Certas is the largest independent fuel and lubricant distributor in the UK, with more than 1,000 tankers working out of a network of 130 depots. Certas, which has more than 2,500 employees, also operates under the Gulf brand at over 900 retail forecourts.
The company, which has grown through several acquisitions over the last ten years, delivers in excessof 6 billion litres of fuel per year. This ranges from500 litres of kerosene for heating domestic propertyup to 40,000 litres of petrol.
Certas is a company that prides itself on providinginnovative alternatives to traditional fuel supply
arrangements. It also offers the highest standard ofservice to customers with tailored solutions to meet their individual energy needs.
Certas employs high standards of operation in orderto meet the expectations of its customers, but following a number of acquisitions the company found that its drivers had come through a mixture of training procedures and found it difficult to change and adapt to the standards set by Certas.
Having been familiar with different processes inprevious jobs, drivers sometimes found it difficult to improve their productivity and efficiency, most importantly when it came to paperwork compliance and also delivery standards.
Certas had also relied on drivers themselves for updates on location, status and timings, meaning drivers often lost time and focus due to the amount of reporting in to their fleet managers – leading to slower deliveries and less accurate reporting.
The challenges Certas faced, provided an opportunity to bring in TouchStar to improve several processes, most importantly ensuring compliance and boosting customer service.
TouchStar’s on-board solutions enabled drivers to fill out the majority of their forms digitally, instantly reducing the amount of time spent on paperwork and cutting the chances of mistakes being made.
The solution offered many additional benefits to Certas and its drivers, from a built-in satellite navigation system to detailed delivery updates and task location tracking.
Certas quickly found that the added visibility provided by TouchStar offered an extra dimension of time management, as fleet managers would be updated when a delivery had been made, and as a
result they could then better plan accordingly.
Certas first brought TouchStar on board in 2014 and the solution is continuously being developed and improved. Harnessing the scope of interfaces available on the truck, within existing practices as well as back office systems has been an important step towards rolling out the system to the entire fleet.
The level of extra visibility that the solution has provided has led to an on-going process as the more insight Certas gains into its operations, the more it can work with TouchStar to adapt and change for the better.
David Hauff, Head of Logistics Services at Certas commented: “We want to grow and become even more productive with our time. The TouchStar solution will enable us to facilitate that process by taking unproductive time away from the driver, such as filling out paperwork.
“TouchStar’s solution works in tandem with our existing systems and really completes the package, meaning that our customers are now informed at every stage of the delivery process. Better customer service is a key goal for us with TouchStar and I am confident that we can continue to improve.”
TouchStar Technologies is a leading provider of data collection, mobile computing, access control and onboard retail solutions for a diverse range of markets including warehouse & logistics, transportation & fleet management, facilities management, airlines and fuel distribution. The company works with many of the world’s largest organisations. Its solutions help capture, move, and manage critical information, providing businesses with the means to access real-time information anytime and anywhere enabling them to make faster and smarter business decisions.
Thanks to TouchStar we are now able to have more informed conversations, plan better and offer an improved service to our customers. The solution also guarantees compliance and gives us a greater degree of accuracy in our conversations with our sales team and of course our customers.
David Hauff
Head of Logistics Services, Certas
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