Gillman Home Center

Implementing GPS technology, Gillman Home Center dramatically reduces equipment theft and optimizes lumber delivery logistics, enhancing efficiency and customer service through real-time tracking.

Introduction:

Gillman Home Center, starting as a small lumber yard in 1962 and now spanning sixteen locations, significantly broadened its scope to offer an extensive range of home improvement products and equipment rental. This family-run business, deeply rooted in providing building materials, emphasizes its lineage in the industry, reflecting a tradition of growth and diversification to meet various customer needs.

Challenge:

Despite Gillman Home Center’s rapid growth, fueled by an extensive product range and deep industry expertise, their expansion into the equipment rental sector brought significant challenges. Theft, a common problem within the rental industry, began to affect their operations. Initially, Gillman managed to retrieve stolen items by conducting neighborhood searches—a time-intensive, yet occasionally successful, method. However, as thefts escalated, including items worth over $30,000, this approach proved inadequate. It became clear that a more effective solution was urgently needed to address the escalating issue.

Solution:

Travis Gillman, grandson of the Gillman Home Center’s founder, identified GPS tracking as a transformative solution for safeguarding their rental equipment. After evaluating numerous leading GPS Tracking solutions, Gillman chose Hapn for its comprehensive tracking capabilities. Implementing Hapn’s blend of hardwired trackers for heavy machinery and battery-operated trackers for lighter attachments, the Gillman team quickly achieved real-time oversight of their rental fleet accessible on their iPads.

The success with Hapn soon inspired another innovative application: managing their burgeoning lumber distribution. Plagued by unreliable deliveries and lacking visibility into shipment statuses, Gillman extended Hapn’s technology to monitor their lumber trailers—both company-operated and third-party. Hapn’s long-life, magnetically attached trackers offered a flexible and efficient solution, perfectly suited to the dynamic needs of Gillman’s lumber operations. By setting up boundaries around client sites, Gillman now proactively manages deliveries, ensuring on-time arrivals with real-time tracking and the flexibility to reroute shipments as needed. This strategic move not only optimized logistics but also propelled Gillman Home Center towards greater operational excellence.

Measuring Success

Since adopting Hapn’s GPS technology, Gillman Home Center has significantly mitigated the issue of equipment theft within their Equipment Rental operation. Travis Gillman reports, “We have not had one piece of equipment stolen that we could not recover since we have started utilizing Hapn’s solution.” This achievement has drastically reduced theft incidents and ensured the recovery of stolen equipment, leading to substantial cost savings.

Additionally, the introduction of Hapn’s tracking solutions has enhanced the efficiency of lumber deliveries. The use of battery-powered trackers has improved the scheduling and execution of deliveries, making the process smoother and more reliable. As Travis Gillman notes, “With the ability to track our equipment at all times, we also are able to communicate with our customers when a delivery load can be expected, how far until arrival, and other pertinent information.”