Warrington
Borough Council is using a tablet-based PC system in the field to
manage its 25,000 streetlights, to cut down on the use of paper
forms and serve the public more efficiently.
Used by
Warrington’s Neighbourhood Services department, the ruggedised
tablet Go Book devices from Itronix running a management system
from Mayrise Systems, allow field staff to use a mapping system
previously only available in their office.
Street lighting
engineers can synchronise the data held on their tablet PCs with
that on the office system, so inventory records can be verified and
updated, street light locations can be corrected using on-screen
digital maps, and faults can be pinpointed and logged.
Dave Vasey,
Warrington’s street lighting manager, says the mobile management
system better serves those living in the borough, as reports of
faults can be dealt with more efficiently.
He adds: “The
system provides a customer care module for logging faults reported
by residents calling in and the addition of mapping is proving
invaluable for identifying faulty lights during these calls.”
The council plans
the integration of the Mayrise system with a corporate MapInfo
geographic information system (GIS) and council internet
initiatives, which will, eventually, provide live information on
street lighting to other departments and contractors.
This article was part of Computer Weekly's enterprise mobile
business channel, sponsored by Nokia