Corrigan Moving Systems powers fleet of 150+ trucks with Whip Around

About Corrigan Moving Systems

Founded in 1923 in Dearborn, M.I. Corrigan Moving Systems provides residential and commercial moving solutions across 13 locations and 5 states. It has partnered with United Van Lines for over 70 years to provide services to thousands of customers. This family owned business operates over 150 trucks and prides itself on providing its customers with the highest level of service and quality. “It’s the only way to grow, through repeat customers and referrals,” said Dan Winger, Corrigan Moving’s director of quality and training. Dan has been with the company for over 15 years and oversees the Corrigan Academy – a comprehensive training program all Corrigan movers and drivers go through to ensure safety, consistency and high quality service.

The Challenge for Corrigan Moving Systems

For years, Corrigan Moving managed its fleet of 150+ trucks through paper forms. “Some drivers’ daily timecard had an inspection form on the back, some were handed a piece of paper and others had no documentation. It was very hard to know what was going on with our trucks, to stay compliant and to ensure that our fleet and drivers represented our brand in the best way possible with our customers,” said Winger. Winger also realized that it was much easier for his drivers to shortcut a proper inspection or skip a day of inspections when things were done on paper. Overseeing a large operation from a single location, when all the trucks and drivers were spread out so far, was a challenge.

The Solution

Nate Corrigan, a 4th generation Corrigan who currently oversees the operation as the company’s executive vice president, was looking for a technology-first solution. He believed that by digitizing the company’s inspection and maintenance processes he could better hold his drivers accountable and ensure they’re upholding their responsibilities  

“When we looked for inspection app solutions in the app store, Whip Around was at the top of the list. It had the most reviews and they were all very strong. It was clear they were the leading solution in the market, with an easy-to-use app and a robust system to provide the right oversight,” explained Winger. 

After speaking with the Whip Around team, they decided to proceed with a pilot program with two company locations. During that pilot Whip Around’s sales director, Pete, and solution consultant, Billy, worked alongside Dan and his team to ensure the program was set up right and his team was fully trained and supported. “Pete and Billy were great to work with. As we rolled out the program to 11 branches, we worked together to do a kick off training with the managers at 3pm each day, and then we trained the drivers the next morning. Billy was there alongside me everyday as I rolled it out to all of our branches.” 

The Corrigan Moving team now fully uses the Whip Around app to not only conduct electronic inspections but to also maintain their fleet. They: 

• Have created several custom eDVIR forms that range from truck and trailer inspection forms, to a cosmetic defect form, accident report form, a home protection form and more.
• Leverage parts of the forms to instill a culture of safety within their drivers – the final checkpoint on their key form is a statement the driver has to check that “Today I will be a professional driver”, reminding them to uphold a high safety and quality standard.
• Implemented a home protection form to help them go beyond just ensuring their trucks and equipment are in tip top shape. Their drivers are required to take pictures of the customer’s home before and after their moving job to ensure no damage was done by the movers. “We try to instill the fact that you’re not just moving someone’s things from these 4 walls. You’re moving the Fisher famly’s valuable assets from their home to their new home.”
• Use the two-communication comment system in Whip Around so when defects are reported by drivers, the dispatcher can easily update the drivers with an acknowledgement of the issues and notify them when issues have been resolved – “Before Whip Around, our drivers often stopped reporting defects because they couldn’t tell whether anyone was looking at them. Now that they can see real time comments and updates they are more likely to be thorough and report any issues.”  

It was very important to the Corrigan Movers team to find a way to manage their entire operation from a centralized system, and that is what they found with Whip Around. “The versatility of Whip Around is incredible and the possibilities are endless. I have been able to fully customize how I run and oversee my fleet. And I still think of new ways I can push the envelope and ensure our drivers in the field are representing our core values as a business,” said Winger. Management can also differentiate between cosmetic and DOT out-of-service violation defects so they can keep their fleet running for a maximum amount of time on the roads, but also ensure that they do not ignore any critical items that could cost them DOT violations. 

Winger emphasized “you can’t put a price tag on the importance of something like litigation that could happen from not having proper oversight. I can’t think of any cons of using Whip Around, it has completely simplified our operations.”

Whip Around Your Fleet Management Today

If fleet management bottlenecks are becoming an issue or causing expensive repairs and downtime, then why not schedule a Whip Around demo? Contact us today to explore how Whip Around can help you achieve your objectives this year, or speak with a product specialist.