Tyler Mitchell’s equipment and operations data was plentiful, but it needed to be engineered into a useable structure. To pull all their information together, Superior Paving Corp.’s director of information technology, Mike Brewer, developed a maintenance software program and operations software program called Auto ShopKeeper.
Read more on Superior Paving Corp. as the 2022 Fleet Master.
Brewer was using Earthwave Technologies’ Construction Fleet Management software to aggregate data collected from each piece of equipment and operators. After looking at off-the-shelf software, as well as the proprietary services offered by equipment OEMs, none had the features and functionality Brewer wanted to make their data actionable.
Specifically, he wanted to include an individualized audit module, more functional reports, tracking data for predictive maintenance analysis, and be able to provide Mitchell with deeper data draws. He knew he didn’t want to cobble together a piecemeal program that would be hard to use and incomplete. Not finding what he wanted, Brewer wrote his own software.
His first step was to determine not only what data other Superior people wanted, but also what they wanted to do with it. Brewer says he had many, many meetings with the company’s management, mechanics, operators, and departments.
“I have an understanding of maintenance and repair, and I understand [that] construction people don’t always get IT and IT people don’t always get construction, so I knew we needed a communications link,” he says. “I was like a 3-year-old asking, ‘Why? Why? Why?’ While we were discussing the project, they would tell me they knew they had data but they wanted to know what it could tell them.”
Loosely based on a repair shop parts and labor program he had written for his grandfather’s Pittsburgh repair shop when he was a kid, Brewer developed Auto-ShopKeeper for Superior’s fleet operation. (The mobile version of the app is available on Apple.)
The platform’s user interface is clean, simple, and stable, he says. Because operators and mechanics enter various data on the mobile app at the end of the day, he keeps things familiar.
“The guys know where the button is, and I leave it that way so they can easily find it.” This has also eliminated the need for traditional written end-of-day reports.
Similarly, the monthly equipment audits read in “real people” speak, he says. Using a cell phone, the auditor scans a QR code affixed to the side of each machine, which brings up a checklist of items written for clarity and accuracy. For example, a checklist item may be “Is seatbelt in good working condition? Not frayed or broken?” instead of simply listing “Seatbelts” with a checkoff box next to it. Auditors can attach a photo of the equipment, add notes, then sign off on the report.
Brewer chose not to use the OEM telematic programs in part because they didn’t offer the functionality he needed, and partly because he found the OEMs were somewhat reluctant to provide compatibility to integrate their programs with Superior’s.
Inventory is handled by two service technicians. Because Superior keeps a product supply based on historical data, Auto ShopKeeper keeps the techs aware of parts levels and triggers a purchase order request when levels dip below specs.
Says Tom Eckler, general shop and equipment manager:
“Our in-house maintenance software program gives us an advantage on fleet management in comparison to other companies because we can create and customize anything we believe will help us maintain our equipment efficiently.”
