Monday, June 1, 2015 – The Rothkegel Group, specializing in building materials trade and based in Leipzig, now manages its own truck fleet with the opheo dispatch software and the integrated opheo Mobile telematics system from initions. The goal of this transition is to optimize branch and construction site deliveries, as well as procurement logistics. In addition to saving vehicle costs, Rothkegel achieves improved service quality and easier working conditions for dispatchers through the new software. This is supported by, among other things, the intuitive usability and the display of drivers’ current remaining driving times in the dispatch cockpit. Following the headquarters in Leipzig and the Merseburg branch, the other five locations will be gradually equipped with opheo in the future.
At the Rothkegel Group, opheo is directly connected to their Unitrade merchandise management system. This ensures a continuous electronic information flow between order entry, article master data, dispatch, and invoicing. “This seamless integration ensures high transparency within the workflows,” says Max Uhlig, who is responsible for the software implementation as project manager on behalf of Rothkegel. In addition to dispatchers, sales staff can also directly access opheo and thus determine delivery dates in real time for customer inquiries.
opheo receives order data directly from Unitrade via an interface. After dispatching, the tours and order data are then sent directly from the dispatcher to the drivers. Nine of the total 16 trucks have already been equipped with Samsung Galaxy tablets and the opheo Mobile telematics app for this purpose. The app handles tracking, and in branches already equipped with opheo, it also provides continuous order management and navigation. Current vehicle positions, required delivery times, and order status are reported back to dispatch in real time.
opheo’s forecasting function checks whether a vehicle is still on schedule and calculates any deviations for the remainder of the current tour as well as for all subsequent tours. Impending violations of delivery deadlines are thus displayed early, without the dispatcher having to laboriously calculate times.
“Initions’ extensive experience within the building materials industry, the numerous references, and the existing interface to Unitrade significantly influenced our decision,” explains Uhlig, adding: “opheo is also able to map our complex product structure in the building materials trade and thus optimally supports tour creation.”
The Rothkegel Group, founded in 1990 and based in Leipzig, is one of the largest building materials dealers in Central Germany. Its product range includes all building materials for structural, civil engineering, and interior finishing. The family-run company operates seven branches and several tile showrooms in Leipzig, Merseburg, Dessau, Wolfen, Jüterbog, Torgau, and Wittenberg. Regular exhibitions on interior design, doors, windows, gates, tiles, building materials, garden, and path design take place at all locations. Further information can be found at: www.rothkegel-baufachhandel.de
Background: initions AG
initions AG is a rapidly growing software company based in Hamburg, specializing in intelligent, innovative IT solutions. Its main areas of focus are transport management, route planning, telematics, and business intelligence.
The opheo transport management system developed by initions was awarded the Telematics Award in the Fleet Management category in 2014.
