AWARDS

Installers Enjoy “Best Of Both Worlds” Following Windowlink’s Business Pilot Integration

Two of glass and glazing’s software products, Windowlink’s Focus and Vector, are now compatible with Business Pilot CRM system.

Made by installers, for installers, Business Pilot is a cloud-based platform that aims to help fenestration firms take control of their purchasing, sales, financials and deliveries to drive profits while reducing hassle.

Business Pilot is also fully mobile optimised, allowing customers to use it anywhere, on any device.

Now, the system can be used in conjunction with Focus and Vector, Windowlink’s software products that make sales pitches quicker, easier and more effective, claims the company. For Windowlink customers, the process is really simple. They just have to import leads from Business Pilot, create a job using the lead details, and upload the quotation and contract to Business Pilot.

Once the survey has been completed, the revised job file and relevant paperwork can also be uploaded. What’s more, the flexibility of Windowlink software means that the process can be modified and tailored for each customer if required.

Integrating the two systems reduces error, eliminates duplicated effort, and makes crucial job files and reports easily available from a central hub, claims the company.

“Business Pilot integration was a natural next step for Focus and Vector,” comments Windowlink managing director Mark Dudley.

“Both Business Pilot and our own products represent some of the leading offerings of their kind on the market today, and we kept finding that our customers used both.

“We’re delighted that it’s now easier than ever for installers to enjoy the best of both worlds.” www.windowlink.com

Tyrone Birch

Swadlincote Windows, has boosted efficiencies and further improved customer service with its use of the AdminBase installer management system.

“Since we have started using the SMS service through AdminBase it has made us even more efficient,” explains Tyrone Birch, business manager at Swadlincote Windows. “Homeowners today are much more likely to check a text

Swadlincote Windows Boosts Efficiency With AdminBase

message than they are to answer the phone. It’s much more convenient to respond to a request in their own time when it suits them, rather than being caught out by an unexpected call at an inconvenient time. We have been using the SMS service to advise customers on installation dates, confirm service dates, and to ask homeowners to check they’ve received quotations, invoices and more. We even schedule text messages at certain times throughout the day which helps to control the tempo for the business.”

Rhonda Ridge of Ab Initio, creator of AdminBase, adds: “It’s fantastic to see quality focused companies like Swadlincote Windows utilising the features of AdminBase to further improve internal efficiencies and customer service. Coming from an installation background myself, I wanted to design a system that genuinely makes life easier for home improvement businesses and being able to send co-ordinated text messages from a central system is just one of the ways AdminBase can do this. Text messages are so useful in business, but when they only exist on one person’s phone, it can muddy the communication waters. When used from a centralised system throughout the entire customer journey, it becomes an invaluable support.” abinitiosoftware.co.uk

The First Step To A Paperless Office

customer details and any planned requirements. This content can then be seamlessly converted to Window Designer quotes/ orders by the click of a button. Zandi then interacts with Window Designer to populate it with all the relevant data.

On the customer service side, Zandi can log complaints and manage customer returns. Dashboards can give a snapshot of any outstanding issues, returns and replacements along with a workflow for items that need to be dealt with. Zandi also includes a suite of metrics so fabricators can assess where the fault areas are so they can be as proactive as possible.

“If you were to say to me that you are taking Zandi away from me, that would be extremely disruptive because it has become just an everyday part of our process, and it is really key,” Graham said.

Graham Howatson, HWL director

Zandi, the comprehensive CRM system from First Degree Systems, is so central to HWL Windows’ operations that the company has built its whole order processing function on it, which has helped them to save time and money, go paperless, and reduce errors, says the company.

“Zandi allows us to stay on top of our customer relationships,” HWL director Graham Howatson said. “You can follow an order from a pre-quote stage all the way through to delivery without re-entering details. That way you are keeping on top of your customers’ requirements right from day one.

“Using Zandi has also meant we’ve been able to go paper free in our office. All documents we receive are digital, and these are attached to the related job file in Zandi.

“We’ve saved a small fortune on paper and ink, but it also means that people don’t have trays on their desks. We have boxes on Zandi that people are then assigned to.” “We’re also encouraging our customers to use the Customer Zandi Portal. It makes life so much easier. For example, there is a digital sign off, so there’s no sending us an e-mail to say ‘can I proceed?’, and any relevant dialogue sits alongside the status updates within the job.

“So, there are no emails going backwards and forwards, which can be lost, and if there is a fault, then there’s a complete audit trail. One of our targets is to get the whole of our customer base using it, and I think that’s probably one of the best functions within that software.”

Zandi forms part of the Window Designer suite of design processing software from First Degree Systems. Different elements help window fabricators optimise their work flow and create manufacturing efficiencies, which ultimately result in greater profitability, claims the company.

Emmegi Machines

Are Not Just For Aluminium

Emmegi (UK) might be best known for supplying CNCs, cutting centres, saws, and handling equipment to aluminium fabricators, but it also has an extensive range of products specifically designed for machining in steel.

This includes the Comet S4 4-axes electric head CNC machining centre, which has recently been installed at Cross-Guard Ltd in Scunthorpe for fabricating the company’s steel security grilles, bars and cages, and hot and cold aisle containment solutions.

Cross-Guard already had a number of Emmegi machines in its factory and, over the years, the production team had been impressed with their durability and reliability. When it came to adding to the manufacturing set up, Emmegi was therefore the natural first choice.

The Emmegi team reviewed Cross-Guard’s requirements this time around and its desire for even quicker, more efficient manufacturing. They recommended the Comet S4 with mobile worktable, which can accommodate steel elements up to 4m in length to suit even the largest scale applications.

The S4 comes with an 8.5kW electrospindle as standard, but CrossGuard was able to choose the higher performance 10kW electrospindle option with rigid tapping, which has all the additional torque necessary for machining even in heavy duty steel. This rotates from -120° to +120° on the horizontal X axis so that it can work on the top and sides of the profile with no need for repositioning, and has a safe, twin tank lubrication system featuring minimal oil diffusion as well as an oil emulsion spray suitable for steel.

In terms of the speed that CrossGuard wanted, the Comet S4 features a 10-piece tool magazine on the X axis gantry which moves along with the electrospindle and means no time is wasted during tool transfer. There is also integrated software which automatically carries out the precision positioning of the vice units according to the length of the workpiece and the machining being carried out, so that operators don’t need to spend time making the calculations for themselves.

Ash Pope, Cross-Guard’s production manager, is impressed with the capabilities and precision of the machine. He said: “By their nature, our products have to be built to last, so there can be no compromises at any stage of the manufacture. What we particularly like about the Comet S4 is that, as well as speeding up machining times, it is actually helping us to deliver an even better quality of product.”

The range of Emmegi products for processing in steel includes Satellite, Phantomatic and Comet machining centres and the Twin Ferro twin head saw. Details are at: https://bit.ly/3EqryYL More info on Cross-Guard is at: https://cross-guard.com/

Delivering the best

Seamless Welding Technology

• Superior transom welding quality • Utilising patented

V-Perfect® transom welding • Precision accuracy – delivering a perfect weld every time • Weld seam elimination • No imperfections, even on curved profiles • Suitable for both V Joints and Butt Joints

• Faster fabrication

• Fully automated processes