designed to make buildings more energy efficient, safer, and easier to maintain, C&C Group needed a solution to better manage their mobile workforce. C&C’s CIO, Chad Cillessen, knew that some of their existing processes were less than optimal, especially around work order entry and time entry for their 58 field technicians.
“…since implementing FieldConnect, C&C has seen an overall increase in annual service revenue of about 17% based on this added efficiency, without having to add headcount.”
So C&C began a search for the solution that could address the company’s efficiency challenges. “The first requirement for the preferred solution was integration into our Viewpoint Vista enterprise resource planning platform,“ says Cillessen. “After that, we needed a solution that eliminated the need for duplicative work,” he adds. At the time, C&C was entering time and work order entry twice, which was proving to be costly from both a time and cost perspective.
The selection process involved three vendors, eventually leading to the selection of FieldConnect as the best fit for their needs. “As we went through the evaluation process, we became more aware of requirements above and beyond the ERP integration and time and work order entry,” remembers Cillessen. “The third, main capability that cemented FieldConnect as the chosen vendor involved the support for offline mode for our field technicians.” The offline mode for FieldConnect’s FieldAccess offering allows technicians to continue to work with the application, even where connectivity is spotty or nonexistent.
Once the selection was made, implementation was smooth and quick. The occasional bumps in the road of any enterprise-scale deployment were met quickly and effectively by the FieldConnect implementation team and C&C Group was soon enjoying the benefits of their new solution. Now, Cillessen explains, “our volume of service has increased and our team handling that work has remained the same or decreased as we have been able to repurpose individuals.” Furthermore, they are turning work orders around faster, as they are now immediately able to process the work coming in from the field, without re-entering the information. The field technicians are also enjoying the wealth of critical site information at their fingertips, rather than having to call others to get the background on the building or equipment that they’re servicing.
So, what are some of the concrete benefits now that the system has been implemented? Cillessen points to a few improvements, beginning with a reduction in the time that it takes technicians to fill out a work order. While a seemingly minor improvement on its face, the fact is that the reduced time required actually saved field technicians enough time to allow them to complete 1-2 additional service calls per day. With the average service call representing several hundred dollars of revenue, this time savings became significant as the company calculated the value of those extra calls multiplied by the number of technicians in the field. In fact, since implementing FieldConnect, C&C has seen an overall increase in annual service revenue of about 17% based on this added efficiency, without having to add headcount.
In the back office, other benefits were realized, as well. The time it was taking to turn around an invoice on jobs was cut roughly in half. With hundreds of jobs being completed per month, the delays experienced with their previous system were killing cash flow for C&C. The efficiency gained by implementing FieldConnect has resolved that problem and Cillessen says some invoices can even be turned around “in 24 hours, or less.”
While the company has reaped additional benefits above and beyond the ones cited here, one area of particular pride is the level of service experienced by customers. Cillessen describes one occasion where a technician was able to review site history and previous work done before arriving at the customer’s location. Based on the information that the technician reviewed beforehand, he was able to proactively eliminate other potential causes of the problem and zero in on the area that was the most likely cause. The issue was resolved quickly, saving time on site and making the technician and C&C look great in front of the customer.
At the end of the day, Cillessen feels that they made the right choice. “FieldConnect has been great and treated us as a partner, not just as a customer.” He adds that support has been responsive and that there is a willingness from the FieldConnect customer support team and technical team to listen to suggestions for the product roadmap. “We have a few ideas for enhancements and we’re also looking at the customer portal as a way to gain even greater efficiencies from the solution.” C&C Group’s corporate goal is to free up time for their customers, allowing them to focus on their core business. At FieldConnect, we couldn’t agree more!