Streamlining sales: FreedomNet makes car repair and maintenance easier for dealerships and their customers.

AN AUTOMOBILE IS USUALLY the second largest purchase a consumer makes, with a home being the most expensive. More than that, cars are one of the few purchases we name, append personalities to, and develop emotional relationships with. Whether an automobile is mere transportation, a work tool, a hobby, or an obsession, few people want to leave it at the dealership to be serviced, and even fewer enjoy the emotional trial of buying a new car.

The average car dealership has about 50 employees and sells more than US$29 million in new cars a year. For car dealerships, customer satisfaction is a driving force in determining profitability. Customer satisfaction is measured in many ways: buying experience, product quality, customer follow-up, and service quality are just a few. A smart dealership owner welcomes any tool, technique, or procedure that can boost the customer satisfaction index.

Enter Frontier Wireless, a Virginia company specializing in increasing employee productivity and customer satisfaction in three main areas: the parts department, collision repair, and the service department. Frontier Wireless provides software applications, mobile devices, and wireless connectivity that interface with dealer management and manufacturer information systems.

The system, called FreedomNet, is composed of four products: FreedomNet Service Lane Professional, FreedomNet PartScan, FreedomNet Speedy Quick Lube, and FreedomNet Collision Estimator. FreedomNet is designed to make employees more productive by connecting them to important computer systems from anywhere on the dealership premises.

A typical FreedomNet installation uses a Windows 2000 server to link the dealer systems with mobile devices via wireless access points. This architecture lets FreedomNet interoperate with the majority of dealer management systems in use today. Employees use different devices, depending on the module they're using. The FreedomNet PartScan module runs on the Symbol PDT 8146, a ruggedized device running the Microsoft Windows Pocket PC OS. Because FreedomNet Service Lane Professional requires a larger user interface and more computing power, it runs on a Fujitsu Stylistic Tablet PC. Wi-Fi access points strategically placed around the dealership provide maximum coverage inside and outside the buildings. Security best practices such as encrypting wireless traffic, turning off SSID broadcasts, and implementing channel separation help protect sensitive information.

Into the fast (service) lane

The FreedomNet family's flagship product is FreedomNet Service Lane Professional. In the dealership's service lane, a service writer takes down the pertinent information about the car being repaired, then determines and documents the repairs the service department will make. Traditionally, the employee writes the information on a repair order by hand and uses the dealer system to look up parts, services, and recall notices for the vehicle. Then, he keys the majority of this information into the dealer system. This process is cumbersome, time-consuming, and error-prone.

FreedomNet Service Lane Professional streamlines this process by bringing all the computer resources used in the manual process to the hands of the service writer, regardless of his location. A tablet PC he can use with one hand provides an interface to the dealer systems. According to Steve Caudill, CTO for Frontier Wireless, achieving this requires the use of the right hardware, architecture, and software. The hardware has to provide sufficient screen space for one-handed interaction, the service writer has to be able to see the screen clearly in direct sunlight, and the device must be reliable.

The first year the product was available, Frontier Wireless worked to resolve usability and reliability issues. This is where architecture and software come into play. All the data resides in the dealer management system; only a slimmed-down representation of the dealer management system's user interface displays on the handheld device.

Caudill says one of the toughest challenges is giving the service writers the freedom to move between areas where there is little interference with the wireless connection to areas where wireless connectivity is intermittent. A good example is when a service writer ducks behind a vehicle or is trying to look under a vehicle. For most of the applications, the state is maintained on the server so disconnections don't damage transactions in process--the server just waits for the devices to reconnect to complete the transaction. For applications where state must be maintained on the device, Frontier Wireless has developed technology that maintains state while disconnected (patent pending).

The service lane application lets the service writer scan the vehicle identification number (VIN) from the car to pull up existing information about the owner and vehicle model. This eliminates duplicate keying of data, reduces errors, and immediately gives information about recalls or service campaigns for that model. This means the customer doesn't have to wait to get a printed copy of the repair order. This feature also eliminates surprise follow up calls to inform customers that the vehicle manufacturer requires additional work that might affect when the car will be available. One dealer estimates that, among his eight service writers, he saves one man-day per day as a result of having the recall and service campaign information immediately available. A new feature installed at several sites lets the customer sign the repair order on the tablet device; the software incorporates the signature. (Frontier Wireless currently has a patent pending regarding the handling and secure storage of the customer's signature.)

FreedomNet Speedy Quick Lube is designed for limited service facilities where time and convenience are key to customer satisfaction. This product is similar to the service lane application, but is limited to a handful of services such as fluid changes and tire rotation. The system uses a Symbol 8100 device.

In the parts department, a different module, FreedomNet PartScan helps the organization better manage the flow of parts. Using a device similar to the quick lube product, employees can scan parts as they arrive and immediately create new price labels.

The body shop or collision repair center hasn't been left out when it comes to new systems. Another module, FreedomNet Collision Estimator, incorporates an industry standard product, CCC Pathways, for collision estimation. The software resides on a tablet PC, giving body shop associates chance to perform estimates on the car anywhere on the lot. This ability makes a big difference when the vehicle in question isn't moveable. This product also lets employees scan the VIN and work with the full functionality of CCC Pathways.

Bright futures

Frontier Wireless has a few feature and technology advancements planned for FreedomNet. Caudill hints that some of these enhancements could include front-end operations; for example, giving sales associates real-time inventory and credit reporting information. Imagine a scenario where instant messaging can help a salesperson save a sale by immediately calling on the expertise or presence of a more experienced manager. (No more I'll be right back, I have to get my manager to approve this" technique.)

Frontier Wireless continues to work with its clients to root out processes technology can simplify. For example, it s researching how to incorporate digital images when the service writer creates a repair order. This could help determine if damage to the vehicle was pre-existing, reducing unnecessary repairs from false damage claims, yet maintaining a solid relationship with the customer. In the parts department, Frontier Wireless is working on tracking parts dynamically to facilitate a perpetual inventory system.

On the technology front, Frontier Wireless has experimented with various devices. Currently, customers are happy with the devices deployed in dealerships. However, the rapidly changing market may provide even better devices, and research personnel are always checking out the latest gadgets. The software development team is currently working with the existing products on Windows Server 2003. According to Caudill, his team is looking at Microsoft .NET technologies for 2004.

It's all about the customer

Frontier Wireless is a great example of a company using multiple layers of both hardware and software, interfacing to existing information systems to solve real-life issues. Whether it s reducing errors, up-selling services, or providing a higher level of professionalism, the result is a better customer experience--something every player in the dealer's business ecosystem is thrilled to see.

Keith Perry is president of KP Tech Enterprises, a consulting firm specializing in application development and computer security. He currently is managing a HIPAA project for a major health care insurance company. He recently has completed sales force automation projects on both the Palm and tablet PC platforms. He has a bachelor's degree in computer science and a master's degree in business administration. [e-mail].