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Appy days as online shopping joins the industrial age

Home Engineering Electrical Appy days as online shopping joins the industrial age

ONLINE retail shopping has seen exponential growth globally, further propelled by the COVID-19 pandemic and the accompanying lockdowns and health and safety protocols.

But according to David Stanford, Atlas Copco Power Technique Business Line Manager, Portable Products, online shopping is not the exclusive domain of retail. “It also plays an integral role in the industrial landscape.”

He said Atlas Copco Shop Online, an ecommerce platform, and Parts Online, an interactive spare parts catalogue system, are two user friendly platforms that offer customers as well as distributors all the advantages of online shopping. Going hand in hand with these platforms is Atlas Copco Power Connect.

Stanford explained that with a single scan of the QR code, which appears on all Atlas Copco products, customers can obtain machine information, link directly to spare parts catalogues on Parts Online to choose their products and then transfer their selected items to Shop Online and place their order, 24/7.

The QR code, located in the data plate on all Atlas Copco mobile machines, provides information on machine components, warranty, manufacturing date, etc. “Customers are even able to watch instruction and service videos of their machine such as how to start up, perform daily maintenance, troubleshoot, etc. and they can also share their machine information on this online portal,” Stanford said.

Available on all smart devices, Power Connect provides a direct link to Atlas Copco’s Parts Online. Once customers have found the required spare parts and/or consumables for their Atlas Copco equipment on the up-to-date spare parts catalogue system, they simply transfer them to Shop Online to place their order.

Additional features such as pricing and availability checks, order tracking, delivery tracing and printing of picking lists add further value to Atlas Copco’s Shop Online platform.

Taking it a step further, customers are able to remotely manage their Atlas Copco machine fleet, irrespective of size, with FleetLink. “By having the latest fleet information at hand, customers can optimise their fleet usage and reduce maintenance cost, ultimately saving both time and money.”

The FleetLink app which can be downloaded from the Google Play and Apple Stores, provides access to information from anywhere, any time, keeping customers connected to job-sites, machines and teams. “This intelligent telematics system is all about smart fleet management,” Stanford said.

Available as an option on new products or as a retrofit kit, FleetLink features Geofencing for complete control of machines as well as performance indicators or service notifications to assist customers with proactive planning of their maintenance and enable rapid response in the event of a breakdown.

A customisable dashboard provides an easy view of vital information such as machine running status, running hours, fuel consumption, engine load, vessel pressure, air flow or power load, and service status.

“What is more, customers can keep an eye on their operational expenses by setting up daily or weekly automatic reports that contain this information,” said Stanford. A remote Function Lockout which allows customers to remotely switch off their machine in undesired periods is also available on this state-of-the-art digital monitoring tool.

The company has also introduced Light The Power, a power and light calculator app that assists customers with generator and light tower sizing, cable sizing, modular power plants set and other solutions.

“The app will find the best Atlas Copco generator according to a customer’s application conditions and will also share information on noise emissions of all Atlas Copco mobile generators.

“Using our efficient Power Management System (PMS), customers are able to simulate a modular power plant according to their needs. If customers want to know how many cables they require, including length and size, or how many light towers they will need for a specific application and in any conditions, the app will calculate this.”

It will also allow users to combine Atlas Copco products. For example, it will accurately calculate how many HiLight E3+ light towers can be connected to a portable generator.

“It is all about keeping our customers connected and making it as convenient as possible for them,” Stanford said.

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