Challenge
- NDC faced inefficiencies and data fragmentation using legacy systems for customer data management.
- Relied on outdated tools like Excel and Dropbox for customer audits and compliance logs.
- NDC client Balfour Beatty relied on outdated paper processes on a megaproject.
- Balfour Beatty's nuclear reactor project was complex, with lots of machinery and a dispersed workforce.
Solution
- NDC selected Quickbase’s Dynamic Work Management platform to create a standardized application for ISO and compliance certifications.
- The platform aids in asset tracking and aligning safety compliance efforts.
- Features include an advanced Asset Tag Solution with scannable QR codes and easy access to safety and compliance documents.
- NDC introduced Balfour Beatty to the Asset Tag Solution to address challenges.
- The team customized the solution based on operator feedback and developed an app to streamline reporting.
Benefits
- Quickbase revolutionized NDC’s operations, reducing audit time by 60%.
- NDC Client Balfour Beatty improved incident reporting times and eliminated paper processes.
- Balfour Beatty saved up to £20,000 per day by using NDC’s Asset Tag Solution.
- Quickbase’s Dynamic Work Management platform allowed for custom application building for Balfour Beatty’s nuclear reactor project.
Quickbase partner NDC is a leader in in ISO certification and compliance in the UK and abroad. The consulting firm enhances performance by adhering to standards, particularly ISO 9001 for quality. Achieving certification through NDC streamlines processes, boosts efficiency, mitigates risk, and offers market differentiation. Following ISO/IEC 17021 for competence and impartiality, NDC has supported organizations for over 15 years.
They have a diverse customer base, who use NDC to help attain compliance certifications which help them find new business opportunities. One customer that has benefited from NDC’s services is infrastructure leaders Balfour Beatty.
Balfour Beatty is a top international infrastructure group with 26,000 employees. The company innovates and maintains complex infrastructure like transportation, power systems, and buildings, supporting daily life, communities, and economic growth for customers.
Inefficient Processes and Challenges
Prior to partnering with Quickbase, NDC found themselves overwhelmed with inefficient, slow processes. They experienced large amounts of data fragmentation as a result of using legacy systems to keep track of customer data. They relied on dated tools like Excel spreadsheets and Dropbox cloud hosting to keep track of customer audits and compliance logs. Given the diversity of their customer base, this proved an ineffective way to manage clients and their large swaths of data.
Tracking ISO data is mission-critical for their customers. ISO data and compliance certifications boost organizational credibility and efficiency. Standards like ISO 9001 for quality management systems streamline processes, enhance efficiency, and reduce risks. Certification helps meet regulatory requirements, offers a competitive edge, and ensures stakeholder confidence through adherence to ISO/IEC 17021.
For their larger clients, this was especially problematic. Customers who operated with large job sites required a higher volume of compliance and ISO data to be tracked, and outdated methods like spreadsheets, emails, and handwritten notes were not effective.
Ian Fielding, Risk Management & Governance Specialist at NDC, saw the issues with data fragmentation firsthand.
On large jobsites, site managers are responsible for thousands of critical safety assets. These assets all need to be tracked and logged in a register, so job managers know when these elements need to be inspected, tested, maintained, and serviced. It was clear that disparate sources were not cutting it for NDC’s operations.
The Covid pandemic also put a strain on their operations. The company experienced a large reduction in workforce and needed to pivot their approach to giving customers the same level of certification they’ve come to expect.
Quickbase Enhances Audit Processing
NDC wanted to have a standardized application that could deliver ISO and other compliance certifications, and also be adaptable and scalable as the company’s client base grew. NDC chose Quickbase’s Dynamic Work Management platform to create a custom solution to help tackle their asset tracking challenges, as well as help align their safety compliance efforts.
NDC has commercialized their applications so they can provide them as solutions for their clients. Their offerings include an advanced asset tracking application through the use of scannable QR codes, along with easy access to safety and compliance documentation.
Real Life Examples: Managing Megaprojects with Balfour Beatty
NDC’s asset tracking capabilities have had a direct benefit for their clients managing large-scale projects.
One example of this in action is their customer Balfour Beatty, who is currently leading one of UK’s largest construction projects, the Hinckley Point C nuclear reactor. Stuart Midgley, Plant Manager at Balfour Beatty, is playing a key role in operations, ensuring critical safety checks happen on the job site.
The construction team on site operates around the clock with three shifts a day, seven days a week. Before partnering with NDC, each shift began with operators signing in and conducting physical checks on vehicles using paper checklists. However, they faced significant challenges due to the vast, underground, and dispersed nature of the site. As operators returned to the office, the paperwork often deteriorated or got mixed up, leading to inefficiencies in reporting faults and issues.
Everything we did was paper-based, including maintenance checks and asset logs. It was like the dark ages compared to the technology we have today.
To address these challenges, NDC introduced Balfour Beatty to the Asset Tag Solution. Working closely with the operators, the team tailored the forms to incorporate their feedback and dynamically developed an app to streamline the reporting process. The impact was immediate and significant. For instance, a night shift operator reported defective tracks on a JCB machine using the Asset Tag Solution. By the morning shift, the manager had already identified the issue and initiated the necessary repairs. A process that previously took 2-3 weeks was now completed overnight.
Everything I suggested seems to be no issue, and it's adaptable to the system. It's like nothing's impossible or too much trouble.
This improvement is crucial for Balfour Beatty, considering that defective machinery can delay projects and result in downtime costs estimated at £20,000 per day. The successful implementation of the Asset Tag Solution has prompted plans to roll it out across the entire site, encompassing not just safety-critical assets, but also fire assets, chemicals, welfare facilities, cabins, and emergency first aid kits. The enhanced reporting and visibility of assets are set to further expedite operations.
You get everything you need, and it's simple for the guys on the job to use it. It comes across as basic to the user — which is good. It’s very, very user-friendly.
The team is now able to take a look at an action tracker in the morning to get a real-time, at-a-glance snapshot of work that needs to be done, and where maintenance must be completed.
The implementation of NDC’s Asset Tag Solution built on Quickbase at Hinckley Point C exemplifies how adopting innovative solutions can revolutionize operational efficiency and project management in the construction industry.
Results
Quickbase has significantly revolutionized NDC’s operations. By integrating Quickbase into their audit processes, NDC managed to reduce traditional audit time by an impressive 60%. This efficiency boost has enabled the organization to handle a higher volume of audits smoothly and effectively.
The optimization did not stop there. NDC also witnessed a doubling of their business volume, all while operating with 50% less workforce. This speaks volumes about their enhanced operational efficiency and improved client satisfaction. Additionally, NDC has explored new revenue streams by productizing customized compliance applications tailored for their clients' needs.
From a client perspective, Balfour Beatty saw many positive results. In addition to saving thousands of pounds a day by avoiding downtime, Balfour Beatty also vastly improved incident reporting times, leading to quicker solutions to issues. NDC’s Asset Tag Solution eliminated their slow paper processes, and through Quickbase’s Dynamic Work Management platform, they could iterate on the solution to get the right application they needed to get the job done.
Quickbase has not only transformed NDC’s current operations but has also laid a strong foundation for future growth and innovation with their customer base. Through Quickbase’s Dynamic Work Management platform, partners and their customers can streamline operations and improve workflows. This journey highlights the importance of leveraging technology to drive efficiency and maintain a competitive edge in the industry.
