Fixed Ops Journal - February 2022 - F18

FIXED OPS JOURNAL
BOTTLENECKS AT BAY
Job-tracking technology helps supervisors identify operational ineffi ciencies
KEN WYSOCKY
foj@autonews.com
A
s a shop foreman at Barbour-Hendrick
Honda Greenville in North
Carolina, Chris Tucker often suspected
service operations could
be more effi cient. But like many harried fi xed
ops supervisors, he didn't have the time or data
to verify his assumptions.
" You sometimes ask yourself why things
take so long, " Tucker says. " But that was based
on assumptions ... there really was no easy
way to actually know how long it takes to perform
oil changes and other tasks. "
Now there is. Last November, Barbour-Hendrick's
service department began using Bayley
job-tracking devices from Service Write
Inc. in two express service bays.
Th ree months later, the results are so encouraging
that the dealership - part of Hendrick Automotive
Group - plans to install the technology in
its 17 full service bays as well, Tucker says.
In October, for example, the average elapsed
time between creating a repair order and getting
the vehicle up on a lift was 34 minutes.
Now, it's down by half, to 17 minutes .
In addition, it took technicians an average of
11 minutes to start multi point inspections in
October. Now, the average is three minutes
and 30 seconds, about a 68 percent decrease.
Moreover, the average time spent waiting for
service advisers to notify technicians whether
customers approved or declined service recommendations
now averages eight minutes
per vehicle compared with 17 minutes in October
- around a 53 percent reduction.
More hours turned
Each technician also now turns 1.9 more
hours a day and works on an average of one
more vehicle per day, compared with October,
Tucker says.
And the faster customers receive service
recommendations, the more likely they are to
approve them, he adds.
" If you don't get to them quickly, they check
out mentally and decline services because
they want to get going, " he says.
Th e technology motivates technicians to
work more effi ciently, too.
" Th ey've told me that because they're being
timed, they're working faster, " he explains.
" Staying on task and on goal become personal
objectives. But we tell them they don't have to
PAGE 18 FEBRUARY 2022
Tech Nick Williams uses the
Bayley touch screen during a
multipoint inspection at BarbourHendrick
Honda Greenville.
On track
Bayley job-tracking technology -
developed with input from technicians,
service advisers and managers -
uses artifi cial intelligence and machine
learning to improve technicians'
effi ciency. Here's how it works.
 A sensor detects when vehicles
enter and leave a service bay.
 The technician types in a repair
order number on a touch screen.
 A repair order appears, with jobs
listed in the most effi cient order.
 Technicians use the touch screen to
indicate when they start and fi nish
tasks.
 They can put a repair on hold if
waiting for parts .
 Weekly reports rank technicians by
speed and effi ciency.
 Data is available to service
managers in real time.
 The system indicates if a technician
doesn't use the touch screen.
 The system can be integrated with
some dealership management
systems.
be the fastest, just consistently effi cient.
" It also creates friendly competition, " he
adds. " No one wants to be behind the person
working next to them. "
Marcus Aman, a former fi xed ops director,
and Peter Seymour developed the cloudbased
Bayley technology, which incorporates
machine learning and artifi cial intelligence. It
has two hardware components: a large touch
screen that hangs on a lift mount and a sensor
that mounts to any two- or four-post bay.
Th e sensor detects when vehicles enter and
leave a service bay. Technicians use the touch
screen to indicate when they stop and start
various tasks in a repair order .
Aman's elevator pitch: If supervisors can tell
how long it takes technicians to make certain
repairs, for instance, or how long it takes to get
service approvals, they could eliminate bottlenecks.
In
turn, that would boost customer satisfaction
and revenue because repairs would go
quicker. Moreover, technicians would be happier
because by turning more hours, they'd
earn more money, he says.
Service managers typically only know when
a repair order is created and closed. What
happens in between remains a gray area,
Aman notes.
" Ineffi ciencies are a super big problem, " he
says. " We want to speed up the service process
from the technician to the service adviser to
the customer. "
Th e collected data, which is viewable in real
time, also helps managers identify technicians
who need coaching in certain areas and
to assign repairs to technicians who do them
the fastest. Better effi ciency also reduces the
need for more technicians, he notes.
Investment in effi ciency
Th ree dealerships currently use the Bayley
technology, with 109 more awaiting installation,
Aman says.
Th e costs are a $500 installation fee per bay
and a monthly charge of $250 per bay, with a
volume discount for 20 or more bays, he says.
" We guarantee a return on investment that's
three times the annual cost, " he says.
Aman believes technicians generally don't
resent being tracked - especially if their pay
increases.
" It's not a Big Brother-type deal, " he says. " It
just helps increase effi ciency through actionable
data and holds everyone accountable -
from technicians to parts employees to service
advisers and managers.
" Bayley removes assumptions - makes the
unseen seen, " he concludes. " Knowledge is
power. If you can't measure something, you
can't manage it. " 
Fixed Ops Journal - February 2022

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