RepairtechUK/WTA Network Update.

[Dales-Electronic]

As some of you will know I have been working on behalf of the WTA at Repairtech these last couple of weeks looking at their WTA network. What has become apparent is that (an I am one of the guilty parties too) we are not meeting the service level agreement standards for both engineering and administration.

I thought it might be useful for you all to understand how things work within this company and why the following is so important.

Procurement Procedure

The procedure follows this basic pattern, a wholesaler/retailer (DAD Argos Portway etc) contacts Crown Domestic Appliances and order say 1000 washing machines.

Crown then order these from the factories they deal with, look after specifications, customs and shipping to the UK distribution warehouse. They also offer the product with or without warranty depending upon the clients requirements. Generally, products entering the UK market do not have any manufacturers warranty (company that manufacturers product) but the warranty is covered by underwriters or the importing company. The factory does however credit specific failures above a certain level say 8{e5d1b7155a01ef1f3b9c9968eaba33524ee81600d00d4be2b4d93ac2e58cec2d}.- its important that you understand this. What is also critical to understand is that the cost to Crown for an appliance will likely be around 30{e5d1b7155a01ef1f3b9c9968eaba33524ee81600d00d4be2b4d93ac2e58cec2d} of the value of the products retail sale price.

Write-Off system.

Now let me set a scenario, customer has the product for say six months and the bearings go, in most cases these days this will result in the appliance being exchanged by Crown.

This is where the cost to the procurement company takes a hit. Firstly they have the cost of the replacement item, add delivery and collection of old appliance, next storage of old appliance and finally disposal and installation of new item. This is usually three to four times the cost of the original product.

Exchanges

For the reasons above Repairtech will check all future returns and those companies that keep causing unnecessary exchanges will be contacted and a conversation had. What is also worth mentioning is that engineers do not have the authority to tell a customer that the item is BER this is only to be given by Repairtech.

Spares supplied to Engineers

We all try and resolve issues on the first visit by ordering the parts prior to visiting the customer. However, lets try and keep it real. I saw a request for parts for a standard cooker that cost more than the cooker. Obviously if this gets drawn to my notice then others at Repairtech are watching for those that over egg the pudding. Also do try and work out what caused the problem don’t just guess and order everything you might need. No power to an element doesn’t mean that you order every element in the cooker together with the switches and thermostats.

Over supply of parts causes dramatic costs and reduction in profit for Repairtech and doesn’t allow other engineers to get their parts because the items are now out of stock.

[u]Portal Updating[/u]

The only way that Repairtech is kept in the loop is by engineers keeping the portal updated as things change. Failure to do this leaves the call centre staff in the dark and can ultimately develop into a shit-storm for the girls/guys. This reflects badly upon the service company and Repairtech alike. It is also very important when updating the portal that you give specific information so that the factory is aware of faults and can modify as necessary.

In Summary

The WTA/Repartech network is a two way street, If they get more work and are profitable, then by association so are the engineers. We need to up our game and actually make the whole thing ‘rock & roll’

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