Truck Doctor director Alan Phillips has been a Truckfile user for six years yet he continues to find new ways to tweak its features to suit his own specific needs, saving both time and money.
“That adaptability is Truckfile’s greatest strength, for me,” he said. “And now we’ve taken another step forward by integrating the Workshop Management package with our Sage Accounting system.”
This connection means that details of jobs carried out and parts fitted by Truck Doctor’s technicians are automatically imported to the invoicing system, saving time and reducing the risk of human error.
“It takes another link out of the chain, by removing the need for those details to be typed in manually,” explained Phillips. “That speeds up the whole process and makes the job simpler for me and my office team, and although we didn’t make mistakes it also means the details added are infallibly correct.”
The move to integrate Truckfile and Sage Accounting was triggered when a member of Phillips’ office team left the business. “While we were trying to recruit a replacement I was dealing with the extra work myself, so I was eager to explore any ways we could to make the process quicker and easier.
“We’ve stayed in regular contact with Truckfile ever since we began using their systems, and over the years we’ve made a series of refinements and extended the ways we use its various functions, so I raised the idea of creating the integration with our Sage accounting software. Typically, the Truckfile team were immediately receptive and willing to collaborate with us to make it work.”
He continued: “Now, when a technician works on a vehicle, Truckfile records every task completed and each part used. Then when I price the job up and sign it off I can export it directly to Sage, so the invoice is automatically filled out. I can make amends or add any notes if necessary but all the required information is there.
“Contrast that with the way we used to work before Truckfile, with a technician filling in a job sheet, then me filling in an inspection sheet, then everything being copied over to an invoice, effectively doing the same thing multiple times. By comparison we’ve slashed the time spent on these tasks by half. When you consider we’re issuing 40-50 invoices a week that’s a very significant saving.”
The Truck Doctor’s five-bay workshop at Whetstone has been offering support to truck and trailer operators since 2010. Initially established to service the vehicles of Alan Phillips’ previous business – a bus and coach company – it grew, taking on external work, until it eclipsed the original operation. Today the site, just minutes from the M1, offers a range of repair and maintenance services to commercial vehicle operators across the East Midlands and beyond.
Phillips said: “We look after a wide range of vehicles of many different makes, models and configurations, for customers with everything from a large fleet to a single truck. Truckfile works equally seamlessly across the board and has really helped to streamline our operation. It has become one of the most important tools we use.”
Sage VP small business, Nik McNicol-Kenney, added: "At Sage, we’re committed to empowering small and mid-sized businesses through smart, seamless technology. Innovations like this integration with Truckfile help simplify everyday tasks, reduce errors, and save valuable time—so business owners can focus more on growth and less on admin."
Tranzaura Group, a leading transport technology firm, acquired Truckfile earlier this year – together the two brands manage more than 600,000 fleet assets daily.
Following the acquisition Shane Mann, chief executive of Tranzaura Group, said: “We are excited to join forces, combining our expertise, resources, and reputation to drive innovation and elevate customer experience. This partnership will not only strengthen our market position but also enable us to offer enhanced fleet solutions to all our customers.”
