News: Articles
New Mobile Computing Solutions and Their
Impact on Field Service Productivity and Efficiency
By
Michael R. Blumberg
Introduction
Over the last few years, a great deal of focus and attention
has been given to significantly improving the productivity and
efficiency of mobile work forces. This has been driven by the
growing recognition that simple manual and clerical processes,
which were used by employees in fixed, static assignments, could
be improved through advanced communication and computing application
support for specific tasks on both a planned and emergency basis.
However, until recently the lack of realistic size, weight,
cost, and ruggedization made similar applications improvement
for mobile workers not feasible, resulting in low levels of
efficiency and utilization for field-level mobile workers. New
advances in both mobile communications technology and field
service management principles suggest that providing field personnel
with real time local support and intelligence using advanced
communications does indeed improve the overall operating effectiveness
of Field Service Organizations (FSOs). This is particularly
true because mobile communications technology provides FSOs
the ability to maintain control over operating efficiency and
productivity in a rapidly changing environment, which is characterized
by rapid, varying changes in demand for their services. Since
Field Service Engineers (FSEs) operate without the normal infrastructure
and human resource support normally provided to the “static”
worker, they are usually “on their own” and must
be much more innovative and creative about how they perform
their jobs. Therefore, access and availability to back-office
systems and enterprise data through the use of mobile computing
platforms is essential to their overall productivity and operating
efficiency.
Practical Applications for FSOs
Examples of specific types of mobile workers in which efficiency
and productivity can be improved through the use of mobile computing
solutions include the following:
Mobilized Field Service Technicians
Mobilized field service operations help enterprises increase
operational efficiency, improve data integrity, and improve
the utilization of corporate assets. Applications often enable
mobile professionals to send and receive work orders, document
service calls on-site, and order parts, all at the point-of-work.
By being able to access critical data from the service site,
the technician can complete the job correctly the first time,
reducing callbacks and improving customer service. Sample benefits
include:
• Improved first-time fix rate
• More efficient parts select and availability
• Increased customer satisfaction through more rapid
response
• Better regulatory compliance
Mobilized Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO) Technician
and Engineers
Mobilized MRO operations can help large organizations optimize
planning, increase readiness, and ensure regulatory compliance.
Applications often enable maintenance engineers to view and
update the status of outstanding maintenance items, access part
and equipment availability, order spare parts, access the latest
fault isolation and repair procedures, perform quality assurance
inspections, sign off work, and automatically record time and
material costs on their handheld devices. Better access to communication
and information can lead to many benefits including:
• Improvements in maintenance planning and equipment
service scheduling
• Reduced inventory costs
• Increased readiness
• Improved safety and regulatory compliance
• Maintaining accurate data
Mobilized Plant and Building Maintenance Personnel
Mobilized plant maintenance operations can enable maintenance
technicians on the plant or building floor to be more productive
by putting schematic, inventory, and fault isolation information
in their hands – at the point of equipment or asset service.
Potential benefits include:
• Improved uptime / reduced downtime
• Better product quality to reduce service costs
• Increased inventory management, controls, and cost
reduction
• More accurate, streamlined preventive and predictive
maintenance
The types of field workers identified above are usually traveling
by foot, car, or van. In order to carry out their work they
often need parts and materials, maps, plans and design instructions,
specialized test and repair equipment, and specialized knowledge
and guidance. They also need to capture and maintain data necessary
to support back office systems. Since they are operating independently
of the headquarters management and administrative structure
and systems, they also are not fully aware of the changing characteristics
and parameters or their workload, customer requirements and
needs, travel times and costs, availability of parts and supplies,
or changing priorities. In essence, they are constantly faced
with making decisions under uncertain knowledge, and yet they
are faced with the need to optimize their allocation of working
time to achieve the most cost-effective response to changing
customer needs and requirements.
A careful and precise examination of the duties, skill sets,
and operational conditions found in these types of mobile field
service operations, and the types of current assignment, travel
times and distances, and parts availability, show that productivity
and efficiency of service personnel utilization can be improved
by 20-30% or more, if they can be provided with a workable and
reliable infrastructure and supporting process application.
The ability to achieve this level of improvement is brought
about by combining two new technological developments:
• Development of advanced, ruggedized, miniature wireless
and computing technology and related communications software
that allows real time communications and applications support
to and from the central core management systems for dispatch,
assignment, and logistics support operations of service personnel
in the field.
• Development of advanced software applications and
optimizing algorithms for workforce management, assignment
and scheduling, field diagnostics and repair, logistics coordination,
and central and administrative support.
The development and deployment of these technologies, plus
the addition of expanding capabilities for precise geographic
positioning and real time reporting for field personnel, is
leading a number of organizations to seriously consider implementing
advanced field service oriented communications and automation
systems and technology for both centralized and mobile (field
personnel) support.
Technological Trends and Opportunities
Up until recently, the choices and options for improving communications
to and from field personnel and mobile workers were limited
to handheld computing devices and laptop computers, with the
ability to download and upload upon connection to a wired outlet
or to wireless beepers, pagers, cell phones, and mobile radio.
The alternative was to make use of purpose-designed field service
force oriented communication units with wireless capability.
These specialized devices, which were based to some extent on
the original development of this concept by Motorola and IBM,
and marketed under the name Ardis, offered specialized digital
communications services and terminals linked to central computer
systems. While this special purpose technology was helpful,
it came at some expense for both the special digital communications
service and for the purpose-designed terminals.
However, new technology options now becoming available significantly
change the cost effectiveness of the mobile force automation
equation as well as the productivity and efficiency of mobile
workers. New technology developments include:
• Expanded full wireless capabilities for standard
lower cost laptops and PDAs, using new technology from
Bluetooth, Home RF, 802.11b, etc.
• New software and devices enabling the ability to
connect deployed equipment in the field to a central facility
for monitoring and diagnostics
• Advanced voice recognition technology for field
use, resulting in the creation of very user friendly portable
units with inputs provided by the human voice rather than
keying-in data
• Global positioning, enabling field engineers
to determine and report on their actual position with a high
degree of accuracy
• Very high density memory cards and chips, providing
the ability to offer updateable electronic repair manuals,
wiring diagrams, etc., in the field
• Advanced field work force management applications
software integrated with wireless field communications devices,
including integrated systems that provide work force assignment,
scheduling, dispatch, diagnostics, and logistics applications,
centrally integrated with direct, real time communications
with the field force
These new technologies are outlined in Figure 1.
New Field Service Management Concepts
Along with these new technological developments focusing on
field communications have been developments in overall Enterprise
Management Systems, including, but not limited to, Customer
Relationship Management (CRM), Supply Chain Management (SCM),
Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO) Operations, and Field
Service Management Systems (FSMS). These new concepts are based
on full control of all the functions and resources required
to support the total service and support process. These new
infrastructure designs provide the full range of functions including:
• Customer call management
• Logistics management
• Contract management
• Business development and new business management
• Financial management
• Management analysis and forecasting
• Database management
• Asset management
• Corporate individual and customer communications
• Field communications
The general infrastructure emerging is shown in Figure 2. Of
these, the most important functions are:
• Call management
• Logistics management
• Database management
• Field communications
The key linkages between these are outlined in Figure 3. As
indicated, the centralized call tracking and management processes
are either closed out through centralized diagnostic processes
or are passed on for field service dispatch and assignment.
The core of the actual on-site service is enabled through the
service engineer who is connected via the wireless technology
(PDA/Laptop) and field level applications support to the field
engineer, and from the field engineer to centralized dispatch,
logistics, contract administration, database, and financial
and administration reporting to support the close-out of the
process.
In general, wireless data technology provides a much more dynamic
linkage between the service engineer in the field and the central
infrastructure and headquarters facilities than more traditional
wireline and wireless voice technologies. Wireless technology
can have a dramatic impact on the performance of enterprises
in which personnel are deployed in the field, disconnected and
untethered from wired voice and data communications services,
by providing the field engineer or technician with the capability
for:
• Receiving information about new service tasks and
assignments
• Requesting and receiving technical assistance, diagnostics,
and other repair data
• Providing status reports
• Determining, through the use of GPS technology, the
“real time” physical location of each service
vehicle or technician for the purpose of assignment modifications
• Requesting status of inventory availability and ordering
• Coordinating the physical delivery process to enable
the parts courier or van driver to “vector” directly
to the appropriate location
• Closing out service calls directly in real time
• Receiving electronic mail, text messages, and new
assignment information
End-User Requirements
Market research studies by our firm suggest that FSOs feel a
strong need for improved field-office communications such as
those made available via mobile solutions. Effective field-to-office
communications are considered to be critically important to
day-to-day operations of high-tech service organizations. The
more service calls per day that an organization’s field
technicians make, the greater the impact that a mobile computing
system can have on key service outcomes.
Service Management Systems of various types are used by many
high-tech FSOs, and they generally want these systems to be
linked to the field service employee by a multi-functional communications
layer. In many cases, service organizations are looking to optimize
scheduling, dispatch, and call handling functions and systems
to improve both control and performance of their operations.
A key component of this process lies in tying together disjoint
applications and data sets and effectively utilizing the information
contained in these systems and databases.
Our market research also suggests that most high-tech service
end-users agree that there is significant room for improvement
in traditional wireless data communications solutions in terms
of the amount of information one can transmit, its reliability,
and the cost of data transmission, etc. In most users’
conceptual view of the “ideal” mobile solution,
all components of the system need to be compatible with one
another, however they do not need to be one-and-the-same system.
In spite of the need for enhanced capabilities and increased
effectiveness, many users do not want to have to change their
existing enterprise systems to accommodate a new mobile solution.
The bottom line among end-users we have interviewed is that
they are looking for the “best value” they can get
from a mobile solution, based on anticipated, measurable results
from a new purchase rather than the dollar-cost itself.
Summary Evaluation and Next Steps for FSOs
In summary, the current state-of-the-art offers significant
improvement to the mobile field service worker. The new technology
available today provides several key benefits to the service
organization and the individual mobile wireless user in terms
of:
• Fully linking the individual mobile field engineer
or technician to the centralized management system
• Providing the field worker with a greater array of
functions and capabilities to reduce dependence on centralized
services
• Increasing the reliability of services in the field
Furthermore, through our firm’s benchmarking and operational
research programs, we have shown that service organizations
can take advantage of significant benefits through the use of
wireless field communications equipment in conjunction with
advanced CR/SM systems. These benefits (Figure 4) come in the
form of increased efficiency, improved organizational tracking
and control, improved profitability and reduced costs, and improved
customer satisfaction. More specifically these improvements
include:
• Reduced time spent in front-end diagnostics
• Reduced rate of calls broken due to lack of parts
or other resources
• Reduced time delays between receipt of service request
and deployment of field engineer(s)
• Reductions in both call reaction time and the number
and frequency of unexpected delays in carrying out service
tasks
• Reduced frequency of telephone calls between field
technicians and the customer service central department
Based on our comprehensive evaluation of the state of the art,
we believe that mobile solutions can produce very high, measurable,
quantitative benefits to FSOs. By leveraging the mobile communications
state-of-the-art, FSOs can create a work environment, outside
the bounds of a fixed infrastructure, which allows field workers
to be creative and innovative with respect to completing their
assignments in a timely and productive manner. This new integrated
mobile computing technology strategy can reduce the Total Cost
of Ownership (TCO) associated with effective field communications
and thus result in a significant Return on Investment (ROI)
for end-user organizations. Based on these factors, we strongly
encourage FSOs to consider the new advances in mobile computing
technology as part of their overall enterprise systems and field
communications strategy.
© Copyright 2005 D.F. Blumberg Associates, Inc.
___________________________________________________________
Michael R. Blumberg, MBA, CMC, an authority on marketing
research/strategy formulation in the high-technology service
market, is president of D.F. Blumberg & Associates, Inc,
a Fort Washington, PA based management consulting firm that
provides client services in strategic planning, market research,
productivity improvement, and management systems design and
implementation. You may reach him at michaelb@dfba.com
or (215) 643-9060.
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