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RuggedJet Mobile Printers Help Streamline DSD and Route Operations
Auto-Chlor System is a market leader in the production, service and maintenance of commercial dish machines and serves commercial food service locations nationwide. With hundreds of trained field technicians providing route accounting, DSD and specialized service operations, the company understands the importance of providing best-in-class field mobility solutions.
Business Problem
The aging printers in Auto-Chlor route vehicles required increasingly more resource and maintenance budget over time, and presented a host of challenges that hindered delivery driver efficiency. Nigel Lin, Director of Information Systems, was charged with evaluating and recommending an improved mobile printing solution for the company’s national fleet of service and delivery technicians.
One of the greatest drags on resources was managing accessory issues, most notably the cable connecting the handheld device to the printer. After assessing the time spent troubleshooting cable problems, purchasing and shipping replacements – then factoring lost productivity and overall driver frustration – they ranked wireless connectivity as a key requirement for new printers.
Since service routes span the entire country, the company also wanted printers that were simple to deploy and even simpler to operate in the field.
Because drivers operate independently, it was imperative to provide them a fieldready solution that would be intuitive to set up, easy to use, and maintenance free once deployed.
And because Auto-Chlor technicians conduct routine maintenance in addition to route delivery, the printers would have to withstand the rigors of their DSD route and a sometimes wet field environment.
Business Solution
The route accounting & DSD specialists at Quest Solution identified the Brother RuggedJet 4 mobile thermal printer as the best overall solution to meet the needs of the Auto-Chlor enterprise and its route technicians: it was simple to use, easy to deploy, and had an attractive total cost of ownership (TCO).
As IT director, Lin was most impressed with how easily his custom DSD software and the Intermec® handhelds interfaced with the RuggedJet printer in the field. After deployment Lin stated, “The Brother team provided technical direction and really helped streamline the programming step at my end. I sent simple instructions to nearly 350 drivers who synchronized their handhelds with the new printers, literally without incident. I was able to manage the entire deployment without leaving my office!” Feedback from the field has continued to be positive, and technicians report that the simple three-button design makes this printer extremely user-friendly.
The costly and cumbersome accessory issues were also resolved. Wireless connectivity via Bluetooth® technology eliminated the cable completely. No cable, no more broken pins and no more troubleshooting. And with thermal printing technology, there are no ink cartridges or ribbons for drivers to stock or replace. “Going wireless and eliminating ink immediately improved driver satisfaction and productivity, and the fact that we’re no longer troubleshooting cable and accessory issues has increased the IT department’s productivity as well,” said Lin.
The selection process also took into consideration the product’s total cost of ownership. With IP54 certification, 6 ft. drop protection and water resistant design, the RuggedJet printer is built to stand up to the fluctuating temperatures, humidity and vibration inherent in this route environment – so the replacement cycle is expected to measurably improve. The move from 8.5” x 11” paper to 4” thermal will help minimize paper costs, and the previous ink cartridge cost has been eliminated completely. In addition, print speeds dramatically improved from up to 28 seconds per page to up to 5 inches per second.
And then there is the issue of scalability. “We felt that RuggedJet wouldn’t become obsolete before its end of duty cycle. In fact we look forward to leveraging the full range of features, functionality, accessories and consumable options to give our drivers even more flexibility as we move into the future.”
“When evaluating new mobile printers, our priority was to find a solution that was reliable, simple to use, and well suited to our route environments.”
Nigel Lin, Director of Information Services , Auto-Chlor System
Benefits of Brother RuggedJet Mobile Thermal Printers
Reliable printing from handhelds
The thermal printing technology used in these Brother devices has been proven reliable from the scorching heat of Arizona to the frigid cold of Alaska. So your pre-sales account managers and drivers will be able to print the documents they need even in extreme heat and cold, which makes these devices more reliable in the field under almost any conditions.
Print documents faster
RuggedJet models print up to 60% faster than some competitor’s models – so pre-sales account managers and drivers will be able to print receipts, invoices, documents and labels fast. And when drivers are able to print documents faster in the field there is more time to visit and service more accounts in a day.
Easier to operate and maintain in the field
With wireless connectivity to handheld devices and with no inks, toners or ribbons to replace, Brother mobile thermal printers are easy to use and maintain by pre-sales account managers and drivers on the road. There’s only one consumable – high-quality Brother thermal media.
Easily adaptable to a variety of vehicles
Brother produces among the smallest and lightest mobile printers for mobile professionals. Various options are available to carry, mount, power and connect these units to match the needs of your workforce. Print practically anywhere you need to, and perform reliably day after day.
Brother RuggedJet Mobile Thermal Printers and Route Accounting
Brother RuggedJet mobile thermal printers give pre-sales account managers and route drivers the ability to quickly and reliably print the delivery documents for the accounts they serve – and paper labels – up to 4” wide, wirelessly from their handhelds or laptops.
These durable battery-powered devices are among the fastest 4” mobile thermal printers with print speeds up to 5ips. They are also among the lightest mobile printers available today and can be comfortably hung from a belt for extended periods. They’re versatile, too – they print paper labels as well, perfect for tagging goods and merchandise to be returned with barcodes for accurate tracking in a distributor’s system.
Reliable RuggedJet mobile printers are also built tough to tackle the especially harsh conditions route drivers must often work in – indoors and outdoors – as well as the bumps, drops and rough handling that can happen on their routes every day. All models are designed with 6 ft. drop protection, have IP54 certification to withstand dust and moisture, and are backed by an industry leading warranty* against defects or damage.
The RuggedJet™ line of mobile printers are ideal for quickly printing documents and labels up to 4” wide pre-sales account managers and route drivers need for:
Pre-sales documents…
- Inventory reports
- Sales order history
- Sales order & confirmation
- Current product promos and deals
Delivery documents…
- Delivery receipts & invoices
- Returned goods receipts & labels
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