www.energybizmag.com ENERGYBIZ MAGAZINE 47
[ C A S E S T U D Y ] Mobile Computing Tools For Mobile Workers Improve Is the utility industry undergoing a sea change? Most analysts agree that it is not. They say, in fact, that it has already happened. The past model for increasing utility company profits — raising rates — is obsolete. New economic realities compel savvy executives to focus on bottom line improvements to increase market share, improve employee efficiency, maximize customer-retention levels and cut costs. And, they say, the 21st century’s emphasis on enterprise and productivity offers utility companies opportunities unseen since the early days of state and federal regulation three- quarters of a century ago. These opportunities more than justify the challenges inherent in seizing them. As one recently retired marketing vice president put it, “When I started in the business our major sales efforts were directed at legislators. When I left, it was all about customers. Which is how it should be. The legislators made sure we never lost money, but they also limited what we could do to earn income and how much of that revenue we could retain. Utilities are a no-limits industry now. A guy starting out in my business today may wind up building something more profitable than Microsoft by the time he steps down.” Exploiting new worlds — unlimited worlds — requires new tools. Better tools. Faster tools. More fail-safe tools. Tools that will work anywhere, anytime, under any conditions. Tools with an almost infinite capacity to be scaled up to do more work and scaled out to perform new tasks. Next-generation, utility task-optimized rugged portable computers, such as the Panasonic Toughbook® CF-18 and CF-29, are prime examples of tools that generate a direct impact on a utility company’s bottom line. This positive impact is measurable and occurs on both the revenue and cost sides of the balance sheet. A typical case study proves that the deployment of cuttingedge mobile-computing technology not only improves the bottom line, it improves it dramatically. And, in some cases, such as that of the United Kingdom’s largest power supplier, British Gas, the word “dramatically” could fairly be called an understatement. Prior to digitalization, British Gas had hundreds of field offices and 17,000 tech and back-office workers, most of them spending their workday shuffling papers. Today that 17,000-person workforce numbers less than 4,000, and most of the field offices have been shuttered. Wireless-capable Panasonic CF-18 ruggedized “convertible” notebook/tablets help a field force handle over 6 million service calls a year. Errors in ordering replacement parts have been reduced from one-in-four to “practically nonexistent” and delivery of those parts takes 12 hours, not several days. According to British Gas, the productivity of their technicians using the CF-18 has more than doubled, going from an average of four calls per day to ten and resulting in a “huge reduction in infrastructure and labor costs.” 48 ENERGYBIZ MAGAZINE July/August 2005 The British Gas experience proves that ruggedized computers with multi-protocol wireless connectivity are an essential component in reducing utility company operating expenses on both a global and per-call level. But can that impact really be shown on the other side of the ledger? Can a piece of hardware such as a Toughbook actually increase revenue as well as reduce costs? Research shows that it can, but only if that new piece of hardware fits perfectly within the IT scheme of the company deploying it. It must be more than the correct tool for the job; it must be the right tool for the entire enterprise. After intensive study and stringent testing, British Gas decided on the CF-18 because it exceeded both the performance and durability specifications for generic field-force computers and the task-specific requirements of a huge, diversified power utility. In addition to being the United Kingdom’s largest industrial and consumer supplier of gas and electricity, British Gas engages in such varied enterprises as appliance sales and repair, financial services, and security system design and implementation. The company employs field technicians for such disparate tasks as meter reading, line and pipeline maintenance, central air and heating system installation, commercial and residential steamboiler repair, and kitchen appliance service. To equip such a diverse workforce without hobbling the IT department with a hard-to maintain assortment of differing computer models and platforms, British Gas needed a high-performance, standardized unit with exemplary multitasking and communications ability. A fully ruggedized 4.5-pound computer with extended battery life, a 40GB shock-mounted hard drive and a daylight-readable, pressure sensitive touchscreen, the CF-18 instantly converts from a high-performance Windows XP notebook to a Windows XP tablet computer via a unique swiveling and folding screen. The Toughbook’s ability to replace both outdated notebooks and traditional, proprietary-software-driven pen tablets was critically important to British Gas, as was the CF-18’s full Intel® Centrino compliance and simultaneous wireless WAN, wireless LAN, Bluetooth and GPS capability. The time, effort and expense British Gas invested in its quest to maximize the return on its field-force computerization investment has paid off handsomely. Not only have the ruggedized portables dramatically reduced the sales, general and administrative share of every dollar British Gas spends on field force labor and materials, they have produced measurable revenue gains in areas susceptible to competitive pressures. According to British Gas Home Services IT business manager, Peter Ransom, the Panasonic “convertibles” are providing “absolutely fantastic” service. “Mobile computing has helped us reduce response times to call-outs, increase the speed of job turnaround, and ... present a fresh, clean and very professional image to the customer,” Ransom said. A D V E R T I S E M E N T