About U.S. Electrical Services, Inc (USESI)
U.S. Electrical Services, Inc. (USESI) is an American-based electrical supplier and distributor. On any given day, the company carries over $100M of inventory across 300,000 unique products specializing in lighting, wire, wiring devices, tools, power distribution, control automation, datacom, and solar. USESI is made up of 14 regional businesses with 150+ brick and mortar locations across North America.
The Challenge for USESI
Transportation Operations Manager Will Wilson oversees “all things truck” for the company’s many distribution locations. A few years ago, after touring some of the company’s buildings and auditing the paper-based system, Will discovered there was an ongoing problem with the accuracy of DVIR records. Since compliance is one of his many responsibilities, Will and his supervisors knew a change in process was needed.
“Once you get to a grander scale with 50+ vehicles, it’s very difficult — and more and more expensive — to stay compliant on paper,” Will said. “We run trucks twice a day (day shift and night shift), so we do double the daily inspections than the average operation. It used to cost us about $22,000 per year to order books for paper inspection forms.”
Another recurring issue was tracking and fixing vehicle defects. Drivers would often complain of issues with their trucks, but there was a lack of communication between drivers and managers that prevented the problems from being repaired. “You hear the same complaint from drivers no matter what fleet you run. ‘My truck has issues’,” Will said. “Then you go to the manager, and he says ‘If I don’t know it’s broken, I can’t fix it.’”
The Solution for USESI
After seeing a demo of Whip Around and the functionality it offered, Will and his team knew their day-to-day operations could be vastly improved by adopting the software. In particular, Will was excited about the ability to customize and store inspection forms in the app. “Our ability to make the inspection forms and design them exactly how we need them was really what sold me,” he said.
And it’s not just because he’s thrilled to get rid of all that paper — being able to quickly find past forms means staying compliant with the various transportation authorities USESI drivers encounter in their daily travels. “If I have a truck that is stopped across the New York State Bridge Authority and they want to see our last 30 days of DVIRs, two years ago we would have to pull out 30 different files, dig through, and hope the drivers did it. 90% of the time it was wrong or not there,” Will said. “Now with Whip Around I can pull it up and email it, print it, or text it to anyone in real time.”
Will also expects that using Whip Around will help USESI reduce fines over the long term. In fact, since beginning to use the software, the company’s drivers haven’t failed a single Class 1 or Class 2 inspection. “We operate in some of the biggest cities in the U.S. where the DOT is very strict,” he said. “Each ticket could cost us a minimum of $700. Whip Around has helped us get ahead of this issue proactively.”
Aside from improving the compliance process, Will said Whip Around has helped streamline internal communication about truck defects. “It not only helps us communicate across three different shifts, but also three different levels of management,” he said. “With Whip Around, if my driver puts in a report at 1:30 a.m. during the night shift that his clearance marker is broken and his truck is making a funny noise, the manager walks in the door at 7:30 a.m. and it’s all in his email.”
Ultimately, that means USESI has a better handle on the quality of each truck and its maintenance needs. Managers have better visibility, and drivers feel heard. “It’s all about building a culture of taking care of drivers, the managers communicating through the app, and drivers seeing the quality of fleet maintenance improving,” Will said.
Boost Your Fleet Inspection Process with Whip Around
If fleet management bottlenecks are becoming an issue or causing expensive repairs and downtime, then it’s time to schedule a Whip Around demo. Contact us today to explore how Whip Around can help you achieve your objectives this year, or speak with a product specialist.
