Locally based mechanical and electrical engineering business, G.S Stothers shares a major secret that it feels has helped differentiate its services in a highly competitive industry.
Operating for over 35 years and specialising in smoke ventilation, G.S. Stothers has been an approved installer for Colt smoke control systems for over 3 decades and is the sole distributor in Northern Ireland for Colt International Limited. Well-known for working in both the North and South of Ireland, G.S. Stothers assists in the design, supply, installation, commissioning, and maintenance of all types of smoke and heat ventilation systems.
The business is seen as the “go-to” for works required on historic buildings, having worked on jobs involving The Europa Hotel, Titanic Museum and New Children’s Hospital Dublin.
Operating 24/7 call-out services, G.S. Stothers employs over 20 field engineers across the business who work in the North and South of Ireland as well as the UK mainland. As the business grew, it identified an area where it could excel and differentiate itself from the competition. Logistics and engineer management is often an area of concern for companies offering field services. Managing Director of G.S Stothers, Jonney Stothers shares, “We know that word of mouth spreads fast on the island of Ireland and by offering an exceptional customer experience, we could secure repeat business and high-quality referrals.”
6 years ago, the business was introduced to WorkPal, a field service management software which provides an end-to-end platform to manage field engineers, documentation and provides reporting at the click of a button.
“At the time, we were operating on a mobile solution, however, we were beginning to out-grow this and needed something a bit more reliable and robust. After a demonstration of the WorkPal software, we quickly realised the benefits and found that it was a more streamlined way for our staff to operate,” highlights Jonney. “It gave us a more professional look and feel and helped us to offer customers a service that exceeded expectations.”
WorkPal’s Sales Director, Ian Megahey, says, “WorkPal is designed with the user in mind. We wanted to make everything as straightforward as possible while providing software that is dependable for everyone in the business. G.S. Stothers is a great example of how companies can use software to gain an advantage over their competitors.
“Every contract counts and WorkPal is there to help you not only manage your operations more effectively but win more business along the way. WorkPal can do this in several ways including giving your customers a more enjoyable experience or providing complete transparency through client logins.”
Jonney describes the transition to WorkPal as “seamless, with no downtime at all.”
“Initially we were apprehensive and decided to run our existing mobile app alongside WorkPal for the first 3 months, however after a month, we scrapped the mobile app as WorkPal was much simpler to use and looked more professional. We made the switch with no issues due to the training and prep work provided before going live. Our engineers were keen to make the move once they had seen how feature-rich the system was.”
Having seen the benefit of WorkPal, G.S. Stothers introduced the software to its sister company SR Fire & Security. Both businesses now operate the software across all their operations and have seen the positive impact it has had on customer experience and business growth.
Managing Director of SR Fire, Connor Rodgers, highlights, “The support we receive from WorkPal is excellent. We have always found that any queries or requests are handled promptly and in a professional manner.”
“We would without a doubt recommend WorkPal to other businesses, ” says Jonney. “It has helped to streamline our entire business and provide us with a competitive edge which has helped win new contracts.”
Ian adds, “It’s great to see the WorkPal software helping businesses to operate more effectively and grow their client base. We make it a priority to build relationships with our customers and ensure they are getting the very most out of the system.”
