Launching Handheld Devices

In the early part of 2009, MHS rolled out Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) to the Supply Chain across the Housing Prime Contract after a successful pilot in the west of the country.

The GPRS-enabled PDAs automatically receive work instructions and are able to electronically return job updates and closure information. The PDAs also allow the Helpdesk team to view ‘live’ progress of works, they help cut repair times, minimise Missed Appointments, and drive “First Time Fix”. All Operatives, whether they are dealing with Response, Pre-Planned or Void Maintenance, are equipped with these devices.

By deploying a mobile data solution, MHS expects a number of benefits, including the improvement to the service to customers, minimising disruption for occupants, reducing the number of visits by tradesmen to the office to pick up job information and reducing the amount of paper used in processing work.

Once a repair has been completed, occupants will be offered the PDA at the end of the appointment in order that the following two questions are answered:

  • I confirm that the operative arrived within the expected timeframe  Yes / No
  • I confirm that the job is complete and a further visit is not required   Yes/ No

If the PDA is not offered to the occupant, then it should be asked for and if the Operative refuses to hand this over to the occupant, then this incident must be reported to the MHS Helpdesk with full details.

A picture of the Personal Digital Assistant

The PDA is very simple to use. Once the two boxes on the screen have been filled out by the occupant and the send button pressed, the Operative will not be able to see the answers to the questions. In addition, there is the facility for signature capture on the PDA in just the same way as for the old paper job packs.

The PDA has been fully accredited by the Defence Security Standards Organisation.  Each operative issued with a handheld device has undergone a vetting process (BSVR /BPSS) and is security cleared to enter MoD properties.  Additionally, prior to issue of the PDA, the operative attends a compulsory training programme and on completion they sign a Compliance Statement.  In addition, the PDAs have an in-built camera and there may be occasions when operatives are required to take photographs inside the property. When a photograph is taken, it is only stored on the PDA until the job is completed; at which point it is transmitted in an encrypted form over a secure network connection back to our IMS system, WorkManager. The image is then deleted from the PDA.

The Housing Prime Contract comprises of one of the largest single housing repairs, maintenance and investment programmes in Europe. The roll out is the next, but not final key stage of the use of hand held technology as MHS fully intends to support this with further development and enhancement.