AMT-SYBEX and Electricity North West go Mobile with iPhones

LONDON, August 14, 2013 /PRNewswire/ --

AMT-SYBEX's Affinity Fieldreach® mobile solution has enabled Electricity North West (ENW) to join the ranks of utility businesses deploying iPhones in the field. Over the course of the next year, 650 ENW engineers currently collecting data with a pen, paper and a camera will instead be equipped with iPhones to gather and deliver important evidence electronically.

One of the challenges facing all utility companies as they maintain and repair their infrastructure is to comply with the regulations introduced by the 2004 Traffic Management Act (TMA), particularly when it comes to Streetworks which affect roads or pavements. With 44,000 km of underground cables throughout the North West, ENW needs to be able to monitor the impact of maintenance and repair works on road users and pedestrians and ensure that they comply with the TMA legislation.

AMT-SYBEX has developed a mobile iOS solution based on its Affinity Fieldreach software that will allow ENW engineers to capture photographic evidence documenting each stage of the works and compliance with regulations. Each photograph is date and time stamped, at the right place and time, and synchronised in real-time with the company's central asset management system.

Leonard Hayes, Group Technical Director at AMT-SYBEX, said, "The use of iPhones represents a dramatic shift in the way that the essential infrastructure industries are approaching mobile projects. With its range of connectivity options, location awareness through GPS, and advanced camera technology, the iPhone can handle almost any task that an engineer needs to perform in the field."

Electricity North West's network delivers electricity to homes from Carlisle to Macclesfield, connecting 2.4 million properties and more than 5 million people to the National Grid.

Steven Bradwell, Operations Change Manager at ENW, said, "Mobile business applications are a growing part of any business' future and particularly so for utility companies who are providing a service 24 hours a day and 365 days a year. We needed a mobile solution which was flexible and which our engineers could pick up and start using easily and immediately. AMT-SYBEX has been working with energy networks for twenty years and their knowledge of our industry has helped to create a mobile solution which will deliver our business objectives."

ENW will also use Fieldreach to manage and track the problems of vegetation, particularly tree growth, around its 13,000 km of overhead lines, as well as asset surveys.

Leonard Hayes said, "Affinity Fieldreach has been designed with the field user's needs at the heart of the design. We understand that they need an essentially intuitive application in terms of navigation and usability as this aids the capture of accurate and meaningful data. The beauty of Fieldreach is that our clients can configure it to deploy solutions in the field tailored to their specific business requirements. Better quality data leads to better informed decisions which can deliver efficiency and cost savings."

About AMT-SYBEX

AMT-SYBEX has operated in the utility, energy and infrastructure industries since 1990 and creates enterprise software which enables its clients to meet evolving business challenges around enterprise mobility, smart grids, and enterprise asset management. Affinity Fieldreach® is a business driven mobile solution that allows clients to configure and deploy solutions in the field tailored to their specific requirements. It is the leading mobility suite in the UK essential industries, used to deliver services as diverse as mobile inspections, work and asset management, and has been licensed on more than 35,000 mobile devices.

For more information about AMT-SYBEX visit: http://www.amt-sybex.com