UK, Vehicle Telematics

“Other solutions were selling a product. We wanted a solution that would expand with us and was full of innovation.” 

NICHOLAS THOMPSON, SUPPLY CHAIN DIRECTOR AT ANTALIS

Antalis uses Samsara to improve safety, foster stronger relationships with drivers and reduce road risk.

• Reduced insurance claims costs by 75% in one year of use

• Lowered harsh driving incidents significantly

• Improved incident response time from 4 hours to minutes

Antalis is one of the UK's leading materials suppliers, supplying more than 14,000 different paper, packaging and visual communication solutions to companies across the UK and Europe. To achieve these goals, the company operates an extensive distribution network of 14 warehouses and near 200 vehicles across the UK alone.

As the paper, packaging and visual communication markets continue to transform in the digital era, so, too has Antalis. A few years ago, the company embarked on a strategic plan to reinvigorate their supply chain, warehouse management system and logistics approach. As part of this effort, Nicholas Thompson, Supply Chain Director at Antalis, decided to examine telematics solutions. 

Their existing system “was not adding any value” and quickly canceled, while the usual solutions on the market didn’t meet their needs. “We were looking for a partner we could do business with: who would get us, get the challenges we’re facing, get our values and the way we work,” explained Nick. “Other solutions were selling a product. We wanted a solution that would expand with us and was full of innovation.” 

After meeting the Samsara team and seeing the product, Nick found his partner. He was most impressed by the dash cams, which offered the most advanced technology at an affordable price. After a seamless and simple install, Antalis shifted effortlessly to Samsara.

Cameras reduce insurance costs

Nick and the Antalis team started to see the benefits of Samsara dash cams from day one. The dash cams instantly captured harsh events, analyzed them and uploaded them to the cloud for transport managers to review. 

Having footage on hand within minutes of an incident transformed Antalis’ incident response and simplified insurance claims. When an accident took place previously, Antalis would need to host an initial meeting with the driver, conduct a written review, contact any third parties and then discuss with an insurer. With Samsara, they receive an alert for an incident and can review the footage instantly. “We can see immediately whether we’re to blame or not to blame,” said Nick. “If we’re not to blame, we can push back on insurers; protecting our drivers and business reputation."

"With dash cams, we’re able to defend so many claims now.” 

As a result, a 4-hour process can now be completed in 15 minutes, saving the managers countless hours. “We can download the footage, review with the driver and send to insurance, all in minutes,” explained Nick. By improving their response time and having video evidence to exonerate their drivers, Antalis has saved a significant sum of money, reducing insurance costs 75% in a year.

Improving relationships with drivers 

Introducing dash cams have also helped strengthen relationships with drivers. Prior to rolling out the cameras, Antalis engaged early on with the Union to explain their goals of using the cameras to defend drivers. Once the Union bought in, they rolled the cameras out to the company. Rather than launching with fanfare, Mark Hadley, the Transport Manager, sat down with each driver to tell them these were being rolled out as part of the business. 

“At Antalis, we believe every driver in our team is a professional driver. Our drivers are obsessed with our customers,” explained Nick. “We told our drivers that this technology will allow us to prove you are a professional driver. This will protect you.” There were a few questions around GDPR and how long the footage would be kept, but Antalis was able to answer them with ease and rationality. 

While drivers were initially concerned about the cameras, after a few colleagues were exonerated by the cameras, opinion shifted quickly. The company’s commitment to defending drivers and the proof that exoneration helped keep marks off their insurance cards helped convince the team of the cameras' value. “The drivers are absolutely bought in now,” stated Nick. 

Ultimately, the dash cams have helped to strengthen relationships with drivers. Mark Hadley, UK Transport Manager noted, “The drivers are more relaxed knowing that the equipment is there to assist and defend them if required. And, as we all know, if we have a happy and relaxed workforce, this will reduce accidents, improve driving styles and improve the relationship between their peers and line management.” Nick echoed this point, adding,

“The dash cams take the stress out of the relationship with the line managers and the drivers. Our line managers can say ‘I see you weren’t to blame and will defend you.’” 

Coaching leads to reduced incidents

Dash cams have also helped to transform Antalis’ coaching approach. Before Samsara, every driver had an on-road driving assessment.  Now, line managers can review personal footage with each driver to highlight specific behaviors and offer additional training to demonstrate what those changes would mean in practice. 

With Samsara’s alerts, if they see a pattern of harsh incidents taking place on the day, Mark Hadley will reach out to the line manager to ask them to check in with the driver. “We don’t want to have someone on our team looking at a screen all day, that’s not our culture.” said Nick.

"With the alerts, if we see a pattern, we can let the right person know, offering training and support."

Antalis is also using best driving examples to encourage good behavior. Drivers frequently come to line managers saying, “you’ll never guess what happened to me today” and then ask to show footage of great evasive driving techniques. With their permission, Antalis then uses this footage in training sessions to educate other drivers on reaction times and appropriate responses.

As a result of coaching, Antalis is seeing fewer harsh incidents. In one year since installing Samsara, harsh braking and harsh acceleration incidents have decreased dramatically. Also, idling time is a fraction of the time in a drivers shift, helping to reduce fuel costs.

The next stretch

Now that dash cams are supporting the company, Antalis is eager to explore Samsara’s other features. “We told ourselves we would focus on cameras and then see what else Samsara has to offer,” said Nick. "We’re looking forward to optimizing routing, trying the live tachograph offering and providing customers with live ETAs."

Luckily, Samsara is there to help along this journey as a partner. “Samsara is just easy to work with. The whole team is easy to deal with. When we’ve had technical issues and you just respond ‘how can we help,’ he said. "That real partnership is the real benefit."