Cosmo Ceramics In Glasgow Discovers Vehicle Tracking

Astronomical savings for tile distribution specialist

Based in Glasgow, Cosmo Ceramics is one of the most successful family run tile distribution businesses in the UK.

Supplying only high-quality products both to trade and to public customers, the company specialises in architectural, house building and retail projects and boasts a broad spectrum of designer styles and state-of-the-art fixing materials.

The company prides itself not only on the quality of its products, but also of its customer service where it goes to great lengths to ensure that every stage of the purchasing process is a pleasurable experience.

With a proactive and forward-thinking approach to business, the company recently equipped its fleet with vehicle tracking from Navman Wireless - the UK’s leading supplier of tracking systems.

Why tracking?

From its first encounter with vehicle tracking, Cosmo Ceramics immediately identified several areas of its operation where the technology could make a positive impact.

“When we met with Navman Wireless, we genuinely weren’t expecting to see a system with such a diverse range of benefits,” explained the company’s Director, Peter Haig.

“It actually transpired that what we were looking at held massive potential for us to significantly increase productivity levels and save considerable amounts of time and money by boosting fleet efficiencies.”

It was, however, the technology’s ability to improve the company’s customer service that really impressed Peter:

“It was clear that that by being able to see every movement of our fleet, vehicle tracking would allow us to offer a much more efficient, accurate and reliable service to our customers.

Having considered the collective business benefits, the company didn’t waste any time and decided to install the technology in its fleet of ten vehicles.

Rocketing productivity

To ensure it had complete control over its busy schedule of deliveries and appointments Cosmo Ceramics chose to incorporate the M-Nav 760 – two way messaging and navigation terminal.

The state-of-the-art device, allows the company to communicate with drivers and route them to their next job using Online AVL2, the software at the heart of the vehicle tracking system.

“Instant communication with drivers has significantly reduced fleet downtime,” said Peter.

“For instance, in the past, if a trade customer was unable to take a delivery, it would often impact on our entire delivery schedule and cause real logistical problems.

“With vehicle tracking though, our fleet is much more manageable and we’re able to respond to such issues instantly; altering complex schedules to ensure we keep our vehicles moving.”

A welcome bi-product of installing the technology has been a sharp decline in unauthorised vehicle use Peter explains:

“Out of hours mileage used to be a costly activity, but the sheer level of visibility we now have over the fleet has helped bring unauthorised usage down to a level which is much more tolerable.”

Surpassing customer expectations

The ability to improve customer service was a key factor for Cosmo Ceramics when it decided to install vehicle tracking.

“Our core markets have faced unprecedented economic challenges in the last year or two and we’ve had to adapt,” said Peter.

“When people are looking to tighten their belts, efficient and reliable customer service can mean the difference between losing and keeping a customer.

“Vehicle tracking has allowed us to differentiate ourselves in a competitive market and being able to give precise delivery times, for instance, has made the company a much more attractive proposition.

“We’re always looking for new ways to exceed customer expectations and this technology has helped us do just that.”

In addition, Peter believes that tracking has improved morale amongst employees:

“The tracking system gives the team in the office the information they need to handle most customer queries, giving them a real sense of empowerment.

“As a consequence, our drivers can now focus on the job in hand, meeting the time slots on their busy schedules.”

Astronomical savings

The added fleet visibility that vehicle tracking provides means organisations like Cosmo Ceramics are able to significantly reduce unnecessary mileage through better vehicle distribution and efficient journey planning. Aerial photographic and street-view mapping, for instance, enables users to accurately route vehicles to the most obscure of locations, saving them both time and money.

“Since installing Navman Wireless technology, we have observed a saving of up to five gallons of fuel per vehicle per week – a saving of more than £10,000 a year.

“With the significant gains in productivity, I would estimate that the company is £20,000 a year better off thanks to vehicle tracking.”