ticket routing

**sling'n paint** · February 14th, 2010, 08:34 PM

.

**fockerson** · February 14th, 2010, 08:44 PM

Let me guess, Is that happening on Wednesday(auto eclipse)?

**Goldenboy** · February 14th, 2010, 09:02 PM

I never understand why a company would even try to waste money on a routing program.

There are so many variables that there is no way that this could work. You'd spend more time over riding their route plan it would be funny. First you have to take in to consideration short notice-emergeny type tickets. Then the program can't account for tickets like downtown type tickets that have to be done early. Or tickets that are in a homeowner yard that you can't do too early. Meet-appointment type tickets. There is just too many variables to consider.

**Goldenboy** · February 14th, 2010, 09:07 PM

What happens if the program picks your best route for the day. If it only takes the tickets due that day you'd be driving right past tickets due the next day. If it took all your tickets and routed them you'd get alot done but you would wind up with tickets going past due because you'd be working on them in order of where they are not when they are due.

Routing is just something that has to be done on a daily basis by the locator. With all the GPS and other crap the supervisors can see who is routing poorly and work with them individually why waste all the money trying to make a program that no one will use anyway.

**sling'n paint** · February 14th, 2010, 09:34 PM

;;;

**ProfessionalLocator** · February 14th, 2010, 11:11 PM

Originally Posted by sling'n paint

Have no details on the routing system, thats why I was asking. They said once the bugs are cleaned out it'll be rolling out. Golden I'm like you in thinking its a waste. I hope that its just a guide more or less. I can look through my tickets and figure out how to run them easily without any assistance. If I get a heavy workload then streets and trips works out great.

The Auto Eclipse..it was just said that our equipment guy would be getting with us this week to update...most likely at the tailgate I suspect.

Ask anybody at Utiliquest as they have routing software.

They also have a gag order where if they talk about it they get fired.

**animal** · February 15th, 2010, 01:02 AM

what do you think the next stage of gps is

it routes your tickets da

**yahoo** · February 15th, 2010, 07:49 PM

it seems to working well here!!!! SIKE!!!!

**Mke** · February 15th, 2010, 08:48 PM

Sike? Psych? Sorry yahoo, my OCD is kickin in....

mke

**beyond help** · February 15th, 2010, 11:06 PM

I don't need a friggin computer to tell me how to route my work. If an IT person happens to see this. PLEASE, DO NOT COME UP WITH AN AUTO-ROUTING PROGRAM. There are some things that need to be left up to the locator. I can live with GPS in my vehicle, but not some idiotic program shuffling my work for me.

**ProfessionalLocator** · February 15th, 2010, 11:27 PM

Originally Posted by beyond help

I don't need a friggin computer to tell me how to route my work. If an IT person happens to see this. PLEASE, DO NOT COME UP WITH AN AUTO-ROUTING PROGRAM. There are some things that need to be left up to the locator. I can live with GPS in my vehicle, but not some idiotic program shuffling my work for me.

I sure wish they would listen to you. But when I was telling an IT guy what we needed he stopped me and told me that he was the IT guy and he knew better than us what we needed.

In any event the idea is that the computer can route the work better than us, and it can't, is supported by the managers who tell the IT guy what software to develop.The IT guy has no real choice either.

The routing software may be of use to a noobie who is not familiar with the area and has a small workload. Even and experienced locator sent to cover a few tickets in an unfamiliar area may find such software useful.

But you are right, the locator in their own area with familiarity of the ongoing jobs in that area can do better than the computer. In this case the computer is going to foul things up, miss appointments, reduce productivity and increase overtime.

One locator with routing software was asked by their boss what they could do to increase their productivity that had fallen lately. The answer given was to turn of the routing software as it was causing the reduced productivity. Last I heard is that the software is still routing the jobs.

Look at it this way. If you have routing software and your employer complains of your productivity you are in the clear. You are only working at the rate the computer is allowing you to work.

**paintitnow** · February 16th, 2010, 12:01 AM

Hopefully it gives you an option to either route it or just make push pins and let the locator decide. If working in a strange area being able to just highlight 20 tickets and hit a map button to push pin thm would be quicker than trying to type in 20 different addresses in streets and trips

**ProfessionalLocator** · February 16th, 2010, 12:13 AM

Originally Posted by paintitnow

Hopefully it gives you an option to either route it or just make push pins and let the locator decide. If working in a strange area being able to just highlight 20 tickets and hit a map button to push pin thm would be quicker than trying to type in 20 different addresses in streets and trips

That may be useful. I actually once was dealing with software that was supposed to do that. But there were three problems.

A great number of my tickets were in new subdivisions that were not on the map software.

I had a great number of tickets, 40 a day was light and 60 was about common. As much as 90 or more during the busy season.

And the best part, no written instructions on how to use the software. Also no online help file for the software. I fiddled around with it but way too much workload to spend any amount of time trying to figure it out.

Right now I need some sleep but I have the hiccups

and I can't get to sleep!

**sling'n paint** · February 16th, 2010, 02:50 PM

...

**ProfessionalLocator** · February 16th, 2010, 04:46 PM

Originally Posted by sling'n paint

come to find out its not actual new software but just an updated grid system that dispatches the tickets to locators that have assigned areas. They are supposedly taking away the supervisor access for lead techs that normally move/assign tickets and only going to rely on the new grid system. If a ticket has to be moved it'll be on the supervisor to actually move it instead. Told the sup to expect to move quite a few tickets to the correct locator because the grid system isnt going to be that precise.

I am constantly moving tickets around during the day that have misrouted. They are starting to rely to heavily on automated systems and somethings just dont work out in the field as they do on paper. Cant tell them a dang thing.

Depends on your grid system. I have found this works really better than having to wait for a foreman to sort through the tickets. If the grid was entered wrong by the caller / excavator they were just closed out as bad address. Plus I got all the tickets just as fast as they came in. So very often I was getting tickets next door to each other and picking them both up at the same time.

Give it a try, this actually may work very well.