Northumbrian Water is launching a brand new app that will help its team to ‘see through the eyes of its customers’.
When customers call to report a problem or request an inspection, they will be given the opportunity to download the bespoke “Utileyes” app. This will allow people in the company’s Customer Centre of Excellence to access the caller’s smart phone camera, with their permission, to see what they are looking at.
This will help to reduce the number of visits required to rectify a problem in the company’s network, reducing the time taken to resolve the issue.
Nigel Watson, Group Information Services Director, said: “This is an industry-leading piece of innovation that will ultimately benefit customers by reducing the time and cost of dealing with their enquiry.
“We looked at other apps, which proved the value in taking this idea forward, but decided that developing our own would best suit our needs and those of our customers.
“Utileyes will often remove the need to send a technician to make an initial assessment, as we will be able to visually assess the problem remotely. A crew will then be sent out, armed with the knowledge of what they are facing and need to do.”
Utileyes is available for iOS and Android smart phone users. It can either be downloaded directly from normal app stores or from links sent to customers during their conversations with Northumbrian Water’s advisers.