Meet Matthews: A Leader In The Memorialization Industry
Matthews Aurora Funeral Solutions manufactures and distributes premium memorialization products, including caskets, urns, signage, and jewelry. They prioritize customer satisfaction through direct order fulfillment to cemeteries, funeral homes, and monument dealers. “Our goal is to provide the highest quality product to our customers,” says Senior Vice President of Operations Scott Wright.
Families Count On Timely Delivery In Moments Of Hardship
In the sensitive funeral industry, Matthews maintains the highest sympathy for customer needs. “We’re helping funeral directors take a family from grieving to remembrance, and we realize they have to make a lot of things happen in a very short period of time, and we’re here to help facilitate that,” says Director of Customer Service Chris Kent.
Matthews faces challenges similar to other delivery services, including fuel costs, equipment demands, and fleet management. However, memorialization delivery presents other unique challenges. Time-sensitive orders create an on-demand environment with no room for missed deliveries. Additionally, given its nationwide presence, each Matthews facility requires a precise delivery strategy. For instance, a driver based in the northeast might navigate toll roads and turnpikes while making deliveries in a densely populated area, whereas a driver in a rural area may cover fewer stops in a day, but span a much larger area.
Inefficient Planning Wastes Miles And Man-Hours
Matthews emphasizes a strong team environment and provides staff with the tools they need for success. Prior to the implementation of route planning software, local staff with deep tribal knowledge of their regions proved essential for certain operations, such as route planning. These route planners prioritized efficiency and cost-effectiveness, and yet an analyst hired by Matthews revealed that even with all of the provided support, manual route planning generates waste.
Inefficient planning time leads to wasted man-hours. Inefficient routes lead to higher fuel costs, as well as shorter vehicle maintenance intervals. Matthews recognized the need for automated last mile solutions, like route planning, dispatch, and analysis to operate efficiently and cost-effectively.
Matthews Builds A Unique Last Mile Strategy To Save Time, Reduce Miles
Matthews decided to implement route planning software and started the search with a hefty checklist of feature requirements. Their primary priorities included automated route optimization, telematics integration, and fleet import capabilities. Additionally, Matthews needed a strategic partner to be actively involved during the implementation phase. They found that and more in Route4Me. The Route4Me support team worked from the start to create a unique business strategy tailored to Matthews’s business needs. The end goal of full Route4Me implementation across all locations was a 4% reduction in mileage and fuel usage.
Route Optimization Nearly Eliminates Planning Time, Cuts Mileage By 7%
During Matthews’s implementation of Route4me, mileage and fuel savings reached a whopping 7%. Additionally, time spent on weekly route planning decreased significantly, shifting from hours to minutes. Based on these success metrics, Matthews decided to implement automated last mile operations at all Matthews Aurora Funeral Solutions locations.
On day one of implementation the local dispatcher meets with the director of distribution optimization for six hours to learn how to use the platform. By end of day, the dispatcher is able to create routes for his team with little oversight. On day two of implementation, the director departs, leaving the dispatcher equipped with the last mile tools necessary to deliver excellent service and exceed customer demands.
