With the help of NEO Mobile, the extremely complex processes at LÖWEN-CROWN-SERVICE have been greatly simplified. This not only makes work easier for the technicians, but also increases the quality of service.
Customer benefits
Customer
LIONS ENTERTAINMENT
Branch
Media, culture and sports
Contact
Alexander Wassiltschenko
BU manager Axians NEO Solutions & Technology GmbH
+49 511 123549-53
Contact us
Project environment: 10,000 vending machines in support
More than 100 technicians, spread across a total of 21 branches throughout Germany, ensure that the gaming machines of the LÖWEN and Crown brands run smoothly – whether at the around 5,000 customers or in the more than 300 ADMIRAL-owned arcades. In total, the LÖWEN-CROWN-SERVICE looks after several 10,000 vending machines, which are exclusively installed as rental equipment.
Paper procurement
Before the introduction of Mobile Workforce Management, the entire service process was extremely paper-heavy and therefore anything but optimal. It started with the service request. In the absence of electronic forms, this was usually done by telephone directly at the branch office. There, the order was entered manually in the SAP system, printed out and given to the service technician in paper form. The equipped his vehicle with all materials that could be needed due to the order – usually significantly more parts than actually necessary. Nevertheless, it was not uncommon for an important component to be missing, resulting in additional paths. “Our service center was largely left out of all these processes, because communication between headquarters and branches was by phone and e-mail and thus rather cumbersome. That’s why there was not only a lack of transparency. It was also not possible to determine important key figures in this way,” Roland Kellner, head of LÖWEN-CROWN-SERVICE, describes the initial situation.
Special features of equipment rental
Due to the fact that slot machines are generally rented out, the underlying processes are also more complex than in other service organizations. Thus, depending on the brand and device, quite different warranty conditions must be taken into account. But the parts system in materials management, in which a distinction is made between replacement and new parts, among other things, in a complex material return process, also placed special demands on the future IT system.
At the same time, however, the “Mobile Workforce Management” project was also intended to optimize the loading of vehicles in order to avoid unnecessary journeys on the one hand, but also to optimize the material stock as a whole on the other. In addition, a new solution should be integrated and deployed with SAP without system discontinuities, if possible, so that the benefits of Mobile Workforce Management can actually be exploited. The abundance of requirements and the fact that, in addition to service, materials management and IT were also closely involved in the evaluation process led to the decision not to rush things.
“We decided to start by clarifying three questions as part of a preliminary study: What all needs to be done to set up our service organization in a modern and up-to-date way? What will the whole thing cost us? And when will the investment pay for itself again?” says Roland Kellner. Even this inventory was carried out with the external support of a specialist from Axians. “Our primary focus in the selection process was on both professional know-how and the requirement that the consultant must convince us personally,” explains Roland Kellner.
Preliminary study as the cornerstone of the project
As part of the preliminary study, all service processes were then examined in detail over a period of four months – and this was done from the different perspectives of each of the three areas. The discussions were quite heated, because, for example, the service and materials management departments had very different ideas on the question of how to equip the vehicles. “While we wanted to keep a wide range of parts on hand so that our technicians would be as prepared as possible for any situation, materials management was in favor of the leanest possible assembly in order to keep parts inventory low,” Roland Kellner describes one of the discussion points. Nevertheless, the discussions were extremely constructive, so that in the end a concept was developed that did justice to all areas.
NEO Mobile convinces in the selection process
On this basis, a detailed selection process was started, at the end of which the decision was made in favor of NEO Mobile. Not only because of the solution’s functionality, but also because Axians’ SAP team supported the upstream project steps, the optimization of the SAP CS customer service module in use, and the implementation of the SAP MRS module for resource planning. Only then did the introduction of the NEO Mobile Suite take place. “We deliberately approached these steps sequentially. Although the overall project took a little longer this way, the result is that we now have a system with which all processes across the entire service organization are designed uniformly and, above all, fully integrated in SAP,” Roland Kellner summarizes.
Particular attention was paid to equipping technicians with mobile devices. This is because they not only have to record times and materials or the customer’s signature electronically on the touch screen while on the road, but also transfer a software update to a device via USB. Panasonic Toughbooks were chosen because they combine the advantages of a tablet with those of a notebook and are also virtually indestructible. “By the way, the decisive factor for the selection was the opinion of the technicians, who we had given three different devices from different manufacturers to test,” says Kellner.
From home directly into the field
The process of vehicle assembly was completely changed. Wherever practical, the vehicle, usually a VW Caddy, is loaded overnight by a service provider. The technician, who used to have to go to his office on a regular basis, can now start work in the morning directly from his home. He can now also perform other tasks from the home office, which is a huge relief for the individual technician. “Even if one or the other employee was initially apprehensive about the mobile devices or data entry using a touchscreen, all in all, the colleagues quickly noticed that the new technology brings them significant advantages overall,” reports Roland Kellner. In order to constantly increase acceptance, the user-friendliness is now to be further improved, even if this is not always easy due to the complex requirements at LÖWEN ENTERTAINMENT. Above all, the isolated concern that jobs could be lost as a result of the new technology proved to be unfounded. “On the contrary, we have been able to expand the range of services on this basis and are currently even recruiting additional employees,” says Kellner.
An investment that pays off
With the new system, both the branches and the service center now work on the basis of the same information, so that today it does not matter whether the order is received on site or via the central office. Due to the tight integration of NEO Mobile, all data is available in SAP in a timely manner. This means that processes can now be planned and controlled on the basis of reliable key figures. Overall, according to Roland Kellner, the project goals have been achieved, although there is of course always room for improvement. “Today, we can also answer question 3 in the preliminary study positively: the investments in the system have paid off,” he concludes.
About LÖWEN ENTERTAINMENT
LÖWEN ENTERTAINMENT is a major player in the field of amusement machines. With a strong presence for 70 years, the company from Germany has played a major role in shaping the industry. LÖWEN ENTERTAINMENT offers innovative gaming machines and technology solutions that meet the highest quality and security standards. Through customer-centric approaches, the company creates entertaining and responsible gaming experiences.
