Mobile working, and a pilot scheme allowing staff to take council vehicles home, has helped the Building and Maintenance Division (BMD) significantly improve productivity, efficiency and customer satisfaction. 

We speak with plumber Stuart Robertson about the changes and how they’ve boosted staff morale:

“I’ve worked for BMD for 16 years. In the past, we’d come into the depot, sign in, get our jobs in hardcopy and head out on the road. The vast majority of jobs weren’t scheduled so we were reliant on people actually being in when we cold called. If they weren’t, we had to leave a calling card and try again another day. For big jobs, like a bathroom fit out, we’d have to go back to the depot and unload the parts before heading back out. The whole process really used up a lot of time.

“If people were in, they’d generally not be expecting us, which meant we had to hang around while they emptied cupboards or cleared space to provide access so we could do the work. Now, thanks to work scheduling, people are given an appointment so they can be ready for us. It’s better all round. The customer is happier and we can do the work a lot faster.

“Taking the van straight to jobs from the house has also saved a lot of time. All I have to do each morning is log on, check my appointments on the tablet and head straight to my first job. At night I head straight home with the van.

“The changes have been a great improvement. There was nothing worse than turning up to jobs and not being able to do them. You could be travelling miles, wasting time and petrol, for the person not to be in.

“The team here are feeling happier. We feel like management has listened to our suggestions and brought about changes that are helping us provide a service we can be proud of.”