CSCS, a leading UK construction certification authority, partnered with Icreon to revamp its operations, streamlining applications, combating fraud, and enhancing user experience.
In a time when the global construction industry is booming, Construction Skills Certification Scheme (CSCS), a not-for-profit organization is the leading skills certification accocation within the UK Construction Industry. They have 6 million construction licenses in circulation, with about 350,000 new licenses issued each year. The licenses are widely recognized to prove that construction workers possess the necessary skills and qualifications to work. For employers, this means that the labor force supplied is trained, skilled and up to date with health and safety regulations.
The organization sought to modernize their application processing and contact center services, moving away from a traditional paper and mail process used for over 20 years. This paper-based process has resulted in long processing times and lengthy customer service calls. Additionally, CSCS faced the challenge of tackling fraudulent applications and issuing erroneous cards via fraudulent channels, lacking an intelligent mechanism to verify the authenticity of submitted certificates.
Learn how Icreon helped the organization in modernizing their business operations to make applications processing faster and thier certifications, training programs, and member resources more accessible.
In 2015, the British government introduced a law that mandated constructions organizations, including construction companies and contractors to display construction license cards at worksites. CSCS was named the only legal association to issue them and no other equivalents would be accepted. The objective behind this initiative was to offer a consistent means for the construction industry to recognize individuals who have achieved the required qualifications and certifications for their occupation and help ensure safer worksites and better quality across the industry.
However, despite this significant step, CSCS faced operational challenges due to its reliance on traditional methods like paper applications, postal services, and non-digital payments for over two decades. This outdated approach resulted in prolonged processing times and cumbersome customer service calls, hindering efficiency and user experience. CSCS wanted their platform to be a one of a kind that enhances the credibility of the industries talented and diverse workforce. It would allow their wide and diverse customers to apply from their personal computers, mobile phones, and tablets, making it accessible for all. The platform needed to be highly scalable given the projection of CSCS license applications that need to be processed over the coming years.
They were also facing issues with fraudulent licenses and fake certifications due to a lack of intelligent mechanisms to check application authenticity. So, CSCS also needed to tackle the problem of erroneous licenses being issued via fraudulent channels.
CSCS teamed up with Icreon to reimagine thier member and customer experience and shift their business from paper processes to a modern omnichannel model.
With Icreon's strategic consultation, CSCS laid out the foundation for their digital transformation, enabling the revolutionisation of application processing and contact center services. First, the team understood the existing CSCS license processing mechanism then came up with the digital strategy to shift their legacy applications to a modern system which included technology consolidation of multiple third-party APIs and data migration of about 1.5 million customers and 3.5 million issued licenses.
Icreon built the license management system enabling end users to apply for online applications and agents to process back office operations. The web-based application was built with seperate interfaces (UI) for different roles namely Individual, Employer, Customer Service Agent, and Administrator, streamlining the overall process of online application submission, processing, validation, and license generation. For example, the team developed independent services: Users: for users and user’s role management; Application: for applying licenses and application processing; Card: for searching for licenses and issuing of license cards. These modular services run on AWS Cloud and microservice architecture. Icreon’s development team chose the frameworks and libraries like AngularJS/ReactJS to ensure a scaleable, secure, and reliable application design.
Icreon implemented Optical Character Recognition (OCR) technology to scan certificates, detect certificate ID numbers, expiry dates, and applicant names. The platform then uses API’s to connect with thouasands of different schools and awarding bodies that offer construction certification training programs to check for authenticity and elimate fraudualnt license applications. The plaform is also integrated with CSCS’s license production system and generates virtual licenses for mobile apps, enabling employers or government officals to easily access certification details by simpliy scanning a QR code located on issued licenses.
This system revolutionizes how the UK construction industry maintains a capable workforce on its sites. It instills confidence in constuction employers, clients, and on-site workers by verifying proper training and qualifications, while fostering industry growth.
Leveraging Icreon's digital transformation expertise, CSCS successfully delivered an exceptional omnichannel experience, granting users the freedom to access applications anytime, anywhere, and on any device which made CSCS’s resources more accessible to the public.
Icreon helped CSCS in migration of 1.5 million legacy customer data and approximately 3.5 million lisences, retaining the integrity of data from the past decade. The transition not only allowed the renewal, reissue, and extension of the card's expiry but also aligned CSCS with modern business operations, enhancing their ability to process applications efficiently and combat fraudulent activities.
Icreon helped CSCS by building an enterprise web application and mobile app, which were crucial in modernizing the UK construction industry's application process. By creating customized apps, using QR codes for Virtual lisences, and implementing OCR for easier verification, Icreon improved delivery, efficiency, and scalability, making the application process both accessible and secure for many users.
Icreon assisted CSCS in transitioning from offline to fully digital operations. Beginning with infrastructure assessment, they devised a digital roadmap, enhancing IT and implementing tech solutions aligned with CSCS's strategy.
In the journey of CSCS's digital transformation, Icreon played a pivotal role by optimizing the application process for construction skills certification. This led to automating processing for over 50,000 applications per month and increasing customer service desk efficiency by over 20% within six months.
Icreon's collaboration with CSCS led to a groundbreaking digital transformation, enabling an omnichannel customer experience platform that catered to users with varying levels of tech literacy.
By modernizing their business operations, CSCS would not only fall in line with the Leadership Council’s strategy and vision to drive growth across the entire economy but would ensure that CSCS could meet the demands of the number of applications for the next 5 years. The platform has allowed them to apply from their personal computers, mobile phones, and tablets, making it accessible for all.
The modern platform has helped the organization in simplifying the application process to handle 200+ applcations per hour, retaining the integrity of data from the past decade for license renewals and extensions. This resulted in improving service desk efficiency by over 20% within 6 months of going live, reducing processing time from 21 days to 3 days, and enabling a holistic integration with digitized verification systems that seamlessly communicate with each other.
Icreon provides excellent services. From project inception through to delivery, Icreon is with you every step of the way. They devised and delivered a solution specifically tailored to the needs of our organization, and through their strong management team, they quickly became an integral part of our team.
The Icreon team is incredibly knowledgeable, and they operate at a highly efficient and professional level at all times, whether in your Board Room, in a workshop, or on the operations floor. Icreon’s guidance and skills have transformed our organization with a modern digital service that our customers tell us is “best in class.” I would have no hesitation in recommending Icreon to friends and colleagues.
Alan O’Neile, Head of Communications, Construction Skills Certification Scheme
