Case Histories

Lone Star helps United Utilities handle high call volumes to meet emergency call targets

United Utilities runs the gas emergency service in the north of England on behalf of Northern Gas Networks. Around 600 domestic engineers, the majority of whom are lone workers, stay in touch via Autopage’s PC-based Lone Star system. Lone Star is designed to monitor outworkers at multiple sites through low-cost mobile phone access.

Problem

“When telephones are ringing off the hook and your staff can’t cope with the calls flooding in, it’s time to consider whether your communications system is functioning efficiently” according to Ian Cooper, who helps look after the company’s despatch team department in Sunderland.

“We aim to respond to emergency calls within an hour, but prior to installing Autopage’s Lone Star, we didn’t really have a system. It was difficult for our call handlers to cope with the volume of calls and it wasn’t efficient.”

Solution

Lone Star is designed to monitor outworkers at multiple sites through low-cost mobile phone access. The system is highly adaptable and can be tailored to meet individual company’s requirements. United Utilities uses it as a means of prioritising call-outs.

The engineers who use it are first call operatives attending gas escapes. Ian Cooper says: “If you have workers out in the field waiting, it pays to be as efficient as possible.”

Laptops are used for more detailed information, such as rotas, to be passed back and forward. But when out on the road, the engineers use their mobiles to communicate and make initial contact with the despatch office, either verbally or by text message.

Messages could be to request a meal break, to signal the end of a shift or to ask for a return voice call in order to convey further information. Short codes are used for routine calls. Despatch can then prioritise the call before ringing back.

There is no way we could individually answer the 25,000 calls a month,” Ian Cooper says. “But with this system, the in-coming text messages are networked and visible on screen and can be targeted to specific despatchers who can deal with them according to their urgency. It allows the despatchers to schedule their time more effectively.”

There are standards built into the system – if the call is not dealt with in a set time period then an amber alert shows, followed by a red alert.

The system is also used by the despatch office as an outward-bound messaging system for urgent broadcasts, such as relaying group or individual messages on changes in procedure or processes. As text messages are limited by space, more complex subjects are addressed by initiating a return phone call.

The system, which has been in use for about seven years, is widely accepted according to Ian Cooper: “The outworkers like it. It’s a simple piece of work and anyone can text. It’s also useful to pull together management information so we can see how well the despatchers are performing and whether we are meeting the industry standards.”

The Lone Star system ie being upgraded as part of United Utilities’ support package with Autopage. “The after sales service from Autopage is very good;” says Ian Cooper “they have always been very helpful and knowledgeable with ongoing support and updates.”