Before looking at field management software, Wainwright’s surfacing department was progressing well. But certain day-to-day challenges were making life more difficult than necessary
John Wainwright & Co. Ltd is a quarrying and surfacing company based in Somerset who place a big emphasis on sustainability. Founded in 1891, the company operates the Moons Hill Quarry – the only source of hard basalt in the Mendip Hills – supplying premium aggregates and asphalt to the construction industry.
In the early 2000s, Wainwright expanded its operations by launching a road surfacing division who now complete projects for both public and private sector clients across the UK. They have 64 employees in their contracting department, 41 vehicles, and 23 items of plant.
Paper-based reports and forms were causing delays
Managing huge volumes of paper-based reports and forms across remote teams was causing delays, including:
- Start of shift daily briefings
- Service and inspection reports
- Incident and near miss
- Vehicle defect reports
- Timesheets, and more
Waiting for documents to return to the office held up invoicing and auditing. Defect reports arriving late meant fitters couldn’t react to issues quickly. Jobs further afield often meant timesheets arrived a week late.
The admin burden of processing and duplicating paper also took its toll when scanning, saving, filing, and creating carbon copies. Physical journeys just to drop off documents impacted not only efficiency, by adding extra downtime, but Wainwright’s sustainability goals.
Field management software that addressed the company’s exact needs
Wainwright discovered Re-flow through a recommendation from another firm in the industry. After hearing how well it was working for them, the system felt like a natural fit.
The key benefits of Re-flow for Wainwright included:
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A powerful form builder
Re-flow’s customisable form builder enabled Wainwright to tailor digital forms to match their needs, with different forms for operatives, foremen, and supervisors. Operatives now have digital pre-start checks and vehicle checks. Foremen use digital timesheets. Supervisors benefit from digital start of shift briefings, reports, and laying records.
Elsewhere, forms are used for fuel and plant usage. If there are changes of plan on site, the Confirmation of Verbal Instructions form is ready on the app, available to fill in, and for clients and Wainwright to sign. This can be emailed to the client. The ease of use of the form builder meant new forms could be quickly created or updated in-house, allowing Wainwright to stay agile and responsive to changing site needs.
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Instant form uploads
With Re-flow, documents submitted on site – timesheets, incidents, defect reports, confirmation of verbal instructions, and so on – were automated to upload and email the necessary member of staff. For example, if pre-start vehicle checks list a fault, the form is sent directly to Wainwright’s fitter, so they can rectify the issue immediately. This real-time visibility gave the company tighter control over operations and a much faster turnaround for internal processing and external communications.
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Real-time dashboard visibility
Re-flow’s dashboard provided a centralised view of operations, consolidating key data like job progress, vehicle checks, staff activity, and health and safety documentation and allowing data-led decision-making. Managers could track field performance, monitor compliance, and generate reports quickly, all from a single platform.
Has Re-flow made an impact? Could the company go back to how they were operating before? Matthew Moore put it well:
