TouchStar’s LPG Operations Solution Is Precisely What BP Turkey Needed
British Petroleum were concerned that their LPG delivery operations in Turkey were not as profitable as they could be, and concluded that their methods of transaction logging were partly responsible. At delivery level the whole process was based on paperwork, and delivery forms had to be physically returned to the back office and entered into the data handling system by hand.
BP knew that cutting out this stage of the process alone could save time spent in administration – time better spent on deliveries. BP knew who to turn to.After initial appraisal of the particular problem, TouchStar proposed a solution based largely on an existing LPG Operations delivery system. Each gas tanker had a Master Cradle installed which became its communications hub. The TouchPC Eagles distributed with the system were localised by entering Turkish translations of the system’s queries and instructions.
Because the system ships with English or customisable local language, this was a routine operation.Immediately after activation, the system started showing its worth. Drivers making deliveries straight from the tanker knew that their TouchPC Eagle was taking the meter readings and recording them as part of that transaction. Nothing had to be written down. By the time the driver had walked back to the cab, the transaction was logged. If proof of delivery was needed, the Eagle attached to a portable printer was taken to the overseer who checked the delivery details and signed the screen.
Within seconds a printout – with a digitised signature – was appearing out of the printer. The system eliminated a whole series of opportunities for human error to creep into the process, and precision was maintained throughout by using the actual measured data on the invoice. The inherent differences within this wider sphere were no problem for such a versatile system.The savings continued as the tanker fleet’s collected data was fed to the back office. Again, no form filling or duplication of effort were present to set the clock ticking – delivery records were placed in the order management system electronically.
Indeed, there was no need for the driver ever to visit the back office, as delivery instructions are sent over the GSM network, and delivery receipts sent back in the same way.As familiarity with the system grew, the system was introduced over the company’s entire Turkish operations, and was soon dealing with industrial and domestic customers, petrol stations and wholesale delivery. More processes were automated and, before long, BP were showing significant savings in their order management. Those hundreds of minutes a day saved by the system soon mount up to become considerable and measurable factors in profitability. In fact, their auditing figures show that the TouchStar LPG Operations system is responsible for saving an hour and a half of each driver’s day – a huge percentage of paid time and therefore a massive saving over the entire operation.TouchStar’s relationship with BP continues to squeeze extra profit out of their routine operations, and future automation and enhancements will no doubt fine tune their efforts at driving out waste.
