Vitality Food Service Inc
05-12-2009
Field Service Management Solution Increases Service Calls by 25% and Boosts Profitability by $1M
Vitality Foodservice adopts MCC’s Field Service Management Solution and revolutionizes its business operations through real-time data processing, workflow automation and back-office integration.
Vitality Foodservice, Inc. is a global beverage dispenser and foodservice provider serving hundreds of business and government customers spanning the US, Canada, Europe, Asia, and the Caribbean. With almost 1800 employees, Vitality fulfills the daily beverage and specialty food needs of hundreds restaurants, hotels, cruise lines, healthcare providers, and military, education, corporate, and industrial establishments. Vitality also manages a large, distributed team of trained service technicians to replenish and maintain the thousands of Vitality beverage dispensers in operation throughout the world.
In 2007, Vitality recognized a potential business opportunity in servicing other vendors’ onsite equipment in addition to their own beverage dispensers. This new line of business would mean additional customers, increased numbers of service calls and expanded/added service routes. Although this was clearly the right direction for Vitality, their existing field service management solution was not up to the challenge.
In order to ensure continued exceptional service to its new and existing customers, Vitality required a more efficient scheduling, dispatching, and management of their field service operations. Of particular importance was the need for Vitality’s management to have full visibility and control of the daily activities of their technicians - to ensure that quality service continued to be delivered on time, and to effectively increase the number of calls the technicians could make.
Vitality Foodservice engaged Toronto-based Mobile Computing Corporation (MCC) to provide a wireless mobile workforce automation solution customized to meet their needs. Comprehensive and scalable, MCC’s Mobile Field Service leverages powerful wireless communications and workflow technology to boost productivity and flexibility of field service operations, and enable service managers to maintain constant communication with their mobile workforce. Mobile Field Service replaces inefficient paper-based field processes with automated workflows, and uses Global Positioning System/Automatic Vehicle Location (GPS/AVL) technology to locate and track field service workers.
Vitality Foodservice wanted a handheld computer-based field service management solution that enabled continuous monitoring of operational activities so management could make intelligent decisions based on real-time information. MCC’s “off-the-shelf” Mobile Field Service included secure wireless data communications, process automation, and back-office integration—but it still required some customization. “There is no such thing as a ‘one-size-fits-all’ mobile field service software package that will fit every company’s needs,” says Vitality COO Minton. “MCC’s field service solution was tailored to suit our unique business requirements. In partnership with MCC, we were able to shape it into an effective system we could deploy company-wide.”
Vitality Foodservice’s main goal for was to enable their technicians to handle more service calls per day—and now they can. Vitality estimates that the new system enables a 25% increase in per-day service efficiency, boosting company profitability as much as $1 million. “Now that we are better utilizing our technicians, we can accept third-party service work,” says Vitality’s Minton. “Adding service work adds revenue to the bottom line. Technicians are now able to handle many more service calls and still provide our customers with the quality of service they have come to expect. All of which is good for business.”
Vitality’s adoption of MCC’s Field Service Solution has been so successful they plan to migrate the U.S.-implemented system to their Canadian operations. “It’s moved our company into the new millennium,” says Vitality’s Minton. “This new system supports our efforts to grow our business and remain a step ahead of our competitors. With their breakthrough technology, MCC has revolutionized how we manage field service delivery – and everyone benefits: our managers, technicians, stakeholders and most importantly, our customers.”
