Vos Voco is exhibiting at Smart Manufacturing Week 2025. We’re concentrating on benefits for Purchasing Managers, Quality Managers, and owners of Metal Fabrication businesses.
Drop in for a chat if known to us, or introduce yourself. We’re at the top of the Innovation Alley, on stand 5/IA30.
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Metal Fabricators | Purchasing Managers | Quality Managers
Derek discusses how some of the concepts of the 4th industrial revolution can be applied to industrial businesses of all size, now, and with low risk.
Systems – are you sorted?
When I first speak to a potential customer, often the first response is – “we have systems thanks, we’re well covered.”
They’re sort of correct of course. Depending on the size they’ll at least have an accounting system. If they are a specialist business, such as field service, they’ll have a suitable system to match resources to customer requirements, etc. In warehousing and distribution, they’ll have a warehouse management system (WMS) and a customer relationship management (CRM) system, etc. Everywhere, systems designed and implemented by clever people, creating a lot of data.
Yet the 4th industrial revolution promises a step change in productivity and quality akin to the arrival of steam (1st), mass production and electricity (2nd), and IT and robotics (3rd). It will affect society as a whole, not just manufacturing. Clearly staying the same won’t deliver this.
Alongside the extension of robotics and the likes of nano technology, data will be at the heart of each step forward. Machines connected to the internet will produce vast quantities of data, while tools such as Artificial Intelligence will sift it, allowing insights that will take operations to a new level.
The 4th industrial revolution is underway, and within the business population there are innovators and early adopters and those that follow. It’s worth thinking about as we go into 2022.
Data – two types
The use of data will be advanced in two areas. The first will be extending the aggregation of data (including more cross-company data) to provide insights that allow opportunities to be spotted. The second area will be connecting companies for “precise” data exchange. This is data to fulfil specific orders, collaboration on specific quality issues, etc.
New tech such as “Internet of Things”, for example the connection of a machine to a network, could advance both areas – producing general data that could be used to improve productivity, or to signal that a new tool is now required.
Connectivity
Connectivity for sharing data is fundamental to the 4th industrial revolution. However to meet “revolution” criteria, companies of all size will be impacted.
Smaller companies can already extract data from machines using low cost adapters although many will not know it. However connectivity between companies still looks like a “large company project”.
Why? Because connecting companies for data exchange is still not cheap and easy, restricting it to volume trading relationships. This is where Vos Voco can help – particularly for exchange of “precise” data.
This precise data can have an immediate impact on businesses of all size. For smaller companies it can mean providing new services, or simply doing more with the same labour. Think providing replenishment services or digitising paper based processes. For larger companies, it is now possible to engage all suppliers or customers – not just the volume trading partners.
Imagine a supplier/customer meeting to talk about quality improvements. Discussions without specific shipment/delivery information results in vague commitments “to look into it”.
The future is here and accessible
Companies of all size have the same problem of implementing new systems. All are short of cash for investment and concerned about the risk and time needed to update.
However not all of the 4th industrial revolution will be delivered by expensive robots and artificial intelligence. There are already low cost adapters /equipment to gather and process data that can be applied to existing systems. For collection and exchange of operational “precise” data, our own system allows connectivity between companies at nominal cost, working alongside existing systems.
Simple changes that cut down on manual work and helps get things “right-first-time” more often.
Next Steps
Personally, I don’t blame managers for being reluctant to update their systems. A trade show of any industry will be full of IT suppliers promising transformation. However for anyone who has been through a system change, they are wary of cost blow-outs and service disruptions during implementation. The good news is that low cost tech that works beside existing systems will deliver a large percentage of the 4th industrial revolution.
For further information, don’t hesitate to call for a chat on 01295 330808.
Derek Silby
CEO and Founder, Vos Voco
When the auditors call to say they are coming to review the quality system – it often leads to quite a few late nights and weekends to tidy up the data. But not for Hook Norton Brewery and their SALSA quality audit.
SALSA (Safe and Local Supplier Approval) is a quality standard for the UK food and beverage industry – orientated towards SME producers. Having SALSA accreditation provides customers with reassurance of manufacturing excellence and ingredient traceability from purchase – into products – through to distribution. SALSA is often required to trade with larger customers such as pub chains and supermarkets. SALSA covers the whole range of UK food and beverages: beer, cider, spirits, juice, dairy, cheese, ready meals, etc.
Our work with Hook Norton Brewery
We have been working with the Hook Norton brewery for a couple of years, with Andy Thomas recently providing a video testimonial about using Vos Voco for quality data collection, reporting and retrieval.
As with all customers, our engagement with Andy started with a walk through the operation. Observing the workplace and chatting with the team quickly helps us to understand the team’s needs and working environment. We look at the quality manual and forms in use.
The next step is to design a series of data collection tasks with an emphasis on making it quick and easy for the staff to collect data in real time – preferably in seconds. This is very important to ensure the team are onboard to adopt the solution.
We’ll then propose a solution alongside a fixed price quotation and implementation plan. Importantly, we’ll also provide reports in our website that allow the quality system to be managed and for the data to be retrieved – whether for internal use or when the auditors are on site.
In the video testimonial Andy mentions the workflows, which make up the solution, and how they can be easily modified or added to as needs change. We know things evolve, and so the Vos Voco App has been designed to evolve with you.
Concerned about implementing a quality system?
One of the concerns of implementing a quality system is the overhead to manage it. This can be true if data is not kept up to date and in good order. By allowing operators to collect data in seconds, in real time, and providing the means of spotting when things are not correct, this overhead is kept to a minimum. Another time saver is avoiding those late nights and weekends to prepare for an audit – or to follow up on non-conformances afterwards.
Our motivation is to help food and beverage operations to get the most from their SALSA (or other) quality system, without the time and stress of managing a lot of paper. Or put simply, improve on form-based systems that “do not quite fit” their operation.
Hooky’s SALSA auditor was pleased with the data available and Andy’s grip on it.
Many thanks Andy for the feedback, much appreciated. The testimonial can be viewed here.
David Porter, of Edwin Holden’s Bottling, is also using Vos Voco to support their SALSA quality system. He says “the search for records in seconds is a large advantage over our previous paper intensive quality system.”
We invite you to call us about your quality system
We have built in functionality to support many different requirements, such as requiring authorisations or follow up tasks. Furthermore, our pricing is based on a flat-fee per company, so it is possible to add other time saving tasks – such as customer replenishments, asset management, vehicle checks, timesheets, etc. as we go forward. Uniquely, customers and suppliers using Vos Voco can interact for quality and replenishment. No Vos Voco solution requires a major investment – we’re here to help businesses of every size benefit from digitising processes.
Get in touch
If you’d like to find out how we may be able to help, you can book a free consultation.
Alternatively, call us on 01295 330808 or email info@vosvoco.com
Derek Silby
CEO and Founder, Vos Voco
Field Service Expo and Symposium
I’m not long back from the Field Service Expo and Symposium hosted by Field Service News. Held at the Edgbaston Cricket Ground, it was a good opportunity to chuckle over all the English wickets I’ve seen fall over the years.
The Expo and Symposium was aimed at companies providing mechanical and electrical repairs and servicing to businesses.
The thrust of the Symposium was strategic. How will the industry look in five years? What will customers want? How can new technology and thinking be applied to add value to their customer’s business?
UK industrial businesses are possibly in the most significant period of change for a generation. Covid-19 put many businesses on pause while others saw demand explode. However, as the economy returns to growth, some big themes are coming to the fore.
Labour Shortages: Brexit has brought to a head our reliance on imported skilled labour, and that we have not been training young people in the vast number of skilled areas the economy needs.
Inflation: Interest rates must rise?
Net Zero: Like it or not, we need to adapt to life without fossil fuels sooner than we thought.
Onshoring: As Asian labour and shipping rates increase, more manufacturing will be done in the UK – made even more economical by new additive technology (3D printing).
The 4th Industrial Revolution: Connectivity between machines and companies, as well as getting some value out of vast data pools will provide a step change in productivity and quality.
Top Takeaway
Possibly my greatest takeaway from the Field Service News symposium was to refocus on creating value. As we engage with a new or existing customer, how can Vos Voco help add value to their customer’s business? Suppose they can help their customers reduce admin, improve quality and productivity through connectivity, meet challenges such as increasing recycling and reducing carbon. In that case, they, in turn, will be valued as a supplier. Added value can be tied to winning and retaining business along with healthier rates, helping with longer-term viability.
Our mission statement
“Vos Voco will make a difference to local businesses and communities through supporting business viability, development of young people, and supporting community-led organisations.”
Where there is change, there is opportunity. Personally, I think the next ten years will be an exciting time as we transition to a new era. We’ll be here to help companies along that journey.
Get in touch
If you’d like to find out how we may be able to help, you can book a free consultation.
Alternatively, call us on 01295 330808 or email info@vosvoco.com
Derek Silby
CEO and Founder, Vos Voco
Continuous Improvement
When I moved to Unipart as an operations manager responsible for picking and packing panel for distribution to Rover car dealerships and repair body shops, I was a bit alarmed to see that my target key performance indicators were not set for the year – they increased every quarter. This was my first introduction to “continuous improvement”.
Most managers of manufacturing, distribution and even building jobs understand there is room for improvement in their operation. For example, obvious indicators are errors, issues reported by customers, having to bring in a team on Saturday to work on something that is overlooked, and staff pointing out supplier problems they have to put right.
Less obvious are those opportunities to deploy resources more cannily so there is less hanging about.
The Challenge
Whether the opportunities are obvious or less obvious, taking steps to turn these into positive results can be challenging.
The challenge is to find time within the working day to work on identifying actions to move the operation forward. However, there is real “gold” to be found with improvements usually leading to both lower costs and happier customers; and it is worth blocking some time in your diary to do just that.
Many small business manufacturers have sophisticated machines and planning systems, however they often don’t have job tracking software to track jobs as they flow through the operation. Information on how long each process step is taking, quantities of work in progress, and material levels can provide valuable insights allowing resources to be deployed more efficiently, ensuring priority jobs are managed through. Also at a basic level, managers can report with confidence to both senior managers and customers.
This is where Vos Voco can help
Our system uses standard android/apple devices which cost about £100 each. Data is retrieved from a PC through our website. Better still, the system is very configurable, so quite quickly a “bespoke looking” system can be in-place and in-use.
Working with our customer, we break the operation into elements. QR codes are attached to either jobs or work stations, which when scanned, allows the operative to capture the data needed in a few seconds. Recognising that connectivity can be poor; our system can be used offline. The Vos Voco system is quick and easy for operators to use, and processes spanning different teams/companies are made as frictionless as possible. Unlike most job management software, Vos Voco can be applied to other challenges around the site – all with a single licence.
Cost, time and expertise can be barriers to getting started. Vos Voco takes these problems on directly. Time leads to higher implementation costs. We think the best way of keeping costs low while getting up and running quickly, is to come in, walk through the problem with you and implement the solution. Later you can take over further implementations and changes. Our licence fee is based on company size – so customers can solve further problems (such as collecting quality data) without any incremental monthly charge. For micro customers, the rate is £50 per month.
As a possible alternative, Vos Voco is an active partner of the Digital Manufacturing on a Shoestring programme led by Cambridge and Nottingham Universities, which has developed a low-cost job tracking solution. The Shoestring programme and Vos Voco share a common goal – simply to help small manufacturing businesses to use low-cost technology to bring about real improvements in their operation.
Get in touch
If you are keen to move your operation forward by tracking jobs through your operation it would be worth contacting us. Vos Voco can turn your ideas into reality without troubling the finance director, while having a flexible tool you can use repeatedly.
Call us on 01295 330808 or email info@vosvoco.com
Derek Silby
CEO and Founder, Vos Voco
Today is Global Recycling Day. Each year the Earth yields billions of tonnes of natural resources which is clearly not sustainable.
The global population is currently 7.8 billion and set to increase by another quarter by 2050. Consumerism and the additional people will increase demand on our Earth’s resources.
One thing we can and must do is increase recycling. Current recycling rates are woeful if use of all natural resources is considered.
There are financial and logistical difficulties to overcome if we are to increase business-based waste recycling.
If you have an objective to increase recycling of business waste, Vos Voco can solve the problem of having accurate data on knowing which pick up locations need collecting. Accurate demand data will allow transport to be planned as efficiently as possible, bringing down costs, reducing carbon, and thus making more recycling viable.
Whether there are 100, 1000 or 10000 potential pick up locations, Vos Voco can help.
Are there other problems holding back business-based waste recycling?
The current edition of The Manufacturer forecasts significant changes for the industry in 2021 under the headings of – Lean, Green and Seen.
Lean, already embedded within UK manufacturing, will be called on to work through questions of what companies do and their methods. Manufacturers will focus on carbon emissions and changes needed on the march towards net-zero (Green). While Seen refers to how the sector is perceived by the public and government.
In the forward Jonny Williamson, Editorial Director, notes that in nearly all cases difficult questions have revealed areas for improvement. Particularly around how information is gathered, shared, updated, signed off and stored. He goes on to say how the last twelve months have exposed paper based manual processes leading many to explore better, more efficient and more collaborative methods.
These observations chime with Vos Voco’s purpose. To provide flexible low cost targeted solutions that existing systems don’t support.
Moving forward will require a number of actions with varying investments needed, however we are confident Vos Voco will be part of the solution for most SME manufacturers and their suppliers.
Vos Voco can squarely address paper based data collection and manual processes. For example, employees on the shop floor find collecting quality data quick and easy using workflows tailored for them. Efficiencies associated with vending machines can be applied to any 2-bin system or storage cupboard using our app that connects suppliers with their customers. And what makes us different – our customers have no trouble communicating up and down the supply chain – opening up new opportunities to collaborate on quality, productivity and Green initiatives.
The march forward needs to be across the whole industry. By design our service is deployable within days making it affordable and relevant to all SME manufacturers and their suppliers.
As a leader it can be difficulty and time consuming to assess options. Our solution, approach and pricing recognises this – provide us with a little time to tell us about your thoughts and needs and we’ll honestly tell you if and how we can help – often seeing a working pilot or the solution before paying anything.
Get in touch with Derek today for an initial chat. We cover all parts of the UK.
I recently joined BNI – “Business Network International”. I hadn’t heard of BNI until I started networking after founding Vos Voco – however there is a chapter near you, wherever you are in the world. One area BNI has helped is to reset goals. As a result I am targeting one or two hours of professional learning each week, usually facilitated by the BNI University. Where it might be helpful; I’ll post a top “takeaway”.
This week I attended a webinar titled “Empowering Leaders to Tackle Today’s Biggest Business Challenges” delivered by Agnesia Agrella of Symetize. A key point relating to Change stood out.
As a subject “Change” has more than it’s share of training courses and column inches in books. Probably as most of us aren’t very good at it.
One simple point emerged from Agnesia’s content that managers can latch onto and is scalable – the need to tread “the new path” long enough for “the old path” to “become disused”. It also brought to mind best practices observed over the years.
It’s no secret that people generally gravitate to what they’ve always done. It takes management effort to communicate new ways of working, resolve issues, and bring people back into line when the old path is used.
What’s in it for managers? Presumably a change is only introduced due to a business need – a new customer, a productivity/quality improvement, or in response to the market. If the change was deemed important to introduce, why not see it through?
The best managers and businesses I’ve seen do the following for a number of weeks/months after introducing change.
1. Measure. Have sufficient measures and reporting in place to know the new process is being sustained.
2. Follow-up. Without follow-up staff will naturally think the change can’t be that important. Simply ask questions. Put it on the agenda.
3. Go and See. Walk the area. It is much easier and quicker to find out if the new path is being followed with your own eyes. This will naturally reinforce the change and allow issues to emerge so they can be overcome. A previous manager had a mantra – “Don’t tell me, show me”.
4. Deal with Blockers. Vocal people are to be welcomed as they expose issues that need addressing. However blockers need to be challenged and dealt with as necessary for overall team morale.
No doubt the above sounds simple and straightforward however one reason companies fail to sustain change is lack of planning. Put the change on the management and team meeting agendas. Allow time for it – don’t allow it to be squeezed into AOB. And diary the time to walk the area – of time spent – this will have the biggest payback.
Do this a few times and the business culture will change with benefits achieved and brought forward.
A simple takeaway for me – ensure the new path is followed long enough for the old path to be disused.
As featured in the April 2020 version of the Brewers Journal UK. Page 27-28.
We have just returned from SIBA’s BeerX in Liverpool. The tradeshow for independent brewers. We were promoting our affordable Quality and Revenue solutions for the brewing industry, however they apply to businesses across the whole Food and Drink sector. Particularly those who are joining accreditation schemes such as SALSA (Safe and Local Supplier Approval) and/or have multi-site operations.
Technology will continue to allow productivity to grow, enable new services, and help reach customers. However most businesses will have gaps in the systems they use leading to manual processes directly impacting costs, increasing admin time required from founders/directors, and missed opportunities to increase sales.
Vos Voco has developed a new approach that addresses these problems in areas where manual processes are in use, providing an affordable, compatible solution for most businesses.
Quality control has always been important, however the ability to demonstrate compliance has become a business necessity. Whether a quality system has been approved by SIBA, SALSA, etc., the norm is to collect data using clipboards, whiteboards and Excel. Data retrieval is slow, and it is often difficult to know the quality system is being followed by staff.
Our solution is to replace the paper gathering processes with collection using our app. Our approach allows nearly all processes to be replaced in days not months. The ability to respond quickly keeps costs low, meaning the solution is affordable by even very small businesses. Equally the modular approach allows it to be deployed in large businesses.
Vos Voco’s revenue solution is aimed at businesses taking orders over the phone. Our objective is to provide an affordable solution to brewers and industry consumable suppliers to improve ordering productivity and to allow customers to request restocking at a time when it suits them. This is ideally suited to smaller breweries who supply freehouses, potentially increasing sales by being easier to trade with. In company owned operations, information such as stock-outs can be gathered to improve availability and hence sales.
Vos Voco was developed by operators. We understand that a solution will only be successful and deliver benefits if it is easy to use and can be widely deployed. Our design approach ensures users can complete the required steps in 10-30 seconds depending on the use; meaning it doesn’t slowdown the operation. For the revenue solution, customers can use Vos Voco for their own needs and other suppliers, avoiding “app” and “log-on” fatigue which restricts take up of bespoke company solutions.
Our standard engagement approach allows the solution to be seen working before committing. We can do this due to the solution being ready to implement (while being adaptable to specific needs) alongside our confidence in clear benefits outweighing costs.
Whether interested in our Quality or Revenue solution; or have a need for managing field sales, tracking assets, batch tracking or audits, please get in contact for an initial friendly chat.
Affordable Digital Quality Solutions
Make your system paperless.
- Real time data collection
- Real time visibility
- Lower risk of quality issues
- Increased productivity
- Collaborate with suppliers/customers to improve quality
- Implement in days not months
Affordable Digital Revenue Solutions
Make it easy for your customers to restock or increase productivity of internal ordering.
- Increased sales
- Reduced administration
- Use standalone or integrate
- Customer friendly
- Reusable by customers
- Implement in days not months
At Vos Voco, our mission is to help everyday businesses improve their quality, productivity and profitability. Businesses of all sizes face similar pressures: the need to improve productivity and service(s) while having little time and financial resources to do so.
We can meet these challenges by providing targeted, modular, solutions that can be deployed in just a few days. Being fast to deploy means we can keep costs down. This makes Vos Voco applicable to all organisations, from small businesses on industrial estates through to multinationals. This also means that Vos Voco can help businesses bid for new work which their current systems do not support. Let me tell you how.
Vos Voco’s core service is to collect data in the field in a structured way and to share it instantly with people or companies who need it – including two way text communication (like social media).
Say for example, a haulage firm wants to bid for new work, but for it to qualify it must be able to collect specific data at the point of delivery or pick up, and transmit that data back to their customer. After a single session with Vos Voco, we can provide a costed solution and prototype allowing them to do just that. They can now qualify for the bid. If won, implementation can follow in a few days. We can also work with your partners to make sure data flows between companies with ease.
To give another example: As a one-off exercise, you need data to be collected in the field concerning assets or delivery points. Because a Vos Voco workflow can be deployed very quickly, we can get a workflow solution put in place within a few days, avoiding the need to collect data on paper with manual data entry afterwards. Quick. Cost-effective. Simple.
Our method is to help our customers define their business requirements using process mapping. We then design and configure a workflow ready for review and deployment. As a true turn-key solution, we provide ongoing support, updating, retiring, or creating new workflows as required.
At Vos Voco, we enable our customers to say, “we can do that now”.
Derek Silby. Founder/CEO.
All of this in one easy-to-use app!
Call us on 01295 330808 or complete the form below for a free consultation.