As we forge ahead into 2022 and continue providing customizable service solutions to support customers large and small, we have been thinking a lot about our customers, the continual changes in the industry, and the challenges the last two years are having on the industries we support. We thought we’d take an opportunity to share some of the trends we are seeing, and the ways Bell and Howell is addressing some industry challenges to continue providing the level of service that our customers have come to expect.

Current Challenges

Supply Chain Issues

Maximizing uptime can be challenging when the parts and supplies you need are out of reach. It is no surprise that the COVID-19 pandemic has caused constraints across most industries, with many continuing to feel the strain in some way or another. At Bell and Howell, we are here to support our customers through services designed to protect and optimize their investments. Often, this means our service contracts rely heavily on parts that keep your solutions running smoothly. Our parts management and logistics teams are working hard to ensure that our 400 stocking locations can continue providing the foundation for our entire service organization. Our veteran inventory exports have successful track records with unmatched fulfillment capabilities that allow our 800+ service technicians to service equipment and reduce downtime.

Workforce Challenges

Another challenge we are seeing is workforce shortages. In some areas, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to find employees to fill important rolls – we’ve even experienced similar struggles. Nonetheless, Bell and Howell remains known for its long tenure employees who are continually training on the equipment they service. With 800+ in-house service engineers, Bell and Howell removes the reliance on outside organizations for valued customer support technicians, allowing us to finely control access to the tools, training, and information that is imperative to our successful service organization.

Emphasis on Digital Transformation

Bell and Howell has established a digital backbone that collects, analyzes, and models machine log data. This is part of a digital transformation that the entire service organization has been striving for. In 2022, this data will continue to play an important part in improving customer experiences.

Remote Monitoring

With a rise in IoT-enabled systems, the availability of useful metrics has never been higher. Not only does the collection of higher value operational data aid in making crucial decisions, but also supports the live monitoring of equipment. This grants businesses and equipment operators the freedom to refocus their attention to other important tasks. Bell and Howell’s remote monitoring solutions technicians provide on-demand support in real-time when issues arise, saving hours of unnecessary downtime. With solutions tailored to your specific business and equipment needs, Bell and Howell is here to empower businesses through the flow of information.

Predictive Maintenance

Another trend that we see providing better and more effective service, is our switch towards predictive maintenance and away from preventative services. Because we continue to have enhanced data, Bell and Howell remote monitoring technicians can provide greater clarity when servicing plans are being built. This new drive to use data to maintain valuable equipment saves customers money on costly repairs and prolongs the lifetime value achieved from the machinery. Our service plans are highly customized to your exact project and equipment requirements.

Conclusion

While there are certainly many dynamics currently impacting businesses in new ways, Bell and Howell is here to partner alongside you and offer reliability that few can. Whether that’s equipment servicing or upgrades, access to our 24/7 award-winning customer support team, or project management and consulting services, our teams at Bell and Howell are ready to help.

Feel free to click on over and browse more of our service solutions here, or reach out with your questions or project details through our contact page.

1. Descriptive Analytics – “What Happened?”

Descriptive Analytics is perhaps the simplest form of analytics, but its importance cannot be overstated. The objective of descriptive analytics is to answer the question, “what happened?”. This question is answered by looking at the data and analyzing past events, typically over time, and then summarizing the events using basic statistics and visualization.

2. Diagnostic Analytics – “Why Did it Happen?”

Diagnostic Analytics takes one step further, answering, “why did it happen?”. This second level of analytics sophistication measures historical data against other data. This measurement helps identify anomalies, discover patterns, determine correlations and causal relationships, and helps uncover hidden stories in the data. Diagnostic Analytics offers limited actionable insights as it only looks to understand causal relationships.

3. Predictive Analytics – “What is Likely to Happen?”

Next, we pivot from looking backward to using data to try and determining what is likely to happen in the future. By laying down a foundation of the first two analytical steps, we can accurately determine the probability of a specific future event. We use this advanced level of analytics define and automate preventative maintenance checkups on production equipment. Predictive Analytics allows businesses to minimize equipment downtime and keep their equipment running optimally.

4. Prescriptive Analytics – “Which Action to Take?”

Prescriptive Analytics further builds upon the results of the previous three analytical stages. Using data optimization, algorithms, machine learning, and artificial intelligence techniques, we can use data science to determine what has happened to the piece of equipment. It can also help us find the root cause behind the issue, what might happen in the future and the best course of action or strategy. Having a plan in place can help us to prevent the problem in the future potentially.