Tyre management added to “New Evolution” 1link Service Network platform

Comprehensive fleet tyre management processes have been added to the recently announced “New Evolution” version of epyx’s 1link Service Network.

The move is the latest step in the redevelopment of the service, maintenance and repair (SMR) platform, used by operators totalling almost five million cars, vans and trucks.

James Thurtle, vice president, UK and international product management at epyx, said: “’The New Evolution’ of 1link Service Network is being piloted by a number of major fleets and we are enhancing it with new features all the time but these tyre management processes represent a significant step forward for the platform.

“Tyres are, in many cases, the biggest SMR expense for vehicle operators, and the core approach taken in 1link Service Network has been evolved over decades to ensure that tyre buying and fitting is cost-effective, efficient and safe.

“The main improvements in the tyre process focus on improved useability. For example, more information is presented with the use of ‘side peeks’ that remove the need for users to switch between screens to find the information that they need.”

1link Service Network was launched 21 years ago and is today used to process almost 20,000 company car, van and truck SMR job sheets every day by fleets working with more than 8,500 suppliers.

The new version of the platform has introduced a cloud-based, event-driven architecture, bringing higher levels of stability, scalability and capacity. Also, a new underlying dataset has allowed epyx to deliver a series of innovations, including a refreshed user interface, a new jobsheet journey and a refreshed driver booking process, with work continuing on improved rules management and incident management capabilities.

James said: “The intention is to roll out the redeveloped 1link Service Network across more of our users over the course of the year as we add further features and enhancements.

“It is not an easy task and has been likened internally to fixing a plane while flying 30,000 feet in the air. It’s a question of keeping SMR processing for our customers fully operational while rebuilding the platform. We are being considered in our approach to ensure they continue to receive a high quality of service.

“This is, we believe, the most widely used specialist platform in the fleet sector, so stability is crucial. We’re pleased to say that the new version has proven very solid so far while feedback from initial users has been overwhelmingly positive.”