Colas uses Articque solutions to visualize its geographic locations in a dynamic way and optimize transport costs

Geolocating quarries, construction sites… and competitors

Taking into account road distances to optimize transport costs

Considering several possibilities for a new location to make the best decision

Colas is the world leader in road construction, with 60 000 employees throughout the world

The company’s main businesses are road construction and the related infrastructures, with sectors such as signage systems, railways and quarries.

Dominique Billon joined Colas 30 years ago. He is now Director of Quarries and Materials for the Western-Central region, which corresponds to one of the six national branches of the company. The region includes 22 active quarries, producing 6.5 million tons of materials yearly. In 2012, Dominique Billon decided to stop using paper maps and Google Earth and move on to location intelligence with Articque solutions.

“I wish I had known Articque earlier: I would be even further ahead of my competitors!”

“I wish I had known Articque earlier: I would be even further ahead of my competitors!”

Colas geolocates its geographic locations and its competitors’

Articque created for Colas a specific, tailor-made application called “Hermes”. With this tool, the Colas teams can access a dynamic map of the region referencing all the locations of Colas quarries, as well as those of its competitors (Eiffage, Vinci…).

A lot of information is accessible by clicking on each point on the map : the extraction volume authorized by prefectorial order, coating plants and concrete mixer plants in France, waste storage facilities…

With all these layers at their disposal, the Colas teams can access a large amount of information: they know at a glance which quarry or waste storage facility is closest, for example. It allows them to easily estimate costs.

An application to geolocate all the Colas sites and the competition

“The solutions created by Articque are decision support tools for plenty of areas.”

“The solutions created by Articque are decision support tools for plenty of areas.”

Optimizing transport costs with cartography

“In our business, we know the production costs. What remains as a variable for adjusting prices is transport.”

Optimize transports costs between quarries and construction sites

The Business Locator application created by Articque allows users to locate a construction site or a delivery address. Sales representatives are able to determine who are their competitors for a project by using filters (for example, the authorized extraction volume of nearby quarries). The tool also calculates road distances and travel time so as to determine the number of journeys trucks will be able to make, as well as transport costs, which depend on a number of criteria such as the truck capacity, its rental price, opening hours, the time necessary to load and unload the truck…

This allows sales representatives to compare with transport costs offered by competitors in order to find a competitive edge.
The tool can also automatically edit a road map for the truck drivers, to help them view their itinerary from the quarry to the construction site.

“I don’t know how we could have calculated this except with an Excel table, and by spending weeks looking up distances between municipalities on Google Maps. Now, it’s really easy, and it only takes a few clicks.”

“I don’t know how we could have calculated this except with an Excel table, and by spending weeks looking up distances between municipalities on Google Maps. Now, it’s really easy, and it only takes a few clicks.”

A decision-making simulation tool which takes into account transport costs and local specificities

Colas also uses Articque solutions to make decisions regarding locations : they allow decision-makers to simulate the closing and opening of industries while taking into account road distances, which are critical to the company’s business.

Maps are also a communication tool : Colas uses them to simulate the company’s market share in order to show that, while it is a leader in its field, it is not in a monopoly : “Of course you can show lists of sites, but if you show the situation on a map, it’s much more striking!”

“What I like about Articque is that, when I have an idea, I share it. Then we enrich it with our exchanges, and Articque adapts. It’s their first quality: adaptation, flexibility, reactivity, attentiveness.”

“What I like about Articque is that, when I have an idea, I share it. Then we enrich it with our exchanges, and Articque adapts. It’s their first quality: adaptation, flexibility, reactivity, attentiveness.”

C&D and Articque’s advantages according to Dominique Billon

Articque's advantages

“The Articque team was extremely reactive to our various sollicitations.”
The Return On Investment (ROI) : clear and dynamic maps.
The map becomes a database, which is enriched as new plants are created, as they change ownership…
“We no longer need Articque to make changes to our maps: we are now able to use the tool independently.”

Like Colas, take the specificities of the field into account to optimize transport costs!