Coast & Country was set up in 2001 to take over the ownership and management of the housing stock of Redcar & Cleveland Borough Council. It manages over 10,000 properties.

It decided to re-engineer its approach to repairs and maintenance. Consultants recommended a scheduling system for greater efficiency, and Coast & Country decided to take the next step into mobile working.

The aim was to replace paper-based data collection systems for operatives with a more efficient PDA-based system. The solution had to interface to a newly-implemented arcHouse Housing Management System from Orchard.

Coast & Country liked the way that the 1st Touch solution could be tailored to its specific needs. It was also apparent that 1st Touch had delivered successful solutions to other similar organisations and could offer ongoing support.

The 1st Touch solution replaces paper forms with electronic versions provided on PDAs. Tailored to the specific organisation's needs, the forms technology reduces the amount of data operatives have to input. Operatives use a familiar-looking form, but on a screen with the PDA sending the input data directly to head office.

Before the introduction of electronic scheduling and mobile working, operatives would have a list of appointments for the day. If any job overran, timings would slip and appointments missed.

Under the new electronic system, operatives receive one job at a time, appropriate to their skills. They can also use the PDA to report back immediately and directly on start and finish times, parts used and compliance issues.

www.1sttouch.com.

Telephone: 0871 7163060

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