The owned vehicle glazing specialist has developed a bespoke piece of software, dubbed ‘Partscheck’, which correctly identifies the exact piece of replacement glass needed for a specific vehicle by simply entering the Vehicle Registration Number – addressing a problematic issue that affects the whole windscreen replacement industry.
The software has been developed to help with the issue of a growing number of windscreens being available for each vehicle model due to significant advances in the range of technologies used, such as acoustic glass, windscreen-mounted cameras, integral Heads Up Displays (HUDs) as well as heated windscreens. For example, there are more than 20 different screens available for the current model BMW Series 5, so expecting a motorist to know the exact replacement windscreen type they require is unrealistic.
Regional director, Phil Lomas said: “Partscheck has been developed to eradicate this issue and is achieving outstanding results for National Windscreens. We introduced it early last year and it is currently running at 99.5% accuracy.”
Customers benefiting from the new software include National Windscreens’ fleet and insurance clients who can be accurately quoted for every job before the technician has even seen the vehicle.
Chris Nicholson, fleet maintenance manager at Thrifty Car and Van Rental, testified: "The introduction of Partscheck means that National Windscreens is not reliant on our locations or customers identifying the type of screen fitted to vehicles as they know the specification purely from the registration number. This is particularly important as our fleet model comprises of new high specification vehicles having features reliant on screen sensors. This takes all the difficulty out of the booking process and means jobs are completed in one visit greatly improving the customer experience and reducing vehicle down time.”
National Windscreens managing director, Pete Marsden elaborated: “No motorist wants the inconvenience of a technician arriving to complete a windscreen replacement only to find out that they’ve brought the wrong piece of glass and the job will have to re-scheduled. This is not only annoying for the driver, but also a very inefficient way of working for the service provider.
“We are constantly looking at ways to improve customer service and we believe that Partscheck is the most significant development the windscreen replacement industry has seen for a long time. Its potential is enormous.”