Paperwork pains
transformed to efficiency gains
Machine access and crane hire
Southern Cranes & Access Ltd is a family-run business providing mobile crane hire, contract lifting and powered access solutions. The company also offers industry-related training and assessment for candidates wishing to obtain a recognised qualification.
Paper mountain
Established in 1997, Southern Cranes & Access (SCA) is a family-run business that has one of the largest and most versatile fleets of access machines and mobile cranes in the southeast. Operating throughout Sussex, Surrey, Berkshire, Hampshire and London, the company has its headquarters in Southwater, West Sussex and satellite depots in Reading, Camberley, Croydon, Heathrow and Eastbourne.
SCA has approximately 100 employees on the payroll – from crane operators, appointed persons, sales and office staff. As well as owning an impressive fleet of access and lifting machinery, the company also runs accredited training courses to the industry both in-house and externally. SCA had been looking to simplify the day-to-day running of the company before it was approached by Canon at the end of 2016.
“Anyone working in this industry will appreciate the administrative complexities of running a business such as ours,” says Kelvin Prince, director. “Before we transitioned to a digital solution, on jobs that required, an appointed person (AP) would visit and create a site report, customer signatures were captured and operators’ time sheets submitted, more paper documents entered the system needing to be checked, actioned and filed. As you can imagine, even without errors creeping in, the whole process was very time consuming and needed to be updated.”
Kelvin PrinceI am delighted with our bespoke Canon solution. We have nailed some big efficiencies and streamlined how we work.
Director
Software solution
Having conducted thorough research into every area of SCA’s business, Canon proposed its unique, bespoke Capture On The Go solution that captures information digitally, saving time right across the board. Gone are the days when the office had to chase crane operators for their weekly timesheets – these are now submitted automatically once completed on site. Similarly, APs no longer have to create a new paper RAMS for every job – the template is on their laptop.
While Canon knew it had the optimum software for SCA, it was aware that it couldn’t offer the necessary hardware. “With advice from Canon, we sourced the hardware from Hong Kong, which has worked out to be extremely cost effective,” says Kelvin. “It is military-grade equipment and able to withstand the particularly harsh working environment.”
“I was impressed that Canon was happy to advise us on the optimum hardware solution, even though this meant sourcing it elsewhere. From the outset I felt that Canon really did want us to end up with the best possible solution. They listened and came up with the goods. I have not been disappointed.”
Benefits for all
In the office, the benefits of Canon’s expertise are also being felt as the new software has been integrated with their existing hire management software; Syrinx and Sage accounts, “We have killed two birds with one stone,” says Kelvin.
Kelvin PrinceThis is a brilliant solution that has, without doubt, made day-to-day life easier for everyone in the business.
Director