Case Study

Geas Energiewacht switches to intelligent planning with VISITOUR

Higher customer satisfaction

Significant fuel savings

Automation and simplification of planning processes

Geas Energiewacht provides products and services for comfortable and sustainable living. When it was time for the Dutch company to renew its field service and route planning system, it decided to implement VISITOUR.

Geas Energiewacht is a company established for over 50 years in Twente and the Achterhoek regions of the Netherlands. Every year, more than 210,000 orders are processed in the areas of gas and hot water systems, ventilation systems, heat recovery systems, cooling and air conditioning systems, heat pumps, and pressurized water systems.

Innovative IT for lean processes

Geas is a pioneer in its market segment in the use of innovative IT programs for process optimization. Years ago, the company introduced a digital worksheet for planning. This led to a reduction in the billing process and more control over the entire logistics process. Four years later, the introduction of Microsoft Dynamics NAV followed along with Prodware PRIMA Suite, which in turn led to an improvement in processes in contract management, logistics, and invoicing.

Numerous challenges in service

Finally, they were looking for a new scheduling system to replace the old software. Feedback from consumers and customers had revealed deficits that Geas wanted to improve:

Lack of reliable adherence to customer appointments

Reduced use of operatives in scheduling

Reduction of mileage per route and technician

Increase in the number of problems resolved by technicians during the first contact (first-time fix rate)

Ability to maintain capacity

Customer portal for appointment scheduling

Under the leadership of John Huitink, Head of Information & Quality at Geas, and Jan Ezendam, Head of the Technical Office, potential programs were evaluated.

VISITOUR was first presented to them in June 2009. After workshops and reference visits to Solvares Field Service customers, the project team concluded that VISITOUR, together with Microsoft Dynamics NAV (Navision), was capable of meeting the requirements.

Proof of Concept with VISITOUR

The next step for the Geas project team was validation through a proof of concept.

The installation of the client software took only one minute, after which we received training on the system. By the end of this first day, we were able to export orders to VISITOUR using XML data messages from our Navision system.

John Huitink

Geas Energiewacht Group

“The goal of the proof of concept was to see that VISITOUR could meet our requirements and support the service processes,” says Peter Noordanus, Head of Customer Center, Emergency Service, and Planning at Geas. “In addition, proof of the increase in productivity was to be provided. Solvares Field Service was certain that savings in mileage of 10 to 15 percent could be achieved through planning and route optimization.”

“In the first week, we took orders for one of our teams from our old planning system and compared them with the planning from VISITOUR. The conclusion after this week was that we actually achieved these savings by using VISITOUR.”

Cost-efficient technician planning

Geas has its own call center that is available 24/7. Customer satisfaction is the top priority, especially during the busy winter season when the number of calls increases and a technician must complete the order on the same day if possible. With VISITOUR, the most cost-efficient technician resolves the order within the customer’s preferred timeframe. The result is higher customer satisfaction, optimized appointment and route planning, and lower costs.

Scheduling of maintenance work

Maintenance work can be scheduled far in advance with VISITOUR and confirmed to the customer by mail or telephone. Dynamic planning optimization allows for a response to daily changes such as customer cancellations or technician sick leave, as VISITOUR offers a cost- and service-optimal alternative for the available operatives or appointment options.

IT administration of VISITOUR

Thanks to its innovative IT character, Geas has extensive experience with field service applications and, after a good year with VISITOUR, also has a very good overview of the software administration.

The simplicity of administration was already evident during installation. Bastiaan Voort, Head of Technical Programs:

“We had prepared the required server with an SQL database. The entire program, including the database connection, was installed in half an hour. That is very fast!”

The same applies to VISITOUR updates: “An executable file is sent, and the update is finished within 15 to 20 seconds. Before moving it to the actual production environment, we check the update in our test environment.”

“For SQL management, we created a plan ourselves for regular backups of all our data. At Geas, we perform a daily data backup; this batch runs at night, so there is no additional effort for us in VISITOUR.”

And further: “There are various tools in the program that allow the administrator to easily check if the SQL database is usable. Everything runs via web services. If a field needs to be adjusted, that is also very easy,” explains Bastiaan Voort.

ROI after just one year

Peter Noordanus, Head of Customer Center, Emergency Service, and Planning, sums up the benefits of the new solution:

We have been using VISITOUR for more than a year now and, after the busy winter business, we can say that our project with VISITOUR was a success. Due to the savings achieved so far, the system has already paid for itself.

Peter Noordanus

Head of Customer Center · Geas Energiewacht Group

“Technically, we were operational three months after integrating VISITOUR and our Navision ERP system. Due to the success of the proof of concept, we required minimal support from Solvares Field Service, with the bulk of that time spent on change management.”

“I have more than 20 years of experience in IT and have never seen a more user-friendly solution before. With VISITOUR, the benefits of automated planning are easy to understand. We gain insight into costs and mileage and an idea of what the scheduling result would look like,” says John Huitink.

What You Can Take away from this for your Service

Automated, intelligent route planning simplifies your processes and turns complex field service management into a lean, easily controllable workflow.

Reliable, cost-optimized appointment allocation (including same-day assignments during peak times) contributes directly to customer satisfaction and the service experience.

A specialized planning solution with clean ERP integration (e.g., Dynamics NAV) can be implemented quickly and operated with little administrative effort.

Transparency regarding mileage, costs, and utilization makes the benefits of optimization measurable – leading to a fast ROI within a short period.

Dynamic rescheduling in the event of cancellations or absences ensures that your technicians remain efficient despite changes and that routes remain economical.

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