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Initially selecting the cloud-based platform to help gain and maintain quality standards and industry accreditations, JWH Tanks also used BigChange to improve the management of their nationwide operations by reducing data duplication, minimising paperwork and eliminating inefficient workflows.

Part of a family business dating back 150 years, JWH Tanks has been offering safe, reliable and cost-effective tank cleaning, tank removal, decommissioning and other fuel-related services for over 40 years. With teams operating across the UK, the Leeds-based company has completed projects for organisations such as the NHS and MOD, major fuel forecourt brands and large development projects, alongside smaller organisations such as independent building contractors and even domestic clients.

“Since we went live with BigChange around 2 years ago, we have increased our turnover by around 35 per cent,” commented Nick Saunders, Operations Manager at J W Hinchliffe (Tanks). “I believe this is attributed to a number of benefits brought on by BigChange, particularly efficiency savings, allowing us to focus on other aspects of the business, such as brand promotion.”

“Using BigChange, we have slashed the time taken to produce vital documentation for each job. Customised worksheets such as tank cleaning reports and consignment notes can be completed simply by our engineers, which is complemented by easy access to important safety information such as method statements and risk assessments via the BigChange app,” he continued.Nick Saunders, Operations Manager, J W Hinchliffe (Tanks)

“Once a job is completed, clients no longer wait 24 or 48 hours for paper documents to be returned to the office. In many instances, our clients receive their post-work completion packs before our engineers even return to base, using the benefit of real-time information sharing.”

Using BigChange, which incorporates customer relationship management (CRM), job scheduling, live tracking, resource management, job finance and business intelligence, has dramatically reduced the time and resource required to manage the complete project lifecycle from the initial enquiry right through to project sign-off and invoicing. Intelligent scheduling and routing are reducing costs and unnecessary returns to base between jobs, and the digitisation of paper documents is improving access to and sharing of job-specific information.

Since implementing BigChange, the administrative burden has been dramatically reduced, and management has better control over costs, all contributing to the increase in turnover. The system also improves communication between field-based teams and back-office staff, raising customer service levels and boosting feedback with real-time updates, ETAs and reporting. In addition, the management of staff and vehicles is streamlined with automated checks and alerts, real-time tracking and 24/7 visibility of remote staff. 

“BigChange has freed up my time to run the business rather than it running me,” concluded Saunders. “It gives me the tools and information I need when I need them, it provides the mechanism to share time or business-critical data, and it provides the intelligence we need to be accountable to ourselves, our customers and external organisations. This has allowed me to invest time in other areas of the business, such as the website, advertising and customer care, which has undoubtedly contributed to our growth.”Nick Saunders, Operations Manager, J W Hinchliffe (Tanks)

New build after-care specialist A&S has used the latest mobile workforce technology to double its business to a £5m turnover in 2 years.

Using the cloud-based job management system from BigChange, A&S has successfully diversified into high-level access services and asset management services for the Private Rental Sector (PRS).  

Established just eight years, A&S has become a leading player in the fast-growing market for new build after-care.  With a head office near Chester and a national training centre in Market Drayton, the company employs multi-skilled and specialist trade teams carrying out NHBC remedial claims, assisting with high-volume build programmes, remedial repairs and technical reports.

A&S works with the major house builders and is now expanding into the private rental sector providing services to UK and overseas investors with A&S Asset Management. With a pool of 100 tradesmen using mobile devices to connect in real-time with the office, BigChange provides a paperless dynamic CRM system that is boosting customer service and efficiency on site.

A&S recently acquired JA Access, allowing the group to offer high-level remedial works, technical external investigations and cladding remedial schemes. JA Access will be the first scaffold access company to utilise BigChange, and A&S are creating a nationwide supply chain network to provide access across the country. This new capability will help A&S complete recently secured cladding remediation and solar panel installation projects.

“BigChange has already delivered productivity gains of 20 percent within our after-care business,” said Sean Coldrick, Group Managing Director, A&S. “Now it has been deployed to underpin expansion into the private rental sector and manage new division in access services – helping us to boost turnover to £5m in just 2 years.”

Sean Coldrisk, Group Managing Director, A&S

“BigChange has transformed JA Access from a paper-driven to paperless business, allowing processes to be streamlined,” Coldrick explains.

“Incorporating JA Access was easy thanks to the ability to link data by the click of a button, making purchase orders and job data simple to exchange. It’s now a business underpinned by a dynamic CRM system; we’ve been able to seamlessly add new clients, double staffing levels and boost sales by 50 percent.”

Sean Coldrick, Group Managing Director, A&S

Using the BigChange mobile app, tradesmen manage all work on-site, aided by on-screen workflows to ensure all the correct procedures are followed and information recorded.  It is completely paperless, and job cards are completed with accompanying on-site photographs, generating contra-charge reports at the click of a button. BigChange also has fully integrated vehicle tracking, providing time and location data, routing, customer ETA alerts and driver performance reporting.

With customer service central to A&S, BigChange provides an important platform for customer mediation, with a portal allowing customers to access all information, including quotes, bookings, job cards and invoices.  BigChange has also been used to transform stock management, with real-time stock control and replenishment of stock on vans and the ordering of parts and materials by tradesmen via their tablets.

“BigChange has allowed us to really streamline our mobile operations.  Tradesmen are now much more self-sufficient; journeys to the depot are rare, first fix rates are improved, and there are fewer wasted hours.

We have complete visibility of everything going on in real-time and that provides assurance that all works are properly controlled.  The system allows us to meet any contract specification, opening up new business opportunities and much bigger contracts – with the assurance that we can deliver exceptional service with a well-proven system and processes.”

Sean Coldrick, Group Managing Director, A&S

BigChange is also helping A&S expand into private rental, creating a new division. A&S Asset Management provides a complete service to the PRS sector, working with UK and overseas investors and increasing the ROI on residential units by providing a high-end cost affective refurbishment scheme for residential units. 

The new division has already secured a multi-million-pound scheme within the NW to bring what are currently standard rentable units up to a modern category, introducing green energy and modern techniques to reduce carbon footprints significantly.

BigChange allowed A&S to centralise all overhead facilities and gave both JA Access and A&S Asset Management a foundation to provide the clients with reassurance.  BigChange ensures all the key requirements are in place; H&S, tracking of jobs and vehicles, asset control and transparency with client login.

“BigChange has lived up to our expectations and transformed the business.  However, more than anything, we chose BigChange because the system was clearly backed up by real people; a team of professionals that have since proven to be invaluable in the roll-out of the system,” said Coldrick. “And like us, they have a forward vision and ambition to grow; that fits very much with our own ambitions.”

Sean Coldrick, Group Managing Director, A&S

Norspace Hire, supplier of temporary accommodation and welfare facilities in Ireland, is boosting its customer service and reducing costs following the implementation of job management software from BigChange.

Used to schedule and report on its delivery and service teams, the complete solution ensures managers are no longer working in a vacuum and have real-time visibility of the mobile operation. Since implementing BigChange earlier this year, Norspace has seen a reduction in the number of credit notes issued, an increase in additional on-site charges and an improvement in customer feedback.

“I truly believe that most problems in business are caused by a lack of communication or communication of the wrong information,” commented Matthew Smyth, Managing Director of Norspace Hire, “and BigChange helps to eliminate this.

“Using BigChange mobile devices, our drivers capture real-time information which is communicated instantly to our back office who can share it with customers to either confirm the job was completed as scheduled or to explain why the job wasn’t completed. This information is time and date stamped, recorded to an exact location and backed up by photographs. It takes a couple of seconds on site to capture the information and is instantly available for back-office staff to view and share with customers or management.”  

Matthew Smyth, MD, Norspace Hire

Prior to the implementation of BigChange job management software, Norspace relied entirely on paper job cards, phone calls and texts. Issues, for example, blocked access to customer sites or lost keys, could take days to be reported to the depot and communicated back to a customer, potentially resulting in credit notes for un-serviced units, lost charges for extended time on-site and unanswerable customer queries.

“BigChange reduces the potential for complaints,” Smyth added.

“We record, access and share information in seconds and with just a couple of clicks. This has all but eradicated negative customer experiences and gives us room to manoeuvre as situations change.”

Matthew Smyth, MD, Norspace Hire

Norspace Hire, headquartered in Lisburn with depots across Northern Ireland and the Republic, is a family-run business with over 35 years of experience providing temporary accommodation and welfare facilities for the construction, infrastructure, health, education, and events and hospitality sectors. Norspace operates a fleet of trucks ranging from small service vehicles to articulated lorries and loader cranes. Offering a range of products and services, from portable toilets to full-scale onsite temporary accommodation, Norspace projects range from 1 day to many years.

Since implementing the BigChange job management platform, which incorporates customer relationship management (CRM), job scheduling, live tracking, field resource management, job finance and business intelligence, in one simple to use and easy-to-integrate platform, Norspace has seen a marked improvement in customer feedback and staff satisfaction. Intelligent and responsive scheduling allows Norspace to react immediately to unforeseen circumstances. Customisable job cards and reports have significantly improved efficiencies onsite and in the back office, which gives Norspace the right platform to maintain high service levels and customer satisfaction.

Central heating specialist Warmaway is using a job management system from BigChange to achieve efficiencies across its mobile workforce operation.

Integrated with back-office systems, BigChange is improving the productiveness of engineers, with less time spent travelling and filling out paperwork, and increased the turnaround time between completing the work and invoicing the customer via a seamless integration with the company’s accounting software Xero.

Warmaway is also planning to implement an online booking portal powered by BigChange, which will allow customers to request, book and manage appointments at their convenience. The BigChange customer portal also means Warmaway’s customers can track jobs and download job cards and invoices when the work is completed.

“Prior to BigChange, we had a basic CRM system, which literally gave us an address, so we tried to have a bespoke solution built, but this still limited us to desktop use,” commented Adam Redgwick, Sales Director at Warmaway.

“BigChange is different. From vehicle tracking to accessing a boiler’s service history, BigChange is there when and where we need it.

Adam Redgwick, Sales Director, Warmaway

“Using BigChange, we can see exactly where our engineers are, where they are going next and how they are driving,” he continued.

“The engineers know in advance what their day looks like and they know they have the information they need to deal with each and every job. With BigChange, even the back-office staff know they have the tools they need to get the job done from scheduling to keeping the customers informed and managing cash flow.”

Adam Redgwick, Sales Director, Warmaway

Warmaway is a family business with more than 45 years in the plumbing and heating industry. Founder Brian Redgwick installed some of the first domestic central heating systems in the 1970s, and the Yorkshire-based company is now in the capable hands of his son and grandsons. Warmaway provides a range of services, including central gas heating, boiler repairs and electrical work, and has more recently focused on renewable energy systems. Warmaway is Gas Safe, NICEIC approved, and MCS certified.

Used by Warmaway, the BigChange job management system incorporates customer relationship management (CRM), job scheduling, live tracking, resource management, job finance and business intelligence in one simple to use and easy-to-integrate platform. Automated vehicle checks and driver behaviour alerts ensure Warmaway’s fleet of Ford Transit vans is well serviced, maintained and driven, whilst real-time tracking, complete with customisable alerts, provides 24/7 visibility.

Advanced scheduling means Warmaway is achieving more with the same resource, and customisable job sheets and completion reports mean the flow of information between back-office staff and field engineers is more structured with reduced scope for errors. Warmaway engineers can also access, via the BigChange tablets, complete service histories and online manuals, complete with photographs.

The seamless integration of BigChange with the company’s Xero accounting software is fuelling further efficiencies, and business benefits as staff no longer have to ‘double-key’ information, invoices are produced as soon as a job is completed, and management can access up-to-date financial reports.

Omnia Plumbing and Heating is using the latest job management technology from BigChange to achieve award-winning product and service innovation and customer satisfaction.

Named as ‘Plumbing Company of the Year’ in the Manchester and North-West Prestige Awards, Omnia uses BigChange to improve communication, increase efficiency and reduce costs. The cloud-based platform, with live-linked tablets, is also helping Omnia minimise its environmental impact with reduced paper and fuel consumption and improve job completion reporting eliminating lost revenue.

“Before BigChange, we had a standalone diary system, separate accounting software and no CRM, which meant countless phone calls and lots of wasted time,” commented Alastair Barton, Omnia owner and Managing Director. “BigChange appealed to us at it offered a one-stop shop, ticking all our boxes for overall functionality, specific features, peer reviews, support and price, to name just a few.

“Since implementing BigChange, our customer interaction has vastly improved with automated ETAs and updates, and project-specific information available wherever and whenever it’s needed. The vehicle tracking also means we never miss billing a job which saves us literally tens of thousands of pounds every year!”

Alastair Barton, Omnia owner and MD

Omnia offers plumbing and heating services to domestic and commercial customers across Cheshire and south Manchester. Working closely with property developers, builders, landlords and property investment businesses, Omnia installs and maintains plumbing and heating services for new build, refurbished and rental properties. Formerly known as Boilercare 24/7, Omnia was rebranded in 2020 to reflect growth in demand for energy-saving solutions and the design and installation of multi-boiler and renewable systems in high-end residential building projects.

Omnia uses the BigChange job management system, which incorporates customer relationship management (CRM), job scheduling, live tracking, resource management, job finance and business intelligence in one simple to use and easy-to-integrate platform to coordinate its field teams with back office staff. Customer interactions are recorded using the CRM, and automated scheduling and vehicle tracking provide real-time updates for clients, contractors and other team members.

Vehicle management features complete with daily checks and alerts for routine maintenance and servicing ensures Omnia maintains its fleet to the highest standards, and the company is also looking to introduce a monthly award for the best driver based on individual driving styles recorded by BigChange.