Automating Housing Inspections Saves Staff Time, Mileage & Gas

About the Program

Category: Information Technology (Best in Category)

Year: 2012

As the Housing Authority of the County of San Diego, the Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) administers a variety of rental assistance programs to more than 11,000 families. HCD staff inspects rental housing units before participants move in and annually thereafter to ensure the subsidized units meet basic housing quality standards. Staff conducts an average of 1,066 inspections monthly throughout all regions of the county. Using TourSolver, a computerized route optimization and planning program, HCD automated the manual process of routing and scheduling inspections, thereby saving more than 21 hours of labor costs each month. Inspectors have been equipped with a Global Positioning System (GPS) navigation unit. Instead of spending time looking up their route and writing down driving directions, inspectors download their optimized daily route from TourSolver directly to the unit. The GPS units increase safety, allowing inspectors to locate addresses with audible turn-by-turn directions. To implement the TourSolver solution, the department spent $10,300 on IT integration, software and GPS devices. The return on investment took less than four months. Automating the scheduling and routing processes for housing inspections by using routing software and GPS devices has increased efficiencies and reduced costs by approximately $30,000 annually.