Wates Living Space delivers property maintenance services for West Lancashire Borough Council, covering responsive repairs, voids, gas work and planned works across more than 6,000 homes. Most of these properties are based in Skelmersdale, with additional housing in local market towns, Ormskirk and Burscough.
Business Need
To support these repairs and maintenance works, Wates needed a reliable supply chain partner who could provide a materials managed service close to the Council’s housing stock.
With around 75% of the council’s homes located in Skelmersdale, Wates wanted a local, cost-effective solution that would reduce operative travel time, cut carbon emissions and increase daily productivity.
Our Solution: A Local, Self Sufficient Materials Store
Travis Perkins Managed Services delivered a bespoke solution by installing a fully self-sufficient, unmanned materials store in close proximity to the West Lancashire Borough Council’s housing portfolio.
This 40-foot TPgo SelfServe container securely stores more than 3,000 essential repairs products and generates its own green energy using both photovoltaic panels and a wind turbine. It’s the first unmanned materials store of its kind to operate completely off-grid.
Designed For Convenience And Efficiency
The TPgo SelfServe store is ideal for both congested urban environments and rural areas where our traditional branches may be several miles away. By placing the store exactly where operatives need it, Wates can access materials faster and complete more jobs each day.
Secure, Smart And Always On
- Operatives access the container using a secure fob system linked to their job details.
- CCTV operates throughout each visit to ensure safety and security.
- UHF RFID technology tracks all materials automatically, removing the need for manual screening.
- Once the operative leaves, the store conducts a full stock check and automatically triggers replenishment for Travis Perkins to fulfil.
This ensures materials are always available and stock is continually refreshed without any administrative burden on Wates.
Results
- 15% increase in first time fix rates
- 0.5 extra jobs completed per operative, per day
- Better visibility of stock through an online portal
- Faster emergency response, thanks to 24/7 access 365 days a year
One example highlights the impact clearly, when a disabled resident reported a broken shower on Saturday, an operative accessed the TPgo SelfServe store, collected a replacement electric shower and completed the repair within two hours.
This level of availability has reduced downtime, increased productivity, boosted staff morale, and removed the need for operatives to travel to traditional merchants and wait in queues.
Customer Feedback
“Since August 2020 our first time fix rates have increased by a massive 15%, as well as jobs per day increasing by 0.5.
Operatives can access the store 24/7, which means emergency repairs are completed faster and with less downtime. The visibility of stock movements has also helped us refine our stock profile to meet demand.
There has been positive feedback from operatives, and we have seen an increase in staff morale.”
Neil Withers, Contract Manager for Wates Living Space
Looking to cut carbon while increasing productivity? Get in touch to speak to us about our TPgo SelfServe solutions and how they can benefit your organisation.
