Kris Gibson founded Field Service Solutions Ltd in 2016 after working in the industry, initially as a service engineer, and subsequently leading teams both nationally and across Europe. He knows the importance of excellent coffee machine aftercare and his prestigious clients are a testament to this.
Overview
Field Service Solutions (FSS) uses Hostcomm’s remote visual assistance service (RVX) for quality control, site surveys, engineering audits and technical assistance.
Hostcomm’s remote visual assistance service has been integrated seamlessley into the FSS maintenance service and it is very complimentary. Coffee machines are complex and can be dangerous due to the pressurised steam, and there is trypically nobody technical on site who can resolve complex problems.
The cost of providing a maintenance service to a coffee machine operator needs to be justifiable, so remote visual assistance also helps ensure costs are reduced.
Challenge
The main challenge for a coffee machine operator is to keep the coffee machines running and resolve any issues quickly, in order to minimise revenue loss in the coffee retail outlet. The challenges for FSS can be summarised as follows:
- Reduce the number of costly on-site visits, incorrect spare part allocations and wasted on site time resolving trivial issues.
- Ensure that the new machine installations are completed without aborted visits, ensuring a best-in-class installation 100% of the time.
- offer ‘in-situ’ field engineers an effective back-up option if they are stuck with a complex problem, avoiding the need to abort.
FSS discovered remote visual assistance in 2021 and they quickly realised that it could solve all of the above issues and enhance their image with new innovative technology.
FSS has partnerships with several well known brands and relies on long term relationships and low customer churn and so the new service should also help with customer retention.
Solution
Hostcomm’s RVX Remote Visual Experience service uses video and Augmented Reality (AR) to provide visual support in a variety of different use cases. In FSS’s case, the solution is utilised in the pre-installation, technical support and product consultation stages in its client relationship. RVX is used by its experienced staff to support their field engineers and the client end users.
Drew Hill from the FSS service delivery team summarises the main benefis of Hostcomm’s RVX service as follows:
“- Faster response than an engineer visit.
- Making sure we have the correct part before a visit.
- Maximising efficiency and technical utilisation, driving an enhanced service across all our customers.
- Increasing ‘First time fix’.
- Decreasing ‘Return to fit’.
- Ensuring a quality visit.
- Pre site surveys causing fewer aborted installations. ”
In Action
The cost of a good quality commercial coffee machine can be as high as £30,000 so the incentive for winning new installation sales is very high. Asked whether Hostcomm RVX was being used in the sales process Drew Hill from FSS replied as follows:
“FSS sells service only, we do not sell products, however we work with major coffee machine manufacturers, we use RVX to elevate our business towards the future and offer a best-in-class service not just on a site visit but now remotely. This enables us to offer more service benefits than our competitors enabling customer savings and in the long run customer retention.”
The advantages of remote visual services in machinery installations is easy to understand because of the time and money that it saves. Reducing the sales cycle duration and increasing the success rate is quickly being recognised by Hostcomm RVX clients as an unexpected benefit. Furthermore the end users experience a quicker, less intrusive interaction.
Looking forward
2023 is going to be an interesting year from an economic perspective. In an uncertain food retail sector, FSS has hedged their bets with RVX.
Hostcomm is developing some exciting new features that will be very relevant to appliance installers. Much of its research and development time is focussed on functionality that has been requested by clients. End user feedback is very valuable and can sometimes raise awareness of new, innovative uses for RVX, such as sales consultations.
