Telford-based Cartwrights Waste Disposal Services Ltd wanted to ‘move with the times’ and cut down their paper trail, so they decided to replace their outdated software with PurGo Waste Management Software.
Cartwrights Waste Disposal has specialised in the delivery of integrated waste management solutions and skip hire for over 35 years. Operating across the whole of Shropshire and surrounding areas, their customers range from SME’s to blue chip multi-nationals. The company is committed to its customers and the planet, and maximises recycling and reuse efficiencies wherever possible, facilitated by its own fully licensed waste transfer station and recycling centre in Telford.
“Our systems were inadequate and we needed to update our software to enable us to become a more efficient, paperless operation. We also wanted to have access to real-time data to identify areas where we could improve productivity and reduce costs.” – Scott Smith, Operations Manager, Cartwrights Waste Disposal Services Ltd
PurGo, from VWS Software Solutions, is an ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) software system designed for waste management & recycling operators and materials processing facilities, which integrates seamlessly with other business systems and software packages. Customers pay a monthly subscription for the use of the software, which includes a support service should they need it. The software and interface are highly automated, exception driven and most importantly intuitive and user friendly.
A key benefit of PurGo is its ability to reduce, or in certain cases completely eradicate, the need for traditional administration processes and paperwork.
Scott: “PurGo offers us the ability to integrate our vehicle operations with our back office and administrative functions so that everything is recorded for our purposes and for our customers. We can now track every vehicle and have live feedback from our collection crews. This means we can monitor every collection round. If there are any issues such as no bin, an over filled bin, lack of access or if one of our vehicles breaks down, we know about it and we can take immediate action.”
A popular feature of PurGo with customers is that they can access their own web-based portal, which allows them to download job tickets, weigh tickets, invoices and other data whenever they need it. The feature works in line with the real live time data from the in-cab devices which has been recognised as a big hit for Cartwrights extensive customer base.
Cartwrights has also installed the Enviroweigh bin-weighing system from VWS to its fleet of trade waste vehicles. PurGo integrates seamlessly with Enviroweigh and together the two systems are particularly effective at identifying potential missed revenue from customers who regularly present heavy or overweight bins.
Scott: “With our trade waste collections we have benefited from knowing exactly where we were losing revenue and we now charge appropriately. Another benefit of knowing the exact location of our drivers is route optimisation; we can examine the routes to make sure vehicles aren’t crossing and make any necessary changes to improve the efficiency of rounds.”
PurGo also offers a range of auto-communication features such as sending emails to customers advising them that a vehicle is on its way or if a collection is running late.
All Cartwrights’ drivers are equipped with a PDA, which they use to log the details of each job e.g. weights, times and signatures. If there is a problem with a collection the handsets enable the drivers to report back to head office immediately and they can even take a photograph for evidence. Customers can be contacted immediately and notified of any issues. The whole process is transparent.
PurGo joins up all aspects of the operation including customer services, transport and route management, weighing, collections and finance.
Cartwrights have integrated PurGo into every area of the business, which means there are now consistent processes and procedures for everyone to follow.
Scott: “From a potential customer’s first call enquiring about our services or the first contact with one of our sales force, from that point onwards, every communication, quote, activity and invoice is recorded so we build up a detailed file for each customer.”
“As a result of using PurGo we are now able to offer a much more robust and thorough service. We can provide our clients with detailed information and statistics, and advise them about how to reduce their costs, increase their reuse or improve their recycling rates.”
Joe Barnes, Sales Director, VWS Software Solutions Ltd: “Cartwrights is a progressive family business that has been growing steadily for the last few years. They wanted to take the business to the next level and we were delighted to help. It’s great to see the ease with which their drivers have deployed the PurGo in-cab solution, which is crucial to making the whole operation tick. Issue management, backed up by image capture, tracking data and live integration with the back office allows them to continually improve their customer service and has helped to greatly reduce the number of customer queries.”