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Secure your investment on your field workers

Time is money in any business, and you need to ensure that your employees, especially those performing essential services in the field, are not wasting the time you are paying them for.

According to the Basic Conditions of Employment Act (Chapter 4: Keeping Records), every employer must keep a record of the following information:

* The employee's name and occupation.

* The time worked by each employee.

* The remuneration paid to each employee.

However, in a business that employs sales representatives, drivers and others that must go out into the field to meet with clients and perform various other duties, it becomes harder and harder to control the efficiency of operations and it becomes necessary to implement a solution that goes beyond the standard time and attendance requirements.

Harmonic Group can provide a combination of RFID (radio frequency identification), GPS (global positioning system), GPRS (general packet radio service) and GSM (global system for mobile communications), to track both vehicles and personnel.

A tracking system should:

a) Aid rapid deployment of all field workers.

b) Enable the employer to accurately determine personnel time and attendance.

c) Improve the fleet's security to protect against hijacking and theft.

The solution should also drastically reduce disputes surrounding overtime and allow employers to easily assess the performance of their field workers. The proposed system should allow for additional integrated systems eg, the tracking of assets (laptops, projectors, camera equipment, etc), and the linking of access control and CCTV systems to the pilot system.

How it works

* GSM: this should mainly be used for tracking of personnel on an ad-hoc basis as and when required. Employees' mobile phones are utilised by the administrator sending a request to the phone to see what area the employee is in.

* Vehicle tracking: device is installed in the vehicle, providing constant information regarding the position of the vehicle.

* Personnel tracking: this would be used either by means of either GPS or GPRS if there is a constant need to know where the staff member is.

* RFID: assets located within a building are fitted with RFID tags to prevent theft.

The T&A should be able to generate detailed and specific reports required by the management, financial and any other departments.

It is often advisable to combine the time and attendance solution with an access control system such as CCTV, biometrics and proximity cards to ensure airtight security. The software should also be able to integrate into any payroll system via an importing/exporting of data in the required format.

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