Vehicle tracking systems have been available to fleet managers for some time and despite an initially slow uptake in the technology, they have now become very popular amongst those who run commercial fleets. Not only do they give fleet managers peace of mind knowing that they have the exact location of every vehicle in their fleet at any one time – they can also improve fleet efficiency too, an important factor during a time of economic hardship.
A GPS tracker works by using a triangulating algorithm to give the precise location of the vehicle it is fitted to. This information is fed through to a remote-operating centre, which can then chart the location of every vehicle in the fleet. Through this mapping system, fleet managers can prioritise routes or re-allocate a vehicle to a pick-up, minimising the time that the customer waits for their collection and maximising efficiency. The utility services and network companies running fleets of mobile engineers are also finding this system extremely useful, as it allows them to allocate call-outs to the nearest available vehicle. Courier and delivery services have been using vehicle tracking systems for several years and were the first organisations to really appreciate the benefits of such a system.
Vehicle tracking systems don’t just relay information on a vehicle’s location, though. Good quality systems can also provide fleet management professionals with additional information such as the speed of a vehicle. Speeding is an extremely inefficient operation as increased speed invariably means increased fuel consumption. Major fleets that have used these systems have been able to reduce their annual fuel bills by up to 40% just through the information provided by vehicle tracking systems.
By spending a little company capital at the outset, a GPS vehicle tracking system can help facilitate effective scheduling, which results in a reduction in the amount of time vehicles are standing idle or not being used at optimum efficiency. They can also reduce delivery time delays and improve supply chain management by enabling fleet managers to prioritise routes. This leads to better customer relations as fleet managers are able to give their customers more accurate estimated arrival times.
Another saving comes in a more unexpected area. Fleet insurance policies can be cripplingly expensive, particularly for small and medium sized companies. However, insurers now regard vehicle tracking devices as a major force in the fight against vehicle theft and offer substantial policy discounts for fleets with GPS trackers fitted. Faster recovery times of stolen vehicles, a reduction in the potential damage to stolen vans and cars by thieves and eliminating the need to hire replacement vehicles to cover the shortfall left as a result of a vehicle theft all add up to a considerable annual saving.
Vehicle tracking systems can also tell a fleet manager if vehicles are being used out of hours by drivers for their own, personal use. Technically, this could be regarded as misappropriation of a company vehicle and can cost firms a great deal of money over the course of a year. If a driver knows that their movements are being plotted by a remote GPS tracking device, then he or she will be less inclined to use a company vehicle inappropriately. Again, this all adds up to savings for the company.
In a time of recession, every business is looking for ways to improve productivity, efficiency and cut costs. Although it may seem strange to advocate spending money on a complex vehicle tracking system during these lean times, the long-term savings these systems represent are financially prudent and an essential part of effective fleet management.
Effective fleet management isn’t just about knowing where your vehicles are at any one time. Using vehicle tracking systems can increase productivity, cut down on fuel and insurance costs and streamline your organisation to maximise efficiency. Real time vehicle tracking enables you to do all of that without having to wait for someone to analyse the data days or even weeks later.
Real time tracking calculates the exact position of a vehicle at the current time and updates it constantly as time and the vehicle’s position changes. Information concerning the tracked vehicle is not delayed or recorded for post-analysis, but uses accurate GPS positioning and the mobile phone network for communication, updating in real time over the phone. GPS systems that utilise the satellite-based network rather than just relying on the mobile phone network have the advantage of extended coverage; helpful if your fleet operates in more remote locations.
Different technologies are used in real time vehicle tracking systems including vehicle tag-based AVI and video image processing. While these commercial image processing systems work well in free-flowing traffic, they tend to be less effective in congested situations or where built up areas cause shadows and lighting transitions to ‘mask’ the location of the vehicle.
Knowing exactly where your vehicles are in real time gives the fleet manager a huge advantage. It enables you to be far more streamlined in your operation, giving you the ability to make changes to planned routes in case of emergencies, breakdowns or other variables that may interfere with the usual routes taken by your vehicles. Something as simple as road works may mean that a planned collection from a customer is delayed. By utilising real time GPS tracking, a fleet manager can redirect the nearest vehicle to a destination, saving time, money and, most importantly, keeping the customer happy.
Real time tracking can also help fleet managers to ‘keep an eye in the cab’ of every vehicle on the road. The data sent back can immediately tell fleet managers of any deviation from set routes, whether drivers are using excessive speed or even help drivers out if they get lost. Real time tracking can also be used in emergency situations to notify Police or emergency services of the exact location of a vehicle if it is stolen or involved in an accident. This also gives a fleet manager the ability to re-route other vehicles to cover the deliveries or pick-ups effected by such a situation.
GPS tracking not only tells fleet managers about the vehicle, it can also be employed to keep track of the cargo as well. GPS trailer tracking are an excellent method of keeping track of the cargo being transported by the vehicle, particularly important if the goods are perishable or time-sensitive. The most up to date systems even employ 3D modelling, which involves recovering trajectories and models with high accuracy. These systems work well on small to medium sized fleets, but can become inherently complex on larger fleets. Region-based real time tracking uses a system of overlays identifying a connected region in the image associated with each vehicle and tracks it over time using a cross-correlation algorithm.
Modern real time vehicle tracking systems are becoming increasingly complex, but the information they provide is invaluable to effective fleet management. Although expensive to begin with, the long-term savings for any sized fleet can be considerable.
Things You Should Know About Fleet Vehicle Tracking
By. Aristalina
with traditional fleet tracking system, we will realize the costs associated, either with a small to medium size fleet of vehicles.
To operate efficiently and cost effectively make it even harder for small and medium sized fleets. These cost are often prohibitive for all but the largest fleets, for smaller fleets to use vehicle tracking to their advantage, we need in the way of more efficient
Appear at all of the options available and find the technology that provides the most value for the money invested is the important thing to do. GPS tracking represented a wholesale change in vehicle tracking technology, when it first became widely available.
does the latest technological innovation represent the “next big thing” in vehicle tracking and protection?
Sometime we might think that the latest technology would be more expensive rather than less expensive compared to traditional systems, but this is not always the case. As Auto Alert one example is the proactive vehicle tracking and protection system. It is the newest generation of tracking technology that monitors a vehicle proactively and can actually alert the vehicle owner right away if there is a problem.
This system uses a small tracking unit in the vehicle and a web-based interface that is accessible by mobile telephone, laptop computer, or PC. There is no additional infrastructure required and there are no monthly subscription fees.
This means new technology not only performs better but it is also more cost effective
Think about up front and ongoing costs
with vehicle tracking systems For the small and medium sized fleet operator, it can be difficult to get past the “sticker shock” of the up front costs associated. And quite often, this barrier is substantial enough to prevent those operators from moving forward with vehicle tracking.
For those who can get past the up front costs, the ongoing costs represent the next challenge. For a central call center are the largest expenditures that can be foreseen, Monthly subscription fees and ongoing labor.
With the most up-to-date tracking systems, these same operators will see rather a few differences in the costs associated. The vehicle units themselves are reasonably priced and there is no need for new infrastructure, making the up front costs much less. As for ongoing costs, the biggest difference is seen in subscription fees.
The newest systems, such as AutoAlert, do not need a monthly subscription fee and therefore price tag much less to operate over the long term.
GPS tracking systems are designed for tracking both vehicles and people. Employed as part of a business’s fleet management strategy, they can improve efficiency and reduce costs. They also allow a business to monitor its fleet, wherever the vehicles may be.
The principle technology behind these systems has been adapted from full cellular (GSM CDMA) systems and location specific (GPS) systems. GPS tracking uses a triangulation algorithm between the source of the signal (the GPS vehicle tracking system installed into the fleet vehicles) and Low Earth orbit satellites to pinpoint a vehicle’s position to within 12 inches.
The benefits of using vehicle tracking as a fleet management technique are numerous. Vehicle thefts cost insurance companies and businesses millions of pounds every year. GPS tracking systems are specifically designed to detect the vehicle’s movement and so can lead to a quick response and speedy recovery of the vehicle, minimising financial costs and possibly reducing the vehicle insurance premiums paid by the business. Some vehicle insurance companies offer insurance discounts for vehicles fitted with GPS tracking systems, so the savings could amount to a considerable sum.
Fleet management is all about maximising efficiency, reducing costs and maintaining excellent customer relationships. It is also about your visible reputation out on the road, particularly if your vehicles carry your company’s insignia or display your company name. Vehicle tracking systems can help in all these areas by ensuring that your drivers are taking the most efficient routes, are not wasting fuel by speeding excessively and are not damaging your company’s reputation by driving in a manner that portrays your company in a bad light. There is also a strong safety element attached to GPS systems, particularly in remote or hazardous locations.
GPS tracking can instantly alert a business to any problems or emergency situations. If a vehicle is involved in a road traffic accident, some GPS systems will alert the control centre immediately, meaning that emergency services can be mobilised quickly, even to the most remote locations. They can also act as a beacon for search and rescue teams if the vehicle has left the road and is hidden from plain sight. This gives your drivers the assurance that their personal safety is being looked after by the company, building a greater level of trust between drivers and management. This is also more likely to promote a healthier attitude to on-road use and a more responsible approach to the job – not to mention contributing to your health and safety obligations.
Vehicle tracking systems are easy to install and cost effective, making them simple to include in an overall fleet management strategy. Because the technology is now commonplace, there are systems that are suitable for fleets of any size – from a small business running only a couple of vans to a large fleet with different types of vehicles.
Modern technology, including GPS tracking systems, have been designed to make driving more efficient and much safer. It is particularly relevant to fleet management and can help a company run its fleet far more efficiently than in previous years. From safety issues through to helping a new driver become familiar with the most efficient routes and vehicle security, GPS tracking should be considered to be an essential part of fleet management.
For fleet managers, the installation of a vehicle tracking system into their fleet can lead to substantial cost savings and a more efficient fleet. The initial investment of a high quality system may be expensive, but GPS tracking can soon show a return on your investment by reducing excess mileage, preventing out-of-hours use and even saving on insurance premiums.
Vehicle tracking systems are designed for tracking both vehicles and people. Although fleet managers may initially meet some resistance from fleet drivers concerning the introduction of a vehicle tracking system, if the advantages are explained carefully most fleet managers say that the installation of the system is then welcomed by hard working drivers. Those who are perhaps taking advantage of an ‘out of sight, out of mind’ mentality will find that their actions are curbed, saving the company money as a result.
One of the main benefits of having a vehicle tracking system installed into a fleet is the reduction in insurance premiums that it may generate. Because GPS tracking means that the location of the vehicle is constantly monitored, stolen vehicles can be recovered quickly, minimising the risk of excessive damage. Vehicle theft costs insurance companies millions of pounds in claims every year, and the cost to the individual business (particularly small operations) can be far higher through the interruption of normal business, paying for replacement vehicles and loss of customer confidence through delays and items lost in transit. GPS tracking uses a triangulation algorithm to locate a vehicle quickly and good tracking systems can even issue a silent alert if a vehicle is moved when it should be stationary. This alert can be instantly relayed to the Police with a co-ordinate location, allowing them to recover the vehicle quickly.
Fleet management is not just ensuring that everyone is where they’re supposed to be and the vehicles are in good operational order. It’s also about maximising efficiency, reducing costs and maintaining good customer relationships. It’s also making sure that your public image on the road is a good one, particularly if your company vehicles carry recognisable company livery or are sign-written. Vehicle tracking systems can help to improve efficiency by ensuring that your drivers are using the most efficient routes and are not wasting fuel through excessive speeding (which can also damage your company’s reputation with ordinary members of the public). Using a comprehensive GPS tracking system, fleet managers can redirect the closest vehicle to a pick up, reducing waiting time for the customers and improving customer relations.
Vehicle tracking can also minimise the temptation for drivers to use their vehicles ‘out of hours’, thus increasing the cost to the fleet manager through excess wear and tear on the vehicles and increasing the potential for the vehicle to be damaged or stolen. If drivers know that the exact location of the vehicle is being monitored and that detailed information is being fed through to a central system as to the vehicle’s movements they will be less inclined to chance disciplinary action through inappropriate usage of company vehicles. All of this adds up financially, and by preventing these excesses through efficient fleet management and the incorporation of cutting edge GPS tracking systems, fleet managers can be responsible for saving the company a considerable amount of money.
Over 200,000 people suffer from vehicle theft in the UK every year. With car theft at such astronomical levels, anything that you can do to prevent your vehicle being stolen is going to be an advantage, saving you both time, money and keeping the cost of your insurance premiums down. Vehicle tracking systems and car tracker technology have become increasingly popular in the UK and can play a significant role in reducing car theft crime.
The advantage of vehicle tracking is that the movements of a car or van can be monitored in real-time, allowing the Police to respond to a stolen vehicle and reducing the recovery time significantly. This can mean a massive saving on expenses businesses face if their vehicles are taken, reducing the costs incurred by replacing stolen vehicles and minimising the potential for damage as the recovery time is so much quicker. GPS devices are small and easy to fit and is usually powered using its own, independent battery or by running from the vehicle’s battery. The system has other components such as Google maps or other location software, which is also installed into the owner’s phone or PC. This enables vehicle owners or those involved in fleet management to access real-time information on specific vehicles or even a group of vehicles.
Some vehicle tracking systems can also piggyback onto the vehicles immobilisation system, which can stop a car engine remotely if an alarm is triggered. Known as ‘Low-Jacking’, this system has proved to be popular in countries such as the US where vehicle theft is a major issue. Remote activation of the vehicle’s immobilisation unit combined with GPS tracking gives response units a specific target area to aim for to recover the vehicle.
The ability to track, locate and manage vehicles is critical to a company’s overall performance, particularly if that company relies on its fleet to carry out its daily business dealings. By using satellite GPS tracking, the location of any vehicle at any time can be monitored and out of hours activity can immediately send an alert to the central system. This could indicate improper use of a company vehicle by a driver or, more importantly, it could indicate that the vehicle is in the process of being stolen. A rapid response to this alarm can ensure that the vehicle is located and recovered quickly, minimising the impact to the business and reducing the cost of replacing or repairing a damaged vehicle. It can also have a significant impact on the company’s insurance policy as well, with many major insurers now actively promoting the inclusion of car tracking technology for commercial users and offering lower insurance premiums as an incentive to incorporate this technology into fleet management plans.
There are limitations to how accurate GPS devices can be. But in the UK, coverage is fairly comprehensive and the more satellites a GPS device can locate, the more accurate the information relayed back to the central system. Signal reception can be blocked by buildings, electronic interference, rough terrain and even dense foliage but continual research and development in vehicle tracking systems is eliminating these weak-spots in the system and giving vehicle owners comprehensive coverage across the UK. Installing vehicle tracking systems in the continuing war against car theft is having a major impact and is supported by the Police and government initiatives. Despite the initial outlay, the cost of installing a vehicle tracking system into a fleet of vehicles can, in the long term, prove to be financially beneficial and give fleet managers a more peaceful and worry-free night’s sleep!
Vehicle tracking devices can save your business significant amounts of money by providing you with information about inefficient practices that you would not easily be able to find out by any other means. Many problems associated with multi fleet businesses can be ironed out very swiftly when you have the right information. Essentially a vehicle-tracking device will provide you with a bird’s eye view from your computer screen of where your driver’s are, what they are doing and how they are driving. All of this information will help you make decisions that will improve productivity, efficiency and safety.
Knowing exactly where your drivers’ are at any one time has other multiple advantages in terms of analysing how your business is running in a very exact way and can even allow you to direct operations on a moment-to-moment basis. If for example a customer calls wanting something picked up, a tracking system would allow you to immediately locate your driver nearest to the pickup making it easy for you to direct them there.
Compare that with having to phone around your drivers to see if anyone is anywhere near the customer’s location, which is costly, time consuming and possibly inconclusive if drivers are unable to answer your call. Similarly you can improve communication with customers by giving them good estimates of the time a driver is likely to be with them because you can see exactly where they are.
Some vehicle tracking systems can provide you with information about how your driver is driving. Speeding, apart from endangering the safety of your staff and other road users, is also a huge waste of fuel and raises your costs unnecessarily; a tracking system would allow you to monitor this and have a word with individuals if necessary.
Many systems will give you a view of a map with an imprint of routes taken, popularly known as snail trails. With this you will be able to see if any of your drivers are making unauthorised stops or wasting time in other ways. It is not unfortunately unknown for drivers to take their time on a job so that they run into overtime pay rate hours. Monitoring them will eliminate this and the kind of honest hardworking drivers that you would want ought not to mind being monitored as they will know that all staff are being treated equally and fairly. It can be a source of resentment in workplaces if some staff are aware that other staff are not working as hard as them and that this is not being noted by management. It helps if everyone knows they are working on a level playing field.
It is also possible that some routes that drivers take may be longwinded quite possibly due to not knowing the area. From the computerised control centre, which has a bird’s eye view of the possible routes it will be possible to direct your driver to the most efficient route.
All in all, when you add up all the information gained from vehicle tracking systems and how you can then act on it, it can only lead to reduced costs and increased efficiency and productivity for your business.
Vehicle Tracking Systems used to be exclusive to larger companies who could afford them. Now, however, thanks to technological advances and the subsequent drop in prices, Vehicle Tracking is a facility that is open to companies of any size, who use fleets of cars, lorries and other vehicles. Yet, for many, the idea of fleet tracking is a new one and its unfamiliarity could mean that they are losing out on the many benefits it can provide.
Information is the key to running any successful fleet of vehicles, from taxis to couriers and delivery vehicles. At any given time, an operator should be able to say exactly where vehicles from the fleet are and this information can also be relayed onto clients. In addition, an operator should be able to verify a vehicle’s mileage against its fuel consumption and have an idea of when a driver is taking a break, ensuring that they are getting the required rest on long-haul journeys. This information is the foundation of good fleet management.
Using Vehicle Tracking Systems, it is possible to monitor these factors – and a few more besides. In today’s economic climate, a crucial part of fleet management is to ascertain whether fuel is being wasted or not. With the recent escalation of fuel-prices, every drop is important; misuse of fuel can put a small firm out of business. Vehicle Tracking also allows operators to know that a driver is where he says he is and even puts them in the position of being able to alert that driver to potential road problems or to simply find a more direct route. Economy of mileage also means economy of fuel and, as well as having obvious financial benefits, it can also be a step in the right direction to reducing a company’s carbon footprint.
Vehicle Tracking systems can also reduce the amount of ‘hanging around’ that many drivers have to do. In the event that a vehicle has made its destination ahead of schedule, the operator may be able to put that vehicle to good use in its current vicinity, rather than have it waiting for the next job. Using the system this way can not only increase a company’s efficiency, but also its productivity; efficiency can increase a client’s trust in a company and has the potential to lead to greater sales.
The vehicles themselves are major capital investment for the company and, despite insurance, the damage or theft of a vehicle can cause serious problems for the fleet who have to work to compensate for the absence of that car, lorry or bike. Vehicle Tracking not only makes it easier to recover stolen vehicles, it also makes it possible to reconstruct accidents more accurately. Faulty vehicles can be reached more quickly and those that run out of supplies or parts can be replenished with greater effectiveness.
While Vehicle Tracking Systems may not be initially popular with all those who have them installed, they can only benefit the company which, in turn, can only benefit its employees. The preconceptions of it being a tool with which to spy on people are being replaced by a more perceptive attitude that views Vehicle Tracking Systems as impartial collators of information that can be useful to both employers and employees alike.