4-page Case Study - Posted 7/14/2009

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Chicago Transit Authority

Windows Mobile Helps Chicago Transit Authority Manage Elevator Inspections

The many types of field elevator inspections required by the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) created the need for multiple forms and spreadsheets to be managed by hand. The processes were manually intensive, error prone, required additional labor to re-key information into various systems, and were not centrally managed for consistent data analysis and on-going reporting. To help automate the process, CTA implemented the mNOW!® Mobile Framework 2008 designed for Windows Mobile® by Blue Dot™ Solutions. Configured to support dynamic inspections, the solution enables field inspectors to see only questions relevant to the type of asset being inspected. The information is collected using Windows Mobile-based handhelds and is then synchronized and integrated with an enterprise asset management (EAM) system to enable near real-time visibility of inspection data.

On an average weekday, more than 1.7 million rides are taken using the nation's second largest public transportation system, operated by the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA). An independent governmental agency created by state legislation in 1947, CTA provides bus and rail services to Chicago and 40 surrounding suburbs. The services account for more than 80% of all transit trips taken in the six-county Chicago metropolitan region.

Before implementing a mobile solution, elevator inspections were completed in pencil, on forms that were physically taken back to an office and given to an administrative assistant to be typed into a spreadsheet, from which basic reports were derived. The manual record keeping processes contributed to the inefficient use and lack of available information and data for planning and maintenance.

“Handwritten records lacked the detail and cohesive database ability we needed,” says Eric Reese, Chief, Process Management for CTA. “All we had were basic annotative records with nowhere near the scope and level of detail necessary.”

Adaptable Mobile Framework Provides Flexible, Dynamic, and Robust Solution

Charged with upgrading and streamlining the existing data systems within the organization, Reese began by implementing a mobile system for elevator safety inspections. “My approach is always to look at the total solution,” Reese explains. “We could have phased-in and implemented the mobility portion as phase two, but I did not feel this was the most effective way to meet our project goals.” Reese and his associates therefore examined an enterprise asset management (EAM) solution first. However, he says, “It was evident early on that we needed a solution that provided an adaptable framework to meet our unique and changing mobile business requirements.”

On the recommendation of the EAM solution developer’s account team, Reese then contacted Microsoft Gold Certified Partner Blue Dot Solutions and had several extensive talks about their adaptable mNOW! Mobile Framework 2008, designed for Windows Mobile. The professionally developed mobile framework from Blue Dot, one of the more than 9,000 Windows Mobile partners worldwide, is helping the CTA improve business performance by effectively and efficiently extending its line of business applications to its mobile workers.

mNOW! 2008 builds on the CTA’s existing IT infrastructure and delivers a packaged mobile application platform that fully integrates with existing enterprise applications and systems. In contrast to a mobile computing industry filled with legacy “stovepipe" applications centered on point-to-point integrations, mNOW! 2008 provides a comprehensive, end-to-end mobile platform that helps the CTA manage its entire mobile strategy lifecycle.

Our internal audit has revealed to our satisfaction that Blue Dot’s mobility solution is expected to save 164,000 employee hours over a year’s time. Eric Reese Chief, Process Management Chicago Transit Authority

“The interoperability of mNOW! 2008 with our backend was pretty much seamless,” says Reese. “There was no longer a lot of unnecessary or redundant information required because the forms were customized for the type of inspection.” Following a one month adoption period, the 20 inspectors are inseparable from their rugged Windows Mobile-based Motorola MC75s, on which the elevator inspection application runs.

An Exceptional Return on Investment

The Blue Dot mNOW! 2008 platform is helping the CTA to realize the value of its existing technology investments, improve efficiency and productivity, and access data while mobile. Moreover, in conjunction with the CTA’s EAM system, the Windows Mobile-based framework is helping to manage CTA inspectors’ time more efficiently.

“Our original projections were for ROI [return on investment] to extend out to about a year and a half,” Reese notes. “Our internal audit has revealed to our satisfaction that Blue Dot’s mobility solution is expected to save 164,000 employee hours over a year’s time.”

So far, Reese has extended Blue Dot’s mobility solution to three other departments. The solution now supports additional inspectors involved with escalator safety, rail and bus facilities, and track inspection.

For more information about products and services available from Blue Dot Solutions, call 866-303-8324 or visit the Web site at: www.bluedotsolutions.com