Balfour Beatty

THE PROBLEM

Balfour Beatty’s top priority is the safety of its employees, subcontractors and the public. Reliable delivery of plant, tools and safety equipment is key to this goal.

To support its Services Division, Balfour Beatty runs a nationwide network of depots that purchase, store and distribute a wide range of products. Materials and plant assets are purchased and hired ’just-in-time’ to ensure that handling and supply chain costs are minimised.

The traditional paper approach led to stock inaccuracies because equipment movements were recorded on paper, using item codes or equipment descriptions. Paper processing relied heavily on personal knowledge,
and the system was not consistently reliable at recording movements, particularly when handwritten requisitions were illegible, or lost.

Also, the administration team could process paperwork multiple times, which resulted in unacceptable time delays. Following an intensive selection process, Balfour Beatty selected Spartan’s PHALANX solution to solve these problems and streamline equipment logistics.

THE SPARTAN SOLUTION

Equipment processing paperwork has been replaced with PHALANX Apps running on wireless industrial mobile devices.

For the initial phase of the project, Balfour Beatty implemented the Delivery, Return and Depot Transfer Apps to manage and track the picking and movement of plant, equipment and consumables allocated to field
workers or transferred between depots.

By replacing all manual processes with integrated PHALANX mobile Apps, error, delay, and costs have been removed from the equipment supply chain.

Balfour Beatty also uses PHALANX’s Tag-It App to tag and electronically identify all plant and equipment, with either Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags or rugged barcodes. Tagging significantly increases the
speed and accuracy of equipment picking. PHALANX immediately notifies the depot logistics team of new orders and the required equipment to be picked.

PHALANX allows the team to ‘ping’ the equipment RFID tag or scan the barcode to match the selected equipment against the order. Once picked, a delivery note is e-mailed automatically or configured to print to a depot printer. PHALANX immediately updates Balfour Beatty’s back-office systems, ensuring both master equipment and stock databases reflect operational reality.

PHALANX currently supports over 30,000 items of equipment in 15 Balfour Beatty depots across the UK.

THE RESULTS

PHALANX has significantly improved equipment visibility across Balfour Beatty’s depot network, reducing unnecessary stock and improving operational efficiency.

The equipment fleet status is now updated instantly, whenever equipment is picked for delivery or processed as a return from site. Paperwork processing and serial  number errors have been eliminated.

The PHALANX Operations Web Portal shows an accurate view of equipment availability across the entire depot network.

Real-time visibility of the fleet has improved utilisation and reduced expensive cross-hires and equipment transfers to satisfy customer demand.

Since introducing PHALANX, Balfour Beatty has seen significant improvement in stock holding accuracy, with a consequent reduction in capital expenditure.

PHALANX mobile apps have freed up depot and administrative staff and significantly improved operational efficiency, project auditability and accountability.

Photo: © Balfour Beatty