TRANSPORT AND MATERIALS HANDLING
drivers with local knowledge but the system can be used to ensure a more reliable and efficient plan - and it’s certainly a key tool for helping drivers new to the job or area. “ McCreadie says: “The biggest benefit of digitisation is visibility. For builders merchants – especially those wanting to expand - delivery services are increasingly central to the success of the business.
“With Podfather, everyone has access to up-to-date information on the status of every delivery. That’s crucial for customer service which means better retention of customers and, potentially, more new customers. “For management, the system provides a level of insight and control that was simply not possible before; now they actually know what’s going on!
“Once data is captured, it is always available so management can begin to properly assess business performance and look closely at costs.”
Merchant efficiency
Based in Wolverhampton with a fleet of over 30 vehicles delivering building materials across the West Midlands, Carvers partnered with Podfather to help improve efficiency and remove paper from the planning process. Electronic POD data from Podfather integrates with Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central which eliminates flitting between systems or having to manually input data, giving drivers and back-office staff an instant and single view of jobs, routes, delivery progress and PODs.
“One thing I have been particularly passionate about is making us more efficient across many parts of the business,” says Craig Whitlock, IT manager at Carvers. “Podfather stood out as a company that can really help us add this mantra to our transport operations. And with improved integration to our Microsoft ERP, we felt now was the right time to bring in their expertise.”
TRANSPORT AND MATERIALS HANDLING
tracking links with the ETA notifications. McCredie adds: “We’re also continually developing links between Podfather and other systems to improve the flow of information across a business. For example, we have an API that allows us to integrate with many ERP systems, such as Microsoft Dynamics.” Browns is a Derby-based family run business established over 100 years ago. The firm delivers across the Midlands with a mixed fleet of trucks and vans making around 50 drops a day ranging from single load bulk deliveries to multi-drop runs.
“When COVID hit it impacted our business in a number of ways,” says Edward Parlato, assistant branch manager and buyer at Browns. “The number and nature of our deliveries changed, with more orders from members of the public, and the type of service that they wanted changed, with a more ‘Amazon’ experience expected as the norm. “We also realised that the transport operation was heavily reliant on our transport co-ordinator; so, if they were absent things have the potential to fall apart.
McCreadie says: “Fuel savings have been acheived from better route planning and that of course means less emissions. Podfather also ensures better vehicle utilisation, so that reduces journey time overall.
“There is also the issue of paper itself and that’s something that’s significantly reduced. It’s not just the original documents – one of our customers previously said they had to make seven paper copies of documents for every delivery job.”
Users can also customise notifications so it is received with the appropriate company brands, and customers can also get live
Travis Perkins launches research on driver behaviour to enhance fleet safety
Travis Perkins Group has announced the findings of a groundbreaking study which identified three major areas to focus on to improve driver safety including: ¡ Skill decay ¡ Stress and performance ¡ Attention lapses and distractions With one of the largest fleets in the UK and a driver base of around 3,000, drivers are at the forefront of the Travis Perkins plc business. They deliver building materials to customers across all segments of construction and are often required to drive specialist vehicle types including LCVs and HGVs.
As part of the Group’s commitment
to continuous improvement, the business commissioned research from Dr Lisa Dorn, associate professor of driver behaviour at Cranfield University and Founder of PsyDrive; a company that specialises in accredited training for road safety professionals, research, assessment and interventions for improved road safety.
The study that was commissioned involved a comprehensive literature review of existing research and took into consideration studies in other industries to review their learnings and adapt them for use with the Travis Perkins plc’s fleet, and potentially also with a wider driver community to improve safety.
January 2024
www.buildersmerchantsjournal.net
www.buildersmerchantsjournal.net
“With Podfather our fleet utilisation is much higher, with less downtime and fewer trips back to depot, and our customer interactions are more informed. We have fewer calls from customers with queries and those we do have can be answered at first point of contact.” “The uptake that we’ve seen here at Podfather in the last 12 months amongst builder’s merchants - such as Breedon, Carvers, Stormking, Rexel and Browns - shows that there is a real appetite for this type of technology,” says McCredie.
“Our solution appeals as it offers a broad range of features as standard – the route planning, vehicle checks, ETA notifications, driver tracking, ePOD, and reporting. It’s affordable as well, so there isn’t a big upfront fee as the charges are based on a fee per driver per month, so in ROI terms the system really sells itself.” BMJ
Dr Dorn commented: “It’s perhaps no surprise that when we have something on our mind, performance is affected, and as this study shows, stress causes distraction and can impact driver safety. Attention lapses and distractions are a significant cause of crashes. The research also concluded that without practise, people experience skill decay, and cognitive skills like decision-making are particularly vulnerable. This has implications for safety when driving for work.”
Travis Perkins plc safety director, Richard Byrne explained: “We will use these findings to guide our driver strategy; informing areas, such as policies, intervention, training, recruitment and wellbeing. We will also consider how we can share these learnings more widely, to breed best practice and how we can promote more regular training that is beyond compliance requirements.” BMJ
25
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72
