See www.computing.co.uk/awards for more on the Computing Awards for Excellence 2006.
Caerphilly County Borough Council
Caerphilly County Borough Council has revolutionised the efficiency of highway maintenance with the introduction of a mobile data system.
Working with supplier APD Communications, Caerphilly has installed mobile computers in maintenance vehicles, linked to its offices via GPS satellite tracking and mobile phones. Work can be tracked and prioritised quickly and simply, without paperwork. Data is sent back to the offices in real time, and satellite tracking means council staff can quickly dispatch the nearest unit to a job.
The system has reduced the average number of days taken to complete repairs from 28 to 18, resulting in an estimated £500,000 annual reduction in claim costs.
In addition, a 25 per cent increase in efficiency is delivering cost savings of nearly £500 a day, plus time savings of more than 8,000 hours annually. The system is also improving compliance with the Traffic Management Act, increasing the level of repairs completed on time from 70 per cent to 95 per cent.
Department for Communities and Local Government
Launched at the beginning of 2006, the Local Directgov system gives citizens a single, easy-to-use web gateway to local authority information, regardless of where they are or their knowledge of government. All 388 English local authorities have signed up to the system.
The technology was developed by System Associates, which also hosts the system. Local authorities upload information automatically from content management systems. The system validates links regularly and informs authorities if any are broken. Users access the database via a straightforward web interface that ascertains their location, lets them search for services and directs them to the relevant authority sites.
Since launching and marketing Local Directgov, the department has seen a significant increase in the use of online local authority services. As a result, the organisation plans to replicate the leadership and communications strategy that made the project so successful for future Transformational Government programmes.
Forensic Science Service
When pursuing violent criminals, time is of the essence. Forensic analysis is inherently time-consuming, but an innovative mobile laboratory developed by the Forensic Science Service in partnership with BT is helping police solve crimes more quickly.
The Forensic Response Vehicle gives police forces real-time, on-site forensic investigation facilities at the crime scene, rather than having to transport evidence back to the lab. Police can now confirm a DNA match within eight hours, compared with 24 previously. During a pilot in 2005, police arrested one suspect within 40 minutes of DNA analysis.
Each network-enabled van is linked to the National DNA Database, and samples can be analysed on-board using world-first miniaturised sampling and analysis technology.
Footprint and fingerprint data can also be analysed and compared against remote databases, while an electronic forensics facility enables scientists to access potential evidence stored in mobile phones and computers.
Liverpool Direct
This year sees the completion of a five-year project to transform revenue collection and benefits payment systems at Liverpool City Council, which in 2000 had one of the worst records in the UK.
Since 2001, Liverpool Direct Limited (LDL), a joint venture between the council and BT, has been implementing a huge IT and business process re-engineering programme that has turned the council around.
The programme involved consolidating 132 council offices into one contact centre and 11 one-stop shops across Liverpool, as well as adopting a Comino document imaging, management and workflow solution across the organisation.
As well as delivering more efficient services to the public, the council has saved more than £100m through office rationalisation alone, improved rate and tax collection rates dramatically, wiped out a 50,000-case backload, and cut the average time taken to validate a benefits claim from 133 to 33 days.
London Grid for Learning
The London Grid for Learning (LGfL) has solved the problem of giving schools a single, secure, authenticated method of accessing disparate educational content from other institutions and commercial providers.
It has developed a solution based on the open source secure authentication system, Shibboleth.
LGfL’s Shibboleth solution allows students and teachers to benefit from the huge investments made in educational technology and networking by opening up access to a wealth of content.
Previously, the difficulty of managing secure authentication with multiple servers and providers was a serious obstacle to the use of online learning.
Now, a user can access any content, irrespective of what and where it may be, using a single user name and password.
At a cost of less than 20 pence per user, the system has opened up fast, easy and secure access to content for all of London’s schools. The project is now set to be extended nationwide.
The Royal Hospitals
Belfast’s four Royal Hospitals are realising the benefits of wireless technology thanks to the implementation of innovative WiFi technology infrastructure from Telindus.
The system has transformed hospital life for patients and staff. WiFi tags allow people and assets to be located in real time, and feature an emergency button that sends out a distress call with location details.
This means certain patients can move freely around the hospital where previously they would have been confined to their beds.
Doctors post prescriptions to the system at the patient’s bedside via a tablet PC, speeding up the care process. Other hospital staff can access central systems via wireless PDAs. Lightweight voice communication badges allow staff to communicate wirelessly across each site via IP telephony.
The Royal Hospitals is the first trust to introduce a wireless project of this scale, and it has proved that doing so can save money and time while also improving levels of care.
See www.computing.co.uk/awards for more.
Further reading:
Computing Awards 2006 - the shortlist is announced
Industry Awards shortlists - who will be your suppliers of the year?
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