Case Study
WOLF Gains a Competitive Edge and 50% Time Savings
WOLF Klima- und Heiztechnik GmbH from Austria strives for excellent and efficient customer service. With VISITOUR and MOBILE FLOW, the company has comprehensively optimised its processes.
The Company: Leading Provider of HVAC Heating and Air Conditioning Systems
As a leading and service-oriented system provider of heating and air conditioning systems, WOLF Klima- und Heiztechnik GmbH has been dealing with people’s most basic needs every day since 1974: warmth, water and air.
Through the surveying and service of air conditioning units, heating boilers, solar heating systems and heat pumps, the company from Austria ensures a perfect indoor climate and thus also the well-being of its customers. After all, we spend 90 percent of our lives indoors.
WOLF’s customer and partner base includes specialist partners, architects, plant engineers, planners and end customers. This results in a decisive advantage for the target groups: they receive advice, technology and service worldwide from a single source for the planning and implementation of projects.
Customer Service as a Clear Competitive Advantage
One, if not the, differentiating factor from the competition for WOLF is customer service. In keeping with the motto “Fully attuned to you”, the company’s stated goal is to combine the best possible products with excellent customer service.
The decision to use VISITOUR Field planning software was therefore motivated not least by the fact that WOLF’s customers are used to receiving quick help in the event of a fault. WOLF wanted to improve even further here and get the maximum service out of it.
The Project: Solving an Immense Planning Effort
The consideration of travel times could not be shown in the old planning process, not to mention the influence of current and historical traffic data. After receiving the route, the technicians had to print out the documents for each order. A great deal of time-consuming and unsustainable effort that was at the expense of the service time on site at the customer’s premises.
Introduction of VISITOUR and MOBILE FLOW
“Our wish was that the whole thing would be simplified and that we could plan orders cost-effectively and efficiently,” says Nicole Seidl, Scheduling Team Leader at WOLF.
The VISITOUR and MOBILE FLOW software solutions were quickly able to meet the wishes of WOLF Klima- und Heiztechnik. After the introduction, Field planning was considerably simplified.
WOLF was able to achieve a time saving of around 50 percent in the scheduling of tours alone – thanks to automatic appointment specifications including consideration of all predefined restrictions and the easy handling of the software. Time that has been freed up, in which the focus can now be directed to the concerns of the customers.
The Beginning of a True Success Story
At the start of the project in 2015, both companies jointly developed a suitable concept. Part of the concept was the constant questioning of the existing processes in the field service and Scheduling of WOLF Klima- und Heiztechnik. With the optimal solution for the applying company always in mind, the project was quickly and successfully completed thanks to the dedicated efforts of everyone involved.
Optimisation from First-Time-Fix Rate to Customer Satisfaction
The successful projectcompletion had a increased employee and customer satisfaction as a result. These advantages are demonstrably proven by the improvement of the KPIs relevant to the field service. A saving of at least ten percent in mileage driven as well as an immense increase in the first-time fix rate are just two examples of the positive development of the servicebusiness of Wolf Klima- und Heiztechnik GmbH since 2015.
Intelligent Field Planning Processes
The planning process after the introduction of VISITOUR is as follows: Customers of WOLF are informed in writing by letter, e-mail or SMS about pending maintenance. The customers then contact the company to arrange an appointment. The scheduling team then suggests appointments generated by VISITOUR that have already been fully optimised and fixes them after consultation with the customer.
The distribution of orders to tours and technicians is already completed at the time of the appointment proposal. From here, the automatic data and information flow starts within the Solvares Field Service software solutions and the Microsoft Navision ERP system used by Wolf.
On the day of the order, the assigned technician will find the order in his tour plan. With just one click, he has all the necessary information at hand and can document the order in an uncomplicated manner and report it back to the back office – all without pen and paper.
Additional Customer Service through Add-on APPOINTMENT
WOLF Klima- und Heiztechnik is keen to align its services even more closely with customer wishes and requirements. For this reason, the company has also decided to introduce the APPOINTMENT add-on. The result of the planned implementation is intended to be a win-win situation for customers and WOLF Klima- und Heiztechnik.
With this next digitalisation step, the market-leading company wants to accommodate its customers even further. Through the appointment booking portal they have the option of booking an appointment at any time and in a very convenient way. After completion of the booking, an appointment confirmation is automatically sent. Shortly before the actual appointment, the customer receives another appointment reminder from the system.
Should customers prefer the usual way of arranging an appointment, Mario Waltenberg, IT Project Manager at WOLF Klima- und Heiztechnik GmbH, reassures: “Of course, we will not switch off our telephone either. There will always be the possibility to arrange an appointment with us by telephone.”
But that’s not all. By expanding the digital Customer Journey, WOLF has further advantages for customers and employees firmly in its sights. In the course of the introduction of the appointment booking portal, the mode of appointment allocation is also to be changed.
Currently, four-hour appointment time slots are allocated. Thanks to the APPOINTMENT add-on, two-hour appointment time slots are to be offered in the future without having to sacrifice flexibility at the same time.
Fewer Field Service Overtime Hours and More Satisfied Employees
This results in advantages for the customers, who have to take significantly less time for an appointment. On the other hand, for the employees, who can spend significantly less time on the road and more time with the customer thanks to the combination of APPOINTMENT with the planning algorithm of VISITOUR.
In addition, this combination makes it possible to save overtime even more specifically and sustainably increase employee satisfaction, which is already clearly the case.
What You Can Take away from this for your Service
- The switch from Outlook & paper to specialised field planning halves the scheduling effort and creates scope for customer support.
- Intelligent tour optimisation noticeably reduces mileage driven – by around 10% at WOLF.
- Digital processes and a mobile app significantly increase the first-time fix rate because technicians have all the information at their fingertips directly on site.
- Pre-optimised appointment suggestions with clear time slots make appointment coordination faster and more transparent.
- Online appointment booking with add-on APPOINTMENT shortens time slots, reduces travel times and increases customer and employee satisfaction at the same time.
Industry
Products in Use
Website
Results
- 10% less mileage driven
- 50% time savings in scheduling
- Reduction of appointment time slots
- Win-win situation for customers and employees
- Immense increase in the first-time fix rate
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