Andrew Ingredients runs nine 26-tonne HGVs, ten forklift trucks and a 35,000 sq ft warehouse in Lisburn from a single system. Since moving vehicle checks, maintenance records and warehouse equipment inspections into Pocket Box Fleet management software, the company has cut maintenance costs by 10% and freed up more than 40 hours of staff time every week, and it now walks into DVSA and BRCGS audits with every record already in place.
This case study looks at how the operations team set it up, what a check looks like on the warehouse floor, and what other fleets can borrow from the approach. If you are still working from paper, our daily vehicle checklist template and the UK fleet compliance guide cover the basics that Andrew Ingredients built on.
Three things to take from it:
- Paper checklists and spreadsheets were replaced with QR codes on every HGV, forklift, machine and warehouse location, scanned from a mobile device.
- Every check is photographed and timestamped, and a missed check lands on the operations manager’s to-do list the same day.
- Maintenance costs are down 10% and more than 40 hours a week have been freed, with the same system now covering warehouse equipment and cleaning tasks.
Who are Andrew Ingredients and what does the fleet look like?
Andrew Ingredients is an ingredients supplier to the bakery and food service sectors, based in Lisburn, Northern Ireland. Its warehouse holds more than 2,000 ambient food products and serves customers across the UK and Ireland.
The transport side has grown quickly. Over the past five years the company has brought order fulfilment for 800 customers in Ireland back in-house, and its own multi-drop delivery service now handles 96% of the 1,200 orders that leave the building each week. Nine 26-tonne HGVs with tail lifts do the deliveries. Ten forklift trucks, along with other materials handling and warehouse machinery, keep the stock moving behind the scenes.
That is a lot of kit to keep legal, safe and serviced, and a lot of records to produce on demand for an inspector.
Why paper and spreadsheets stopped working
The old process ran on paper check sheets and spreadsheets, and it worked while the fleet was small. As deliveries came in-house and volumes grew, operations manager Sammy Adams was coordinating vehicle safety checks, defect reports, service intervals and compliance paperwork for HGVs and forklifts at the same time, from records held in different places.
Two things make that harder for a food distributor than for most operators. DVSA guidance expects a walkaround check before a goods vehicle is used each day, with any defects recorded and dealt with, and health and safety guidance expects pre-use checks on lift trucks. Then there is the food side. A BRCGS audit looks at hygiene, cleaning schedules and traceability across the warehouse, and the evidence has to be produced on the day.
With paper, a missed check is invisible until someone goes looking for it, and a lost sheet is a compliance gap. The aim was one system where nothing could be skipped, nothing could be backdated, and every record could be found quickly. Our HGV compliance checklist sets out what an operator is expected to hold; the difficulty is holding it reliably when the fleet keeps growing.
How the QR code check process works on the floor
Every HGV, forklift, machine and warehouse location now carries a QR code. A driver or operative scans it with a Pocket Box-enabled mobile device and the right check or task opens on screen, so there is no searching through menus and no chance of picking the wrong form.
The checks were built for Andrew Ingredients rather than taken off the shelf. Pre-shift walkaround checks for the HGVs and forklifts follow the health and safety requirements for each vehicle type and the food standards the warehouse works to. Each item can be photographed, and every entry is timestamped at the moment it is made. Anyone comparing this with the paper approach can see the difference in our guide to walkaround checks.
Missed checks do not sit quietly. If a check is not completed, Pocket Box raises an alert and adds it to the operations team’s to-do list.
“If something is not completed, it appears on my to-do list to chase up, so nothing can be overlooked,” says Sammy Adams. “Nothing can be faked, because everything is timestamped and all details are stored digitally in one place.”
Maintenance runs from the same screen. Service intervals are scheduled in advance so the team can see what is due and plan deliveries around it, and once the work is done the supporting documents are uploaded against the vehicle. Service and maintenance scheduling is built into Pocket Box Fleet, so the reminders and the records sit in the same place as the checks.
What changed at audit time
The clearest difference shows up when an inspector arrives. Andrew Ingredients holds BRCGS AA accreditation, the top grade available for an announced audit under the standard, and as an HGV operator it is also subject to DVSA checks. Both used to mean pulling records from folders and spreadsheets.
Now the audit trail is already built. Every check, defect, service and document sits against the vehicle or asset it relates to, with a photo and a timestamp, and can be brought up in a couple of clicks. In Sammy’s words, there is no longer any risk of misplaced records or compliance gaps when a DVSA or BRCGS audit comes round. If you want to test your own readiness, the fleet audit checklist is the place to start.
One system for warehouse equipment and cleaning too
Once the vehicle side was working, the company extended Pocket Box into the warehouse. The asset management module now covers materials handling equipment, machinery and warehouse locations, and it is used to schedule and record cleaning tasks as well as equipment checks.
That matters because a food warehouse is inspected as one operation. Having forklift pre-use checks, machinery inspections and cleaning records alongside the HGV records means the operations team works from one to-do list and the auditor looks at one system.
Using defect data to decide when to replace a vehicle
The check and defect history has a second use. Because every defect and every service is logged against the vehicle, Andrew Ingredients can see how each HGV is performing over time and judge when the cost of keeping it on the road is likely to overtake the cost of replacing it. Procurement decisions are made on that record rather than on age alone.
For a business whose customers expect deliveries on the day, the point is to keep vehicles out of the workshop. Fewer unplanned failures mean fewer disrupted delivery runs and less risk to the company’s reputation with its customers.
The results
Two headline figures came out of the project, both reported by Andrew Ingredients: maintenance costs are down 10%, and more than 40 hours of staff time a week have been freed up.
| Area | Outcome |
|---|---|
| Maintenance costs | Down 10% |
| Staff time | More than 40 hours a week freed |
| Vehicle and forklift checks | QR code checks on a mobile device, photographed and timestamped |
| Missed checks | Alert and to-do list entry the same day |
| Audit preparation | DVSA and BRCGS records available in a couple of clicks |
| Scope | Nine HGVs, ten forklifts, warehouse machinery and locations, cleaning tasks |
The business now plans to increase warehouse capacity by around 50% and add vehicles as part of a five-year growth strategy. Sammy’s view is that the systems need to be in place before the growth arrives rather than after it, which is why Pocket Box is treated as part of the infrastructure rather than as an admin tool.
What other fleets can take from this
Put the check where the asset is. A QR code on the vehicle or machine removes the “which form” problem and makes the check the default action at the start of a shift. Our daily inspection checklist is a sensible starting point for what each check should contain.
Make missed checks visible the same day. The alert and the to-do list are what turn a checklist into a compliance system. A check that nobody notices was skipped is the same as no check at all.
Keep documents with the schedule. Uploading the service record against the vehicle at the point the work is completed saves the hunt at audit time, and it gives you the defect history that the next decision depends on.
Use that history when you buy. Replacement decisions based on logged defects and downtime tend to beat decisions based on age or mileage alone.
None of this is specific to food distribution. Pocket Box customers in engineering, waste management, domiciliary care and FMCG run the same walkaround checks, service reminders and document controls, and driver licence checking and vehicle tracking can be added to the same account when you need them.
“Our cloud-based software was developed to take the stress out of fleet and asset management,” says Jim Finnegan, CEO of Pocket Box. “We are working with a growing number of road transport and warehouse operators because we are providing the digital tools they need to stay compliant, reduce costs, and stay in control.”
If your fleet still runs on paper checks and a spreadsheet, book a demo of Pocket Box Fleet or call 0333 577 6602. The Pocket Box team imports your vehicle and driver data, and most businesses are fully operational within five to seven working days, with training included.
Frequently asked questions
Does Pocket Box Fleet cover forklifts and warehouse equipment as well as vehicles?
Yes. The asset management module lets you attach checks, inspections and scheduled tasks to any piece of equipment or any location, not only road vehicles. Andrew Ingredients uses it for forklift trucks, warehouse machinery and cleaning schedules alongside its HGVs, and everything feeds the same to-do list in the admin portal. The same approach suits plant on construction sites, tools carried in engineering vans, or bins and skips in waste management.
Can drivers complete walkaround checks on their own phones?
Yes. Checks are completed through the Pocket Box driver app on a mobile device. Scanning the QR code on the vehicle opens the correct check, the driver works through it item by item, photographs anything that needs evidence, and the entry is timestamped when it is submitted. Defects reported through the app go straight to the admin portal so they can be actioned, and service intervals are automated from the same portal.
How does Pocket Box help at a DVSA audit?
The system holds daily walkaround checks, defect reports, service records and supporting documents against each vehicle, with timestamps, which is the evidence trail an operator is expected to produce. Rather than gathering paper, you filter to the vehicle and the period in question. It does not remove the operator’s own responsibilities under DVSA’s guide to maintaining roadworthiness, but it makes the records complete and quick to find.
Does Pocket Box Fleet work with vehicle tracking and cameras?
Yes. Pocket Box offers its own vehicle tracking and AI dash cameras, and the fleet software also integrates with other telematics providers, so driver behaviour data such as speeding, harsh braking and idling can sit alongside the compliance records.
How long does set-up take?
The Pocket Box team imports your vehicle and driver data, and most businesses are fully operational within five to seven working days, with training included.
Author: Jim Finnegan, founder and CEO of Pocket Box Ltd, Newry, Northern Ireland. Figures in this case study were supplied by Andrew Ingredients.
