SmartRoutes Case Studies Optimizing Newspaper Delivery: A Case Study on Irish Independent

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	Optimizing Newspaper Delivery: A Case Study on Irish Independent SmartRoutes

Optimizing Newspaper Delivery: A Case Study on Irish Independent

SmartRoutes

Technology Category	Analytics & Modeling - Real Time Analytics Sensors - Barcode Readers
Applicable Industries	Telecommunications Transportation
Applicable Functions	Logistics & Transportation Procurement
Use Cases	Last Mile Delivery Vehicle Telematics
Challenge	The Irish Independent newspaper was in the early stages of planning the roll-out of their home-delivery service. They had launched a premium digital and ePaper subscription in February of 2020 as phase 1 of their digital transformation. Phase two was to add a Saturday and Sunday home delivery offering. The new bundle was initially launched to service customers in Dublin and was planned to be extended to offer home delivery in more locations in early 2021. However, the direct-to-doorstep newspaper delivery presented various logistical challenges. The newspaper needed to be written, edited, printed, and delivered to readers within a tight time window. The Irish Independent faced challenges in optimizing drivers' time, providing contactless delivery, and ensuring that all information on a route would be transferred back to the depot in real-time for the support team to handle any queries on deliveries. Read More
About Customer	The Irish Independent is a newspaper company based in Ireland. They were in the early stages of planning the roll-out of their home-delivery service when they approached SmartRoutes. The company had launched a premium digital and ePaper subscription as phase 1 of their digital transformation. Phase two was to add a Saturday and Sunday home delivery offering. The new bundle was initially launched to service customers in Dublin and was planned to be extended to offer home delivery in more locations in early 2021. The company was acquired by Belgian-based Mediahuis in 2019 and they discussed the success of such services in European markets. Read More
Solution	SmartRoutes provided a solution to the Irish Independent's challenges. They implemented route planning and optimization, which automated the creation of the routes and optimized them to account for the vehicles in their fleet, and minimize mileage and driver hours. The routes were sent from the Desktop Route Planner, directly to the Drivers Mobile App the evening before a shift, giving drivers full visibility of their route before they left their home. SmartRoutes also helped to automate the feed of live order data to the Desktop Planner, ensuring that all stops were accounted for on a route and that undeliverables were kept to a minimum. The Irish Independent was able to create designated geographical territories for each of the vehicles in their fleet to cover using the zoning feature of the SmartRoutes Desktop Route Planner. The solution also included automated order updates, zoning, driving sales & maximizing capacity, internal communications, and recording driver knowledge. Read More Log in to view content
Contents

Technology Category

Analytics & Modeling - Real Time Analytics

Sensors - Barcode Readers

Applicable Industries

Telecommunications

Transportation

Applicable Functions

Logistics & Transportation

Procurement

Use Cases

Last Mile Delivery

Vehicle Telematics

Challenge

The Irish Independent newspaper was in the early stages of planning the roll-out of their home-delivery service. They had launched a premium digital and ePaper subscription in February of 2020 as phase 1 of their digital transformation. Phase two was to add a Saturday and Sunday home delivery offering. The new bundle was initially launched to service customers in Dublin and was planned to be extended to offer home delivery in more locations in early 2021. However, the direct-to-doorstep newspaper delivery presented various logistical challenges. The newspaper needed to be written, edited, printed, and delivered to readers within a tight time window. The Irish Independent faced challenges in optimizing drivers' time, providing contactless delivery, and ensuring that all information on a route would be transferred back to the depot in real-time for the support team to handle any queries on deliveries.

About Customer

The Irish Independent is a newspaper company based in Ireland. They were in the early stages of planning the roll-out of their home-delivery service when they approached SmartRoutes. The company had launched a premium digital and ePaper subscription as phase 1 of their digital transformation. Phase two was to add a Saturday and Sunday home delivery offering. The new bundle was initially launched to service customers in Dublin and was planned to be extended to offer home delivery in more locations in early 2021. The company was acquired by Belgian-based Mediahuis in 2019 and they discussed the success of such services in European markets.

Solution

SmartRoutes provided a solution to the Irish Independent's challenges. They implemented route planning and optimization, which automated the creation of the routes and optimized them to account for the vehicles in their fleet, and minimize mileage and driver hours. The routes were sent from the Desktop Route Planner, directly to the Drivers Mobile App the evening before a shift, giving drivers full visibility of their route before they left their home. SmartRoutes also helped to automate the feed of live order data to the Desktop Planner, ensuring that all stops were accounted for on a route and that undeliverables were kept to a minimum. The Irish Independent was able to create designated geographical territories for each of the vehicles in their fleet to cover using the zoning feature of the SmartRoutes Desktop Route Planner. The solution also included automated order updates, zoning, driving sales & maximizing capacity, internal communications, and recording driver knowledge.

Impact #1	As a result of onboarding with SmartRoutes, the Irish Independent was able to bring full oversight of their Home Delivery operations. They were able to streamline all the processes involved for their admin, planning, customer support, and sales teams as well as for the delivery drivers. With efficient route planning and optimization, they are now confident that their operations are as effective as possible and can be scaled with greater confidence. The solution also improved internal communications, with the ability to include dispatch notes on each order for drivers and for drivers to record notes on their Mobile Driver App as they completed each drop. This established a seamless two-way flow of data between all parties, bringing real clarity and efficiency to everyone involved.

Impact #1

As a result of onboarding with SmartRoutes, the Irish Independent was able to bring full oversight of their Home Delivery operations. They were able to streamline all the processes involved for their admin, planning, customer support, and sales teams as well as for the delivery drivers. With efficient route planning and optimization, they are now confident that their operations are as effective as possible and can be scaled with greater confidence. The solution also improved internal communications, with the ability to include dispatch notes on each order for drivers and for drivers to record notes on their Mobile Driver App as they completed each drop. This established a seamless two-way flow of data between all parties, bringing real clarity and efficiency to everyone involved.

Benefit #1	Time spent on administrative tasks reduced significantly
Benefit #2	Onboarding new drivers took significantly less time
Benefit #3	Routes were optimized to minimize mileage and driver hours

Benefit #1

Time spent on administrative tasks reduced significantly

Benefit #2

Onboarding new drivers took significantly less time

Benefit #3

Routes were optimized to minimize mileage and driver hours

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Overview

Optimizing Newspaper Delivery: A Case Study on Irish Independent

Operational Impact

Quantitative Benefit