Graniten enhanced their customer service experience with augmented reality in the pharma industry. In this post you will learn how you can improve and increase your level of customer service in an easy way. You will also get valuable tips on how to get started and the secret recipe of an excellent customer service offer.
We conducted an interview with Graniten Service & Aftermarket Manager, Freddy Viitala, to discuss the value of remote service. Of course, Freddy also shares his tips with other companies on how to get going.
Graniten is a product company that develops and produces fully automated packaging machines for the pharmaceutical industry. They have customers world-wide that they support via augmented reality, simply because it is the quickest way to help customers with different problems and breakdowns.
Different ways of providing service
Our Helpdesk at Graniten is available 24/7 providing quick responses and remote assistance to customers. We can help the customers in four different ways; over the telephone, by getting to the customer on site, via remote connection and Augmented Reality (AR).
Out of these four options the Augmented Reality support is the perfect combination of both telephone and “physical” visit.
But of course, it always starts with a phone call from the customer and from there we switch to AR if needed.
How does augmented reality actually work?
At Graniten we use a tool called TeamViewer Pilot which allows us to connect with our customers and see what their smartphone/tablet camera sees. This enables us to point at objects or make drawings in order to guide the customer easily and efficiently. We also have the possibility to connect directly to the machine. Our service engineers can actually see what is happening in the software and do some troubleshooting remotely.
We have different technological systems to manage remote connections, all depending on the customer’s needs.
For example, one of our global customers has asked us to integrate a specific system to their machines. When a problem arises on one of the customer sites, anywhere in the world, we can directly connect to the machine and give our feedback about how we should deal with a problem rapidly.
What are the benefits of providing service via augmented reality?
The great advantage is that the customer doesn´t have to do anything!
We can connect and troubleshoot from remote. As you understand, a very efficient way of helping the customer rapidly.
To sum it up, the benefits are:
- Efficiency
- Faster response time
- A smooth customer experience
And this leads to a higher uptime on the machine as well as an enhanced customer service experience.
Do you have any tips to others who wants to start up working with augmented reality?
Ensure a stable internet connection at the production site, it can be taken for granted but it is very important.
Include AR in your service range, it shouldn´t be something “on top”, it is a complement to your current ways of working.
Talk to your customers about the benefits with AR and, in which support cases they should use it. If they understand the “why” they will be more eager to try it out.
Find the right balance in how you conduct your service and when you choose what solution. Being on site to help customers is a good way to transfer knowledge and deepen the relationship.
“-It´s the mix of service types that enhances the customer experience, find the right balance in how you conduct your services and when you use what.”
What is your next step at Graniten to improve the customer service experience even more?
-” We are now looking into what you call Condition Monitoring. With this type of monitoring, we can predict certain breakdowns before they happen and avoid them. If a certain critical part needs to be changed, we could have that information popping on the HMI. But that is an upcoming blog post”, says Freddy with a smile.
Thanks for sharing your knowledge and experiences with us!
facts about graniten
Graniten is a global provider of machine solutions to the pharmaceutical manufacturing and healthcare automation sector.
At Graniten, the core purpose is to empower customers and help them improve their production and workflow to continuously improve patient care and security.
The aim is to become a business leader in technical solutions & innovations within the scope of manufacturing and engineering and achieve:
- Staying ahead of industry challenges and customer needs and creating user-centric solutions
- Leveraging creativity and implementing new innovative technologies
- Limiting environmental impacts through optimization, sustainability, and small footprint products
