Case Study - West Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust (WMAS)

Fleet Size: 500 Previous System: Car Fleet Control Product: FleetWave 1.0 Date Installed: October 1997

Introduction

West Midlands Ambulance Service (WMAS) is one of the largest ambulance services in the UK. WMAS employs approximately 4,000 staff and operates from more than 100 community ambulance stations and 15 fleet preparation hubs across the region. The average age of the WMAS fleet is under five years' old. The organisation uses over 800 vehicles including ambulances, response cars, non-emergency ambulances and specialist vehicles.

Client Brief

Although very happy with its existing RoadBASE system, the distributed nature of the WMAS operation and the limited network bandwidth meant that WMAS needed a 'thin-client' solution. Having returned to the market to find an appropriate solution, WMAS once again opted for a product from Chevin Fleet Solutions and upgraded to the web-based FleetWave fleet management system. Reasons for selecting FleetWave over other solutions available included the fact FleetWave offered a low-cost, low-licence fee solution working within the existing network platform. Utilising existing hardware and servers ensured further cost savings.

Client Benefits

As a Thin-Client solution; FleetWave was perfect for the needs of WMAS. Implementation was easy, as all users only required Internet Explorer to access the FleetWave platform. FleetWave maintains the flexibility found in RoadBASE, so no compromises were made. Software upgrades are now installed centrally and have become instantly visible to all users. WMAS now enjoy cutting edge fleet management technology, the ability to access all data from across operating locations in real time and ultimately, an enhanced means of controlling expenditure and analysing performance.