"As a trade association, we are constantly looking to improve our services for members. Since we implemented the Borough IT (BiT) system, we have had lots of positive feedback how easy the system is to use. The reporting side of the BiT system allows our administrators to monitor the activity of our members and provide a proactive approach to our customer services."

"We have certainly benefited from implementing the BiT system. From initial contact through to system implementation, BiT has been professional and very supportive. I would certainly recommend the company to other organisations."
- Mike Andrews, Head of IT, NAPIT

The Business Issue

The National Association of Professional Inspectors & Testers (NAPIT) was formed in 1992 as a consequence of the lack of understanding in the Inspection & Testing field among many electricians.

More specifically, NAPIT was designed to plug the loophole that allows managers to sign documentation and electricians to Inspect & Test electrical installations and appliances, even though they may not have had up-to-date appropriate training, do not possess the relevant qualifications and have probably not acquired the specific experience.

In January 2005, Part P to the Building Regulations, Electrical Safety, was introduced, bringing domestic electrical installation work in England and Wales under the legal framework of the Building Regulations. For the first time, a legal requirement for safety was placed upon electrical installation work in dwellings.

NAPIT set up a competent person's scheme (CPS) to ensure that that its members would be Part P compliant. In order to facilitate the daily running of its CPS, NAPIT invested in an online CPS system. The organisation needed a system that would: allow members to log jobs quickly and simply; highlight which members were NAPIT-assessed and which needed to undertake an assessment; process and keep accurate records of members payments; inform members of industry and NAPIT news; and log and track complaints in accordance with Trustmark requirements.

The Challenge

NAPIT's growth had put the existing online system under huge pressure, creating a host of issues for users and administrators alike.

For NAPIT's members, the old system was poorly designed and its functionality difficult to use. It was taking electricians up to 30 minutes to input jobs on to a system that was designed to save time. The system was fast becoming a bane for members, as they were forced to telephone the administrator for support whenever they encountered problems.

From an administrator's perspective, the old system represented an additional layer of IT that was unworkably slow and cumbersome; the system that was designed to speed-up processes was having the opposite effect.

Management reports were not comprehensive and also inaccurate because of incomplete and duplicate entries on the system. For example, there was no way to call up inspection data, including when an installation was last inspected and its outcome; and there was limited financial data available, including which accounts were up-to-date and which had overdue payments. Ultimately, NAPIT was aware of the system's shortcomings and had little confidence in the reports generated.

As with any IT application, support is a key issue. Unfortunately for NAPIT's administrators, immediate support was unavailable. The designers of the old system were a small operation with only one developer on hand to handle queries and provide support. This meant the administrator would sometimes receive support the next day (longer still if the developer was absent), which was frustrating and inefficient.

The old system was sometimes so slow that referring to hard copy files was quicker than accessing the information online.

The Solution

NAPIT soon decided to implement a new CPS system. The organisation decided to use Borough IT because the company runs a successful CPS system for FENSA, the largest competent person's scheme in the UK.

After listening to NAPIT's requirements, BiT began the project by cleansing and integrating all data from their existing system.

A new back-end structure was designed, which was fast; secured on BiT servers, ensuring the system would be available 24 x 7; and future proofed using BiT's core technology, ensuring NAPIT would not be left with an ineffective or obsolete system in a couple of years' time.

A new user-friendly interface was implemented so that electricians would need no assistance inputting jobs. Crucially, the functionality was comprehensive and fast, allowing electricians to minimise administration time.

The administrators' needs were also addressed via a raft of new modules. A reports and letters module was created, enabling timely communications with all Napit members.

An assessment module was introduced to the new system, highlighting which members' assessments were valid and which members were due to take another NAPIT assessment. All Assessment data is now logged within the system.

A new finance module allowed the administrator to process and keep an accurate record of all payments and invoices.

Members are kept up-to-date with industry regulations, news and membership details via a new communications module, which features an instant messenger and a facility to leave notes on the system.

A complaints module was created to log and track all jobs, ensuring the system is compliant with Trustmark requirements.

Finally, a mobile interface was created, allowing electricians to transfer data via a PDA.

Results

BiT delivered NAPIT's CPS system in impressive time – it took just six weeks from design to going live – and the dividends were immediate.

All of the data is now restructured, enabling members to log a job in one minute instead of half an hour, prompting a marked increase in the number of jobs being logged. NAPIT now receives compliments rather than complaints from members about its system.

The administrators' job is now far easier, as they no longer spend a significant amount of time taking calls from electricians unable to use the system, which allows them more time to work on projects that benefit the organisation.

Since NAPIT implemented a BiT CPS system, the organisation no longer has an issue with support; quite the opposite. NAPIT now has immediate phone access to a BiT Technical Architect, who is always on hand to handle any questions or queries, no matter how simple or complex they may be.

The highly communicative nature of BiT and NAPIT's relationship means that BiT hears first-hand any issues the NAPIT administrator may be experiencing, and is on hand, wherever possible, to immediately tweak the system according to the administrator's suggestions.

Such is the level of trust built up between NAPIT and BiT that it prompted NAPIT to outsource additional projects to BiT. In December 2006, BiT redesigned the NAPIT website, embedding the company even deeper in the daily running of NAPIT.

In December 2006 at the NAPIT Awards for Excellence, BiT received the Services to Members Award for its CPS system.