WHAT’S NEW?
OSTARA SYSTEMS EXPLAINS HOW TO PROFIT FROM TECHNOLOGY AND
PROCUREMENT SUCCESS For organisations in most sectors, these are diffi cult times. Organisations are faced with volatile markets, continued predicted slow growth in many European countries and heightened regulation with increased public scrutiny in terms of performance and ethics.
A large UK-based company wanted to ensure as much stability and cost control as possible, at the same time as demonstrating legislative compliance and having the fl exibility to incorporate additional properties as they rolled out their aggressive growth plans.
A number of differentiators made the Ostara solution stand out from other competitive offerings. The pre-populated core data included an up-to-date UK standards and legislation module, which quickly provided visibility and clarity of any gaps in their compliance level equipped them with the means to address any problem areas.
The second differentiator was the contracts module and the extensive integrated reporting modules designed to drive best practice contractor behaviour and reduce the workload on the client’s employees by automating a suite of specifi ed reports and reducing administrative tasks.
The quality of the data collected enabled informed forecasts to be made and gave a real-time view of the reliability and cost of assets which proved invaluable in capital replacement decisions. An ability to log and monitor warranties meant they could take advantage of these for the fi rst time, as the system can be confi gured to assign any jobs raised to the provider of the warranty.
More effective supplier management and strengthened supplier relations were achieved via incentivised performance contracts and the realistic KPIs that were put in place. The regular and impartial performance reviews utilised the
12 | TOMORROW’S FM
automated Contractor Dashboard report and enabled the right behaviour being rewarded.
The introduction of the Ostara Bluetooth Beacons only strengthens cost control and contractor performance. Working alongside the new Ostara mobile app, the Bluetooth Beacons provide a modern and effortless check in system, recording exactly when an engineer arrives and leaves site. Where Bluetooth is unavailable, GPS or QR codes can be used. These advanced check in methods ensure that clients are accurately charged for the time on site.
The Contractor Portal put the onus on contractors to upload certifi cates and complete questionnaires as determined by the business. As this data was available in real-time, the procurement team estimated a labour-saving of 20%. This allowed them to concentrate on providing customer service whilst negotiating more robust contracts and making better-informed decisions on capital replacement, rather than chasing contractors for updates. Contractors are incentivised to provide certifi cates through restriction of the invoice process until the required documentation is provided.
Further savings in time and money were made by the business as the accounting system was integrated with Ostara and as such, invoice
reconciliation was easier and more effective.
The helpdesk team used the Audit/ RFI functionality to carry out customer satisfaction surveys and achieved an increase in satisfaction of 30% over the 12-month period measured. This was partly due to the fact that employees on site had access to Ostara and could instantly check any outstanding jobs for their building plus provide feedback on the quality of the work carried out via the Client Portal rather than spending time contacting the helpdesk.
The upcoming PPM Merging facility in the Ostara System will only strengthen the client’s cost savings. Through the contract functionality in the system, PPM tasks can be ‘grouped’ together. Once grouped, if visit windows overlap, two or more PPMs will be grouped together into one work order. This presents increased saving opportunities, as the number of visits are reduced, and therefore an improved PPM rate can be negotiated with contractors.
In summary, the facilities were better maintained at a lower cost by a more motivated and less stressed facilities team. This led to increased satisfaction and retention of key staff across the business, with the ability to introduce further cost saving initiatives in the future.
www.ostarasystems.com/
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