Automated data collection, more specifically Enhanced Mobile Document Imaging (eMDI), is the new robust technology that is revolutionising the mobile workforce.
eMDI provides mobile workers with a fast and reliable way to convert full page paper documents into electronic files using mobile computers. Through a simple point and capture motion, eMDI enables mobile workers to easily capture and store documents while on the road.
Andrew Fosbrook, Group Managing Director of ProScan, sole distributors for Intermec Technologies in southern Africa, throws more light on eMDI technology, and how it can benefit enterprises, particularly with the new RICA legislation for cellphone providers.
With the introduction of new legislation intended to control cellphone usage, The Regulation of Interception of Communications and Provision of Communication-Related Information Act (RICA) passed last year, requires cellphone providers to register new and existing prepaid customers.
Cellphone providers are required to collect the prepaid subscribers' ID numbers and provide proof of home address.
Service providers are grappling with the ramifications of the new law, with many stating that it is practically impossible to obtain the names, address and ID numbers of all prepaid customers, estimated to be the task of registering 33 million subscribers in 12 months.
It is estimated that to comply with the 12-month RICA requirements, service providers would need to register 8 000 subscribers an hour. To meet these elusive targets, some providers intend to establish intercept centres, another plans to encourage staff at distribution channels to become registration officers, and another has launched a prepaid subscription system. However, the majority are embarking on education campaigns to educate the millions of existing prepaid customers about the RICA legislation and its requirements.
eMDI set to play role in RICA
As always, technology will play its part in cellphone providers actually pulling off this logistical feat.
Telecommunications providers who fall under the RICA legislation have the potential to utilise their mobile workforce, equipping them with the latest in in-field mobile technology to capture data easily and update customer information like proof of address and ID numbers in real-time.
Intermec's handheld mobile computers currently service a spectrum of industries, including consumer, retail, industrial, transport and logistics. Intermec's recent introduction of eDMI technology allows employees in the field to enter and receive information directly from the Intermec handheld computers, and transmit document images electronically to the local head office via cellular connection, reducing the time it takes to complete a job and enjoying a more accurate and simplified data collection and management process.
By eliminating paper-based one-way communication, the data collected with the Intermec mobile computers and 3G Wireless technology can easily be shared among different applications and computer systems, with no need for clerical data entry. Minimising the manual process is not only going to lead to labour savings, but is key to enhancing employee productivity.
For service providers to be compliant with the RICA legislation, it is critical that the data is not only timely, but also accurate. Unfortunately, good employees are not solely sufficient to prevent errors.
Mistakes are human and when they happen, they cost time and money. Workforce automation, such as the deployment of eDMI, makes it a cost-effective and error-free way to verify and collect information quickly.
Today's telecommunication service providers are facing even greater pressure to improve services, and more recently, gather and report customers' personal registration details to RICA. On one hand, they are being asked to provide this data collection service, while on the other, required to keep costs to a minimum and deliver within tight timeframes. In response, these companies need to utilise a mobile workforce with eMDI capabilities minimising the manual process, enhancing productivity, ensuring accuracy and ultimately meeting the RICA standards and requirements.
Resources:
1. Eliminating Paperwork Is More Than Just Efficient, Intermec white paper
2. Business Report, Thabiso Mochiko 'Cellphone Legislation'
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