Steam 'n' Gleam

The Client

Steam 'n' Gleam provide specialist steam cleaning services in the public and private sectors.

The Brief

Steam 'n' Gleam required a mobile solution which would combine proof of attendance and job recording, including positioning and photographs.

The Solution

The system was implemented on Handheld Products Dolphin 7900 terminals. Once a user reached a job a barcode fixed at that location was scanned to confirm attendance. When the job was completed the user entered any damage reports and took a photograph using the integrated imager.

The terminals were fitted with GPS receivers so position information was also captured.

Confirmation that the job was complete was needed at Head Office as quickly as possible, and so that data was sent over GPRS. However because of the relatively high cost of sending images over GPRS this data was held until the user returned to Head Office when it was downloaded using a cradle connected to the local network.

A custom gateway application on the client's server collected data from both the wired and wireless connections and added it to an existing Access database so the client's current reporting tools could continue to be used.

In addition we provided intranet-based reports so any user on the network could see the details of any job, including any images captured. The GPS position information was also shown with a click-able link direct to Google maps.