GPS-Aided Installation
February 06, 2007
Allstate GES, http://allstateges.com, Phoenix, Ariz., which supplies and installs home appliances to many homebuilders in the Phoenix area, recently began a bit of GPS (global positioning system) technology to aid in its customer service efforts.
Allstate uses mobile workforce management software from Xora, www.xora.com, Mountain View, Calif., which runs on GPS-enabled cell phones, to improve the process by which it tracks the location and activities of delivery drivers and appliance installers. Drivers and installers out of the company’s two Phoenix warehouses use the application on cell phones to track arrivals and departures on a jobsite. This helps Allstate accurately bill each customer regarding time on a job.
The Xora application also allows drivers and installers to capture details pertaining to each job, such as any problems encountered. For example, using the phone’s keypad, Allstate field staff records short notes, such as “concrete was wet” or “site not ready for installation.” This information is available in realtime to office staff in the form of Web-based business reports. In conjunction with Web-based maps showing the location of field staff, Allstate can track the status of jobs and respond to potential issues promptly.
The use of camera technology allows Allstate to take field data capturing to the next level. By combining pictures with job start/stop times and job status data, Allstate management is provided with a complete view of each job.
The timesaving element has been one of the biggest benefits to this deployment.
“The time savings have been tremendous, but the biggest benefit to Xora is in customer service,” says Jackie McCarter, dispatcher with Allstate. “Prior to Xora we could tell customers their appliances would be delivered that day; now we can say in a two to three hour window. Xora helps us to forward our mission of delivering good products at a great price, when the customers need them.”