Case Study

Muir Group

Muir Group owns or manages 5,000 homes across a wide geographical area, often in small towns and cities and in rural communities.

The Association provides a diverse range of housing solutions to meet the needs of customers who cannot afford to rent or buy on the open market.

Instant Access To Data

With an average of 1,000 documents flowing through the business on a weekly basis, staff require immediate access to data including property and tenant details, rental agreements, new applicants, new building projects, photos, architectural plans, repair maintenance bills, gas company certificates and legal notices.

Muir required better control of their data as the time spent searching for the required paperwork slowed down productivity. 

Staff didn't know where to find the latest documents, and with data needing to be kept for seven years, off site storage was an expensive option.

Muir is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Housing Communities Agency and is a member of The National Housing Federation.

In a heavily regulated industry, document compliance is essential and being able to demonstrate  this easily is a huge advantage.

Muir’s system was largely paper based with various departments requiring access to the same documents. 

They needed better control of their data and the best way forward was to introduce DocTech solutions to link documents with their housing management system. 

Muir needed a solution that would centralise all information and control the workflow around the organisation. They also required clear audit trails to support with quality and compliance procedures, as well as a workflow history of tenants.

DocTech's Solution

DocTech and Muir worked together for two days scoping and drawing up bespoke workflows that would streamline business processes. 

DocuWare was initially implemented to tackle all areas of tenancy management, with all paper documents and emails scanned, captured and stored into DocuWare, giving staff easy access to up-to-date information.  

Following on from this, usage expanded vastly and the the software was rolled out to tackle document storage and processes in  HR, Assets and Growth, Property Services and compliance in general.

Documents are uploaded from tablets by Housing Officers whilst on site visits.  Emails from suppliers, contractors, The Council and tenants are recognised by the system and automatically filed away. 

Accurate Data Capture

Key information contained in a document or email is captured when scanned, indexed and stored in the correct digital filing cabinet.

Muir's Technology Director told us:

"DocuWare is our core document management solution and sits between and integrates with our key business systems. It is central to all our document management at Muir."

Every member of staff is assigned rights to control their own documents within the system, improving communication and collaboration. 

Roll out was managed by two members off staff who were able to continue their every day work alongside the implementation. 

DocTech have worked with Muir Group to evolve DocuWare's usage and integration to great effect. 

Documents can be found instantly within Muir's key business systems using multiple search criteria which has proved invaluable for staff.

Summarising Muir's Technology Director said:

"Like many Housing Associations we are working towards a self-service model for our tenants to enhance the customer experience. DocuWare is a key system for our future in allowing our service users to view their own documents.”