Concrete Fleet Management & Tracking for Kovalska Industrial-Construction Group

About customer:

Kovalska Industrial-Construction Group is a company that operates in the construction industry and is the largest manufacturer of concrete and concrete structures. 16 factories on the territory of Ukraine. The company specializes in the production and sale of construction materials, including crushed stone, sand, gravel, and cement. They also provide construction services, such as designing, building, and repairing roads, bridges, and other infrastructure.

Kovalska has been in business for more than 25 years and has become one of the leading construction companies in Ukraine. The company has a strong focus on quality and sustainability, and they use modern technologies and equipment in their operations, that is why they have chosen TocanSoft solutions to optimize their working processes. 

Inquiries they had before implementing  TMS and YMS systems:

• Needed optimization of the use of plant resources. Reducing downtime during the working process. 
• Had issues with planning the shifts and workload for the transporting vehicles during orders delivering.
• Required to automate the dispatchers' work, reduce the reaction time to emergency situations and decision-making processes.
• Needed to effectively manage the drivers, both on their own vehicles and on hired transport.
• Required the proper planning of sinks, concrete drains and other related activities. 
• Had the task to quickly locate the production resources for all order types: straightforward orders, as well as those requiring concrete production for pouring slabs, piles, and other structures. Additionally, there was a need for swift resource adaptation in response to unexpected changes in orders and delivery intervals, facilitated through the use of visual tools.
• Requested a mobile app developed for drivers, which would help them to promptly respond to changes in orders, deliveries, or other updates, thus reducing the necessity to contact them via phone.
• Needed to get prompt communication with the client to facilitate the exchange of information and feedback.
• Wanted to get the proper planning of optimal routes for the timely delivery of finished concrete products.

How we addressed the inquiries:

The processes involved in concrete production are generally straightforward and are relatively simple, however, unexpected circumstances may arise, making it difficult to follow the planned procedures. The key factor here is the short applicability of concrete. This should lead to timely, careful, and accurate decision-making. Any mistake could result in significant losses and impact the efficiency of the business.

The entire life cycle of an enterprise can be divided into the following stages:

1. Order acceptance
2. Fleet planning
3. Managing changes in the order
4. Driver operation management
5. Interaction with the client

1. Order acceptance: 

The YMS module manages production resources (CMD - concrete mixing device) and maximizes their use.

The system provides API support that allows the use of the company's ERP or CRM as a seller's interface and provides all the necessary information. It also provides the capability to schedule the desired formula and volume for a specific time or reschedule it for another time, as well as determining the appropriate timing for the transfer. If the customer needs to increase the order volume, especially if it is a large interval order for thousands of m3, a special dashboard allows the seller to broadcast a real picture of the workload of production resources in order to quickly answer any questions their client has. If an AI-based analysis system catches the delay of orders during the morning hours with a probability of 1.2, then the system enables ordering at 120% capacity for the morning and lunch, thus reducing downtime caused by order transfers.

It might be difficult for a manager to find large interval orders (delivery of concrete volumes per hour). For example, for pouring slabs or other huge structures that require the delivery of thousands of m3 of concrete within the time strictly specified by the regulations. Unforeseen situations may occur on the construction site and the required flow of concrete can be adjusted during the pouring of the structure. Concrete has a very limited applicability, so all changes must occur quickly, taking into account the orders of other customers. Thus the YMS will ease all actions and help to readjust the flow. 

2. Fleet planning: 

Determining the appropriate number of vehicles and volume with specific characteristics are always required for the next day's shifts and is a very challenging task for managers. Bringing more vehicles than necessary would result in downtime and loss of revenue.

Failure to obtain the correct quantity at the appropriate time possesses a risk of unfulfilled orders. The challenge is further intensified in companies operating round the clock. Hence, a transportation calculation system predicts the appropriate time and selection of vehicles (both owned and hired) to be withdrawn. Automating the confirmation process of timely arrival of the required hired vehicles and drivers is critical. By incorporating estimated orders with pre-existing ones, the AI-powered hourly slot order forecasting system accurately predicts the necessary transport, significantly reducing downtime and transportation shortages by several percentage points.

3. Order change management:

In processes with rapidly changing situations, the role of a dispatcher is very important. Furthermore, since companies can operate around the clock, dispatchers must be informed of current situations instantly without interrupting the process. Our TocanSoft solutions prioritized this aspect. Dispatchers may be added or removed during their shift, and the system ensures the distribution of tasks and orders without overlooking any. In a case when a client requests a change in delivery time, volume, or interval, the dispatcher must handle it within seconds, and the system provides assistance with this. Dashboards displaying resource utilization, problematic situations, events, and their corresponding reactions are essential tools that assist in promptly responding to changes and preventing even a small oversight. Furthermore, these tools operate in the background, providing  data collection on employee performance.

4. Driver operation management:

Automating a driver's work is required to streamline processes with rapidly changing situations. This is achieved by using a mobile application that provides the following features:

• Login access for both in-house and hired drivers
• Queueing up for loading
• Ability to manage the refused orders, redirect loaded concrete to fulfill other orders or redirect to a place with free volume
• Reporting the arrival at each point, the need for washing, vehicle breakdowns, and other relevant situations to the dispatcher through the system

Through these interactions, the decision-making processes can be automated and all actions will be done immediately. 

5. Client interaction: 

Interaction with the client is a crucial component of automation. Clients can utilize their personal accounts or provide one-time login for new customers to access the following features:

• Obtain details regarding the delivery schedule, the vehicles and drivers involved in the delivery
• Verify your availability to receive the order at the pre-appointed time
• Get the real-time location of all delivery vehicles, along with the number of vehicles currently en route and the ones that have already been unloaded
• Provide constructive feedback on the quality of service and offer any suggestions for improvement.

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