At ABS Autoherstel, everything revolves around quality, service, and speed. With 34 affiliated businesses, 84 locations throughout the Netherlands, and more than 200,000 damage repair jobs per year, working efficiently is not a luxury, but a necessity. At the same time, pressure on the organization is growing. Finding good people is challenging, processes are becoming increasingly complex, and the amount of information employees work with on a daily basis is only increasing. That’s why ABS Autoherstel started looking for ways to practically implement AI within the organization. Together with Pipple, ABS Autoherstel developed Herbie: a smart AI assistant that directly helps employees with their daily work.
A tangle of rules and procedures
Bert Huisman, Formula Manager at ABS Autoschade, explains: “A major challenge lay at the front end of our organization. At the reception desks of our branches, employees prepare daily estimates for car damage. In doing so, they must not only take into account parts, labor hours, and customer preferences, but also the rules of insurers, leasing companies, and intermediaries.”
And that is precisely where the complexity lay. Every insurer has its own agreements, procedures, and exceptions. How much can you charge for a license plate? How do you request a claims specialist? What can be charged in the event of a total loss? “This information is spread across manuals, contracts, and work instructions. Finding the right answer often takes a lot of time. We wanted to organize that more efficiently.”
From a practical challenge to a smart solution
Herbie is an AI chatbot that contains all relevant documentation, contracts, and work instructions.
Based on previous positive experiences with Pipple in the field of data, the decision was a quick one. Together, we launched a project that actively involved not only management but also employees on the front lines. “To truly understand the world of ABS, the Pipple team visited our location in Tilburg,” says Bert. “This was followed by sessions in Eindhoven, at various locations, and online.”
In short four-week sprints, we took one step at a time. After four to five sprints, Herbie was born. “Herbie is an AI chatbot that contains all relevant documentation, contracts, and work instructions. Employees can now simply ask their question, and Herbie immediately retrieves the correct answer from the available sources. No more thick manuals. No more bothering colleagues. Just immediate clarity.”
AI that only responds when it’s certain
For ABS, reliability was essential. In car body repair, misinterpretations can have immediate financial consequences. That’s why Herbie was designed so that the chatbot is only allowed to respond if the information can actually be found in the available documentation. That created trust.
Quickly gaining support within the organization
Technology is only valuable if people actually use it. That’s why, from the very beginning, a great deal of attention was paid to adoption across the branches. Bert: “By actively involving employees in the development process, ambassadors naturally emerged within the organization. In addition, a lot of attention was paid internally to Herbie’s capabilities. And it paid off! Since going live late last year, hundreds of questions are asked to the tool every month. Employees are getting better at finding Herbie, and usage continues to grow.”
Time savings and room for growth
Colleagues spend less time searching for information or asking experienced colleagues for advice. Even new or less experienced employees can work independently more quickly.
The impact is immediately noticeable. “Colleagues spend less time searching for information or asking experienced colleagues for advice. Even new or less experienced employees can work independently more quickly.”
In addition, ABS is already looking ahead. The initial focus was on supporting employees at the front end of the process. Now, the company is exploring new applications, such as automated email sending, customer contact, and further expansion to include technical documentation. According to Bert, the collaboration with Pipple was decisive in this regard. “Not only because of their technical expertise, but especially because of their practical input, enthusiasm, and ability to turn complex issues into solutions that really work.”
