Vehnet, which provides software services for the automotive industry, has signed a new contract with Irish vehicle management company National Vehicle Distribution (NVD), which handles 70% of new car movements in Ireland, as well as providing services in the UK and wider Europe.
NVD will be using Vehnet’s Advance yard and workshop management systems, and its transport module TMS. The company reports that work has already started on system development and it is aiming to complete first phase of the implementation by the end of the year so it can go live in the first quarter of 2013.
NVD has a fleet of 100 transporters and offers storage for up to 33,000 vehicles at strategically located storage locations in Wexford, Dublin and Cork, totaling more than 630,000 square metres.
The progress on the new contract comes despite Vehnet’s initial decision to rule itself out of the tender process for NVD.
“Our original requirement was for an IT provider and industry specialist, able to support all three aspects of our business – namely, compound management, workshop management and transportation management,” explained John Boland, NVD business development manager. “Vehnet withdrew from the initial process on the basis that its core competency was compound and workshop management; although it has a transportation module within the Advance suite, the company considered that it was unable to offer the functionality we required in this area.”
However, NVD said it was unable to find a viable solution that could offer all three systems cost-effectively and invited Vehnet back to discuss the development of a transport module to complement its existing Advance software system.
“Other options seemed to us to be outdated – some utilising green screen technology, for example,” Boland said. “There were a couple of providers who might have been able to provide a stand-alone transportation system, but the cost and time impact of integration looked prohibitive. We had previously been impressed by Vehnet’s compound and workshop management technology, so following further meetings with managing director Steve Jones, we were convinced that working with Vehnet to develop their transportation module would offer the best option for NVD going forward.”
Commenting on the contract, Jones added: “We are delighted to have secured this important contract with NVD, which has proved an important catalyst for the development and enhancement of our Advance management systems portfolio. We look forward to working with NVD and to unveiling our new product later this year.
