Do binmen need ipads?
"Bearing in mind that Bury council in Greater Manchester is trying to save £18million over the next three years, you have to wonder whether blowing up to £9,000 on iPads for binmen is really the best use of taxpayers' money."
http://www.walletpop.co.uk/2011/08/30/ipads-for-binmen-from-council-looking-to-save-18million/
Do binmen need ipads?
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I can't think of a single reason why they would need one. In such tough financial times it seems a baffling decision.
Maybe if they hadn't used such hig spec mobile devices it would not have come under such scrutiny! Many authorities are now used GPS devices for refuse collection to streamline service and create efficiency savings in smarter route planning -but with an i-pad, perhaps a bit too up market!
The £9000 is actually a budget alternative to private organisations that can charge hundreds of thousands to provide software that optimise and streamline refuse collection services.
The £9k will most probably, in a small way, help the council towards saving the £18million.
Sounds like you're familiar with the project Kofi?
Their are several reasons councils are using them first they give real time information as they link to customer relationship software in council call centres. If a customer rings to say a bin has been missed then the call centre can get a bin wagon in the vicinity to call instead of a wagon going tomorrow out of it’s way like they used to.
Second they can respond to fly tipping calls quicker and get rid of the unsightly rubbish. Third residents can report other problems to the bin men such as a street light being out or a pothole and the bin men input that straight into the system for action.
All councils get many complaints from residents that the bin men did not bother taking their bin and some of these are valid and some are not. These complaints still take up a lot of councillor and council officers time to investigate. The bin men in some areas have camera’s and they will now take photographs where a gate is locked and they can’t get to a bin. As often a resident will ring and complain the bin men just left it.
The bin men also notice other things like Mrs Jones who’s 92’s curtains are shut and they are generally open. They can report that to the call centre who will check and if they have the information can contact her next of kin or GP.
Finally it’s also up skilling of the workforce and as more useful and money saving technology is available the workforce finds it easier to understand and use. For many it’s their first use of PC related technology and helps them and their families move into the digital age.
Sorry if this is a little long but as a public sector employee I do get sick of the bashing we get. But as I’ve said in other blogs here maybe that’s a lack of communication between government, councils and residents.
Apologies for the late reply Adrian.
In answer to your question, I'm familiar with similar projects involving private sector organisations. The cost to use their software and to integrate their systems with a host sytsem runs into the hundreds of thousands. When you copmpare this to the £9,000 spent on ipads, it would appear that the council have made a shrewd choice as the ipads are likely to be just as effective.
Yes, when framed in those terms it seems a decent investment. Of course the question still remains whether any spend on such things is really required.