Case Studies Archives - Effinovate: Bridging Efficiency and Innovation

Electrical Contractors – Quote Calculator

Giuseppe — Sun, 02 Jul 2023 21:42:16 +0000

Introduction

A bespoke quote calculator was developed to solve a company’s issues with time-consuming quote creation and inconsistent formatting. Transforming a laborious task into a quick, streamlined process. We improved service delivery, project completion, and brand consistency.

Problem

The company did not have a system for producing a quote for their clients. They were relying on memory and scattered information about their products. This process was not easily repeatable on demand and it meant the company would lose out on business. This presented the following issues:

As the data was difficult to access it would take a lot of time to find the necessary information.
A big effort was required to ensure the accuracy of the quote and this often involved a lot of wasted time chasing various people for validation of information.
Relying on memory for critical business information is a disaster waiting to happen.
The quote format was never standardised and varied from quote to quote. This effects the brand image but also the ability to keep track of quotes.

Solution

We built a bespoke quote calculator for our client, this was simple to use and could be utilised on the go or whenever it was needed. The calculators had the following features:

A section for pricing, allowing the company to update and reference a single source of information. This was automatically included in the quote calculations.
A user friendly interface that allowed the contractor to configure whole sections and input project details.
This information was automatically processed and included the required products in the quote.
Automated production of a standard format and branded quote pdf.

Outcome

Creating a quote now only took a few minutes instead of hours and could now be performed on demand whenever it was necessary. Contractors were now free to spend more time providing an excellent service and were able to complete more projects. The consistency of the quote documents meant they were easy to track for analysis whilst maintaining a consistent branding.

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Data Analytics Human Resource Management

Giuseppe — Sun, 02 Jul 2023 21:40:52 +0000

Introduction

Data analytics in human resource management can be a real pain. We worked together with a HR team struggling with diversity data collection across multiple subsidiaries. Collectively we standardised and automated data collation with the use of a set of tailored spreadsheets. We drastically reduced weeks of manual work to mere minutes all while ensuring data consistency and accuracy.

Problems with Data Analysis in Human Resource Management

It was a requirement for the HR team to collect diversity data from their 10+ subsidiary companies. Each of these companies are well established and have their own systems for data management. Due to this, diversity data existed in varying formats.

The HR team were responsible for processing this data and collating it into one larger file. They then used this file as a summary for the whole company. This presented the following problems:

The data could be inconsistent and potentially have gaps. If noticed, this would require further processing. If not noticed, it would produce an inaccurate report.
Copy and pasting this amount of data repeatedly is a method prone to errors that are very difficult to notice.
Although this is a yearly process, it could take weeks to collect all the data and process it into a final report. Updates and changes were likely to occur in the information, causing a total restart of the process.

Data Analytics Solution

This solution had a lot of users from different companies. For this reason, it was very important that the solution was easy to use and robust. This prompted the build of a set of spreadsheets. One would act as a template for the subsidiary companies and one would be a tool able to collate the information.

The template had the following features:

Built in data validation that allowed for pasting of large amounts of data.
Automatic creation of a submission file, afterwards this was to be sent to the parent company.
- All sensitive personal information was removed automatically and only the summary data was included.
Automatic creation of a dashboard style summary file and a pdf report.

The collation tool had the following features:

A button to import submission files that uses file explorer.
Automated processing of the data and summary calculations.
Automatic creation of a dashboard style summary file and a pdf report.

Outcome

We transformed the process that took weeks of tedious manual data manipulation into one completed in just a few minutes. The new system consistently maintained accuracy in the data. With this on-demand solution, we smoothed the entire process and enhanced collaboration. All things considered, data analytics in human resource management doesn’t have to be difficult!

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Automated Report Creation – FF&E Survey Business

Giuseppe — Sun, 02 Jul 2023 21:38:04 +0000

3 Hours

Saved Per Project

56 Days

Saved Per Year

Leveraging a custom solution, a company with a long data logging process slashed its processing time. They saved 3 hours on every project equating to 56 days of work, virtually eliminating errors and boosting project capacity. They now automatically import csv data, have reduced manual entry and have an automated report created instantly.

Problem

The business’s key service involved them going onto a site and log all items found on the premises using their own sourced solution. Subsequently, they downloaded a CSV data export in order to copy paste it into a new file. This stage required a lot of processing, some of the processing included:

Each row would have data about an item but this could have a quantity higher than 1. If the quantity was greater than 1, they would have to create a new row for each instance of that item. If the data fulfilled certain criteria, they would need to apply colour coding based on those specifications.
Exports were not in a user-friendly format. This meant that the business had to convert details like description and colour manually.
A combination of dimensions, name and colour translates to a predefined item code.
The business had to summarise the data using formulas.

This process caused the following issues:

Some reports contained 1000s of rows, this meant that each report could take multiple days to complete.
Only one person knew the complete process. There was no documentation of all the codes and descriptions.
It is very easy to make mistakes with this level of manual data entry/manipulation.
The likelihood of data changing was high, requiring the report to be thoroughly checked and updated.

Solution

We built an automated and self-service solution that the company could rely on whenever they needed it. We built the solution within Excel using VBA code (Visual Basic for Applications) and it contained the following features:

Simple import of exported CSVs – The user pressed a single button and selected the file from the popup file explorer window, this would automatically export the data into a template report. Ideally this automatic via code, through an api, but the software did not have this functionality available at the time.
The system stored codes and other miscellaneous knowledge in the template. This updated itself automatically with new examples as they were added, reducing manual entries.
The system expanded instances with multiple items into their own rows, applying automatic colouring.
The solution replaced most manual entries with code, performing operations automatically after import.

Finally, the data was automatically fed into a dashboard that summarised the data and required no manual input. They can now generate an automated report with just a click of a button.

Outcome

The clients process which would require them to have days off site could now be completed before the end of the day, saving 56 days of work in just 1 year. Mistakes are now very rare and only exist from a small amount of manual entry that is still required. This not only saves time but also gives the client peace of mind as their work is always of the highest quality. The client could now focus on providing their best service and allowed them to complete more projects.

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