Pictured: Steve Best (ACUTEC) with Richard Homfray (University of Wolverhampton)

A new online booking system that has brought students and their tutors closer together in one school at the University of Wolverhampton is set to be rolled out across the entire university.

The School of Applied Sciences at the university called in experts from West Midlands IT firm ACUTEC to improve the way students book time with their tutors.

The Coleshill-based company developed an application which manages the whole system and allows students to book a time and place to meet a member of staff.

Such has been the positive feedback from the 2,200 currently using the web-based system, all 20,000 students will now benefit from it from September 2012.

"It's hard to believe that many universities still operate on a 'post-it-note on the door system' for booking meetings between students and tutors," said Richard Homfray, Science Specialist IT Manager at the University of Wolverhampton.

"We wanted to use the latest technology to ensure maximum efficiency for the process and we are delighted with the result - it works extremely well for everyone.

"Student appointments are now timetabled, the system books the meeting room and checks the availability of the tutor. The room booking feature is extremely clever in itself as it does so based on the location of the member of staff, which is very convenient and is much more efficient all round.

"It also acts as a record as meetings are recorded so that students and their tutors have evidence of when they have met and what was discussed.

"The system has caught the eye of the rest of the university and now, with one or two tweaks from ACUTEC, could be ready to go live in September."

Steve Best, of ACUTEC, said it was a great example of where technology could ease the burden on an organisation.

He said: "Some might find it hard to believe that some universities and colleges use such an antiquated system for booking meetings but they do.

"The School of Applied Sciences at the University of Wolverhampton has tackled this head on and we have built them a robust system to handle this whole process.

"We are delighted that it is working so well and that the rest of the university is keen to follow suit and make use of the web-based system.

"It highlights where technology can really be a time-saver when implemented correctly. That is what we have done here and it means incessant calls to set up appointments are no longer necessary - it's now handled quickly and efficiently online.

"We look forward to working closely with the University of Wolverhampton on rolling this system out."

For more information on Acutec, view their website here: www.acutec.co.uk