Automation of Field Force Service Operations
The Client
The client is a leading utility company in the US. It has a number of business units including nuclear and fossil generation, transmission and distribution and non-regulated operations.
Business Needs
Field Service Reps (FSR) of the client were using offline hand-held devices and were able to dispatch orders only during start and end of day leading to delays. The process was inefficient and error-prone with a lot of manual interventions. The client therefore wanted to integrate MDSI's Advantex with Messaging Technology over a wireless network to connect FSRs to the Field Order System in real-time or near real-time. The client also needed a business case for project definition and management.
Challenge
Rapid acquisition and transfer of the emerging technology was a key challenge. The client had very stringent Service Level Agreement requiring a quick turnaround.
Our Solution
Infosys did a detailed impact analysis of the existing systems and proposed a comprehensive system integration methodology and a phased deployment strategy over a year covering the entire service territory. The key technologies used in the process were MSMQ for integration, UNIX, Advantex, COBOL, DB2, MVS/IBM 3090.
Benefits
Some of the key benefits achieved were:
- Improved turnaround time from instant messaging
- Increased utilization of FSR time
- Fully integrated system: one system for emergency as well as regular orders
- Rapid technology transfer of competence in emerging technology