The transport industry is under siege, not only with fuel price and legislation increases, but also with widespread unrest, looting and violence against drivers. Mtrack focuses on three key areas to assist our clients – safety, visibility and productivity.
Safety
Let’s talk about safety first as that really should be our primary concern right now. Our collective drivers who are responsible for moving virtually all cargo in South Africa are under attack on an unprecedented scale.
Every day there are literally hundreds of protests taking place throughout the country. Roads are blockaded, tyres are burnt. In the best scenarios it is an expensive inconvenience. In the worst of these cases drivers are injured or killed, cargo is looted and trucks are stoned or burnt. These incidences can happen at very short notice and often without warning, and it is essential then to be able to notify the driver in time and divert his truck to safer routes.
Proper route planning is therefore crucial. Mtrack’s Gold Level partnership with TomTom allows this and many other vital features. Effective control of route planning also dramatically reduces the distances travelled (and claimed for), as well as supplying up-to-date information on drivers’ remaining driving times. In so doing the maximum driving time for each day is optimised and the dispatching process is improved, all reducing operating costs.
Mtrack’s other fleet management products have additional security features such as panic buttons, driver ID with immobilisation, trailer unhitch alarms, anti-jamming etc.
Visibility
With so many incidences occurring, having increased visibility of what happens in and around the truck is of paramount importance. Even without the unrest element, having sight of the goings-on around your vehicle is extremely useful in the event of any insurance claim and in order to ensure that your drivers are abiding by your rules and with legislation.
Mtrack has a number of camera systems available, from a standalone DashCam to EdgeCam which can be remotely viewed, all the way up to a fully-fledged Mobile Digital Video Recorder system with multiple cameras. Push-to-Talk communication with the driver is also available through the EdgeCam Pro.
Cameras are extremely useful in proving exact liability at the time of an incident, as well as for training and disciplinary purposes amongst other things.
Productivity
Finally, enhancing productivity is the third crucial component. With margins under increasing pressure, ensuring efficient operational control, driver and vehicle management is crucial to the financial survival of our clients.
Reliable vehicles are an absolute necessity to achieve high standards of service-delivery. Effective vehicle management ensures that repairs and maintenance of the vehicle fleet and small plant is maintained with timeous service intervals (electronic reminders), so extending the life of the assets, especially in the light of limited funds for replacement.
The vehicle data provided via CANBus includes essential information such as odometer, trip distance, fuel management, water and oil pressures, engine hours, service notification etc. Prevention of unnecessary costs before they are incurred is far more effective than trying to recover them afterwards.
On the other hand, it would be folly to believe that all drivers always act in the best interests of the company. Not all drivers are reliable or conscientious, and this is the source of huge wastage. Electronic Driver Identification will prevent any unauthorised person from moving, driving or operating any vehicle unless they are fully authorised to do so. Trip authorities are no longer necessary as the driver is clearly identified.
Driver rating/scoring profiles can be created, enabling user defined driver scorecards to be implemented and monitored. In so doing, poor drivers can be easily identified and counselled.
Active monitoring of abusive driver behaviour within the user-defined parameters allows effective monitoring of factors causing excessive wear and tear such as excessive idling, harsh braking, over-revving and harsh acceleration. The analysed information provides the operator with a valuable tool to minimise fuel and maintenance costs while maximising safety.
Vehicle or driver curfews can be set preventing vehicles and/or drivers from operating at configurable times, and new legislation regarding maximum time drivers may drive for before having to rest can also be monitored and enforced.
Full visibility of routes ensures that drivers do not deviate from the shortest route to the destination. This prevents drivers from serving private interests, or conveying, loading or unloading any private property or goods or entering any unauthorised premises or areas. It also ensures maximum operating efficiency at minimum expense.
The management of driver behaviour means that all vehicles are driven in a safe and courteous manner, which enhances safety and public image. Not only is efficient route planning important, but fuel control and managing fuel theft takes on added importance. Mtrack has effective anti-fuel theft technologies, preventing any person from unlawfully removing fuel from a vehicle through the use of fuel cap sensors and ultrasonic fuel sensors.
As far as the tracking and monitoring of containers goes, Mtrack also has products developed specifically for this application such as GPS systems and intelligent container locks (Mtrack Powerlock) which offer both physical as well as electronic security.
Finally when all else fails and there is theft, there is the Mtrack range of wireless asset recovery devices. Due to its portability and size, Mtrack is easy to conceal on whatever item, container, vehicle or other asset which needs to be secured or tracked. The device is wireless and can easily be installed by the user, and it has a self-contained battery and therefore does not need an external power source.
All Mtrack GPS products use a reporting and mapping system that is completely web-based. You can easily manage your assets from anywhere in the world with an Internet connection.
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