Logistics case study

THE CLIENT

Bos Logistica, a privately owned specialist logistics provider operating across a range of market sectors including Off-Site Construction and Modular Buildings, Agricultural Equipment, Heavy Plant and Construction Equipment and Wide and Abnormal Loads for the Construction and Farming Industries.



THE CHALLENGE

(1) The client was dissatisfied with its existing logistics planning software as that did not adapt well to the complexity of the project-based jobs it undertook that involved the planning and execution of a high number of time-sequenced moves of specialist vehicles with specific criteria

(2) Due to system limitations there was a lot of duplicative entry, limited visibility and no real-time-tracking

(3) The client also wanted a better way to forecast future resource requirements to understand when it would need to expand its fleet



THE SOLUTION

Prodactive developed a bespoke complex solution combining the Smartsheet core app with Smartsheet’s Resource Management platform where the planners could easily create a new job from a template and enter the specific criteria for each specific item being moved, both timings and dimensions. Placeholder resources could initially be allocated for planning purposes, and if specific requirements such as escort vehicles and local authority permissions were required, these would be flagged

Closer to the job, drivers would receive a notification to confirm their availability and then once on the job drivers were able to record specific timings and input when they arrived and left collection and delivery points via a simple interface on the drivers PDA, enabling the management to gather valuable information on the time it took to complete jobs relative to the time allocated



THE OUTCOME

Having all the information in one system has doubled the efficiency of the client’s project management and delivery administration. The planning and then subsequent amendments to project programmes is now very slick and the workflow automation in the background then ensures that all relevant parties are immediately updated with all changes. It also enables them to directly feed information back into the system without having direct access which is ideal for drivers and subcontractors



CLIENT TESTIMONIAL

“The solution that Rich developed has been instrumental in enabling us to develop our business and create a solid platform for future growth. At the outset there were a number of uncertainties and challenges that had to be overcome. Rich rapidly understood our needs and provided smart and highly practical solutions to the challenges faced. Rich was always available to deal with any queries and was extremely easy to work with.

At the same time as creating our bespoke Smartsheet solution Rich also shared some of his vast Smartsheet knowledge with me; this means that we have the ability to make system changes or fix any minor issues that arise in real time.

Working with Rich and Prodactive was a pleasure and I would highly recommend his services to anyone interested in utilising the Smartsheet platform.”

Greg Bailey, Management Accountant