KeyTracker completes major key management system roll out for Smiths News

West Midlands-based KeyTracker has completed a nationwide rollout of its electronic key management solution for Smiths News, helping the UK's largest newspaper and magazine wholesaler gain complete visibility and accountability of around 6,000 customer keys.

As the UK’s leading designer and supplier of secure key and asset management systems, KeyTracker - based in Rowley Regis - has helped Smiths News to improve key management across its 34 sites, having a direct impact on its support service for its 22,000 customers.

Smiths News – which makes early morning and overnight deliveries to customer premises and storage locations – previously had little visibility over which team members were accessing customer keys, or when they had been returned, which could have led to risks around misplaced keys. Keen to prevent disruption to customers and improve efficiencies, Smiths News partnered with KeyTracker to implement a system that would provide automatic updates to senior team members on key usage and whereabouts.

The rollout of the electronic management systems, now in situ at all Smiths News depots, began at the start of the year and concluded in July, and is one of KeyTracker’s largest projects to date.

As part of the electronic key management solution now in place, each of Smiths News’ drivers are issued a unique PIN, allowing them to access only the keys they are authorised to use. Every transaction is recorded, managers are notified when keys are returned and automatic escalations are triggered if they are overdue, creating a fully auditable process across all its sites.

Chris Wright, head of central services for Smiths News, said: “Rolling out a solution across 34 sites, many of which operate overnight, was always going to be a complex project, but KeyTracker made it feel straightforward and the impact on our business has been significant.

“We now have complete accountability for every customer key, allowing us to respond much more quickly when issues arise, improve communication with customers and minimise disruption. It's strengthened our customer proposition too – secure key management is an important part of the service we offer to each new customer, and being able to demonstrate that level of visibility and control is helping us build confidence with both existing and prospective customers.”

Andy Smith, director for KeyTracker, said: “Smiths News approached us with a clear objective to gain greater visibility and accountability over thousands of customer keys while supporting a nationwide operation. By working closely together, we've delivered a solution that not only strengthens control but also enhances the service they provide to their own customers.

“Every organisation is different, which is why we place as much emphasis on implementation, training and long-term support as we do on the technology itself. It's extremely rewarding to now see Smiths News using electronic key management as a competitive advantage as they continue to grow.”