Case Studies

Suttons Group

Managing a Safety-First Culture With an Integrated Transport Management Solution

We operate a massive supply chain operation for 365 days a year, covering over 20 million road miles and delivering in and out of our major towns and cities which is a challenge. We base our whole logistics operation around the Microlise solution. I couldn’t envisage running our business without having the right telemetry and data tools in place.

Chrisi Lloyd-Roberts, Operations Director, Suttons Tankers

SupportIng A Safety First Culture Across 32 Offices, Depots & Operating Centres

Automating Processes For Leaner & Smarter Work Practices

Reducing Risk Profile & Supporting Drivers With A Multi Camera Solution

The Challenge

Suttons Group offers a range of logistics services across the UK and internationally.

Through its two operating divisions, Suttons International and Suttons Tankers, the Group offers tank container, road tanker and multimodal services along with support activities including fleet management, warehousing, drumming, and on-site logistics.

A large family-owned business with over 60 years’ experience, Suttons specialises in the safe and efficient handling of bulk hazardous fuels and gases and non-hazardous chemicals and powders.

From its headquarters in Cheshire, the fleet of 850 tankers and 500 tractor units spans 32 offices, depots and operating centres across the UK.

Suttons went to market in 2019 to identify a connected transport solution that would support improved fleet safety and utilisation and driver performance and increase automation across the business. They also wanted to reduce their risk profile with the addition of a
multi-camera solution.

According to Suttons Tankers Operations Director, Chrisi LloydRoberts, “One of the key reasons for choosing Microlise was because it delivered a more fully integrated solution than our incumbent telematics provider could.”

The Approach

Suttons has deployed the Microlise Fleet Performance and ClearVision multi-camera solution and although the system has only been deployed recently, the safety and operational improvements are already clear to see:

“Initial implementation across the Fleet Performance system has gone really well and we are starting to see the benefits of the new camera system in operation.

“The system has allowed us to automate a number of our processes and is helping us to make our work practices slicker and leaner. “In common with any cultural shift or large change project, it’s been a challenge at times and Microlise has been with us at the table
throughout the entire process. They have been very supportive and have proactively resolved issues as they’ve arisen. They’ve also supported us with additional driver training where it was needed.”

The Result

Following implementation, fleet visibility, utilisation, efficiency, driver performance and safety metrics have all improved. According to Dave Ashton, Head of Safety for Suttons Tankers:

“We are starting to see a reduction in damage incidents because the camera manoeuvring solution is proving to be really useful. We’ve also had very positive driver feedback about it.

“Our customers can now access job boards and can see vehicle movements and all the deliveries and collections relating to them. They also receive live ETA information which is really helpful from an operational perspective.

“Forward and rear facing cameras have been a real plus point when it comes to incident investigation. The cameras give us the capacity to remotely download footage within minutes so we can review, assess and know exactly what caused an incident. In many cases that has
allowed us to dispute claims at speed and recoup costs.

“More importantly the system has reduced stress levels for all of our drivers. We can review footage and reassure drivers that their actions were in line with our procedures.

“The incident data we receive also links to camera footage, and as both are time stamped, we can compare live footage directly with data that is drawn from our telematics system.”

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