United Utilities is using Podfather logistics software to manage the delivery of biosolids to thousands of farms across the north-west.
Using Podfather, United Utilities can effectively plan the delivery of more than half a million tonnes a year and maintain accurate records for audit purposes. A mobile app also gives drivers access to site specific risk assessments and permits, and allows them to record photographic evidence of deliveries.
United Utilities is responsible for water and wastewater services in the north-west of England. The company owns 166 supply reservoirs, providing fresh water across the whole of Cumbria, Greater Manchester, Lancashire and Merseyside as well as parts of Cheshire and Derbyshire. The company manages 78,000 kilometres of wastewater pipes, taking sewage from 7.3 million people to be processed at one of 569 treatment plants. The resulting sludge is then transported to Bioresources treatment facilities which use digestion technologies to produce either biogas or biosolids. United Utilities biosolids are 99.999 percent free of pathogens making them safe to be recycled as fertilizer and soil conditioner.
“Processing of wastewater is a significant challenge for the water industry as there is literally a constant supply. So being able to recycle sludge into valuable products for the agriculture sector is a win win,” commented Chloe Kelly, Bioresources Production Planner at United Utilities. “However, the processes we have to go through to get the processed biosolids safely and efficiently onto the fields is complex and subject to the strictest controls. Using Podfather we have total visibility of the delivery operation and we can capture the data we need to prove compliance with industry and environmental standards and regulations.”
During the time United Utilities has been using Podfather fleet planning and electronic proof of delivery software its biosolid delivery operation has increased by nearly 300 percent. “When we first started using Podfather we had just 8 vehicles,” Kelly continued. “We now operate a fleet of more than 30, delivering to more than a thousand famers, covering over 17,000 hectares of land. Without Podfather the management of this operation simply wouldn’t be possible without significant additional back-office resource.
“Using Podfather we can efficiently plan and allocate loads, we can automatically produce and share tickets with our compliance team, and we can report on deliveries made, complete with date, time and location stamped photographs. The Podfather app also means we can share digital risk assessments and permits, and drivers can access detailed site information, such as the location of overhead power lines, the likelihood of livestock being present or the farmer’s mobile number. All of this means we can concentrate on what we do best – creating and delivering high quality fertilizer from our plants to our farmers’ plants!”
