Organizations benefit significantly by using photo capture in their data collection process

The adage "a picture is worth a thousand words" cannot be more true and often more needed than in the management of a mobile work force. It is one of the most overlooked and most powerful tools a business can use in the field to monitor progress. It is also useful for tracking proof-of-performance or proof-of-delivery. Photo capture can also be used as an alternative to GPS tracking (photo can show a worker where they are supposed to be, etc.).

Westlake Software was an early adaptor in the integration of photo capture use when implementing wireless time cards, wireless inspection forms, etc. Westlake Software continues to lead the industry in driving more use for photo technology.

We currently process more than 2,000,000 photos annually for our customers.

How does photo capture provide so many benefits?

Photos are unique in that they provide both qualitative and quantitative returns on investment.

For example, management at Clear Channel Outdoor, the largest outdoor advertising company worldwide with more than 1,000,000 displays, makes extensive use of photos for ad copy changes. Clear Channel also uses photos for bus shelter and news rack maintenance, as well as for inventory management and capital expenditure reporting for structural labor. See Case Studies For a full review of the Clear Channel implementation of AIRmobility®.

Benefits:

• Management can see in near real-time ad copy being posted correctly or incorrectly from their office versus having to drive to the ad location in their car. This saves management the time spent in a vehicle and costs associated with fuel and vehicle wear.
• Photos submitted are date- and time-stamped. This shows what was posted from where and at what time, enabling offices to show immediate proof-of-performance to their customers and accelerating bill submission and payment by customers.
• Continues to assist in the expansion into bus shelter business in showing cities the visual proof-of-performance of ad copy changes and shelter maintenance responsibilities.

Neither Clear Channel management or the city responsible for the shelter shown above needs to take extra time to go to this location and assess if the job was completed. Photos are routed in near real-time, along with GPS data and any data collected manually in the field (typing, bar coding, etc.). Data collected can then be:

• Exported to MS Excel
• Routed to a back office system
• Triggering an escalation alert
• Displayed in a formal report in a PDF format

Some other examples on how our clients are using photos:

• National wireless retailer reps take pictures to ensure vendors are maintaining kiosk compliance.
• Graffiti clean-up company uses photos as proof-of-performance to the city. This company also shares gang-related writings directly with the police.
• Construction company uses photos to show before-and-after photos of daily progress of construction at remote locations where employees work autonomously.
• Transportation company uses photos to ensure drivers areconducting proper vehicle inspections before they leave the yard.
• Large university takes photos and bar code scans in the assessment and updating of fire extinguishers.

If you have interest in speaking to a Westlake representative about how photo capture can improve your bottom line, contact us today.