Vehicles are an integral part of almost all business around the globe. They are used to transport goods, employees, services, and many more essential components. Even if a company does not own its own vehicles it does in a way use vehicles when you consider the whole supply chain and other factors.
So, all in all, we can agree that the use of vehicles is most important when it comes to growing businesses and hence it is also important to keep a track of them in every manner possible. Tracking in itself is important because in the end, it will help in controlling the lifecycle of the fleet which would in turn increase productivity, and efficiency, avoid risks, and so on.
Let’s discuss this topic in a little more detail.
Various vertices to fleet tracking
Fleet tracking is obviously a complex system that runs on a number of components. All of these components work together in harmony in order to achieve the aim – to help a business grow.
Vehicle Tracking
Tracking the vehicles in your business is essential due to many reasons. You should know the whereabouts of your fleet at all times. Technology advancements for IoT Fleet tracking now let you track all kinds of vehicles in real-time. The data is collected and dispatched by telematics to software being used by, let’s say, the managers who can then assess various situations and make decisions that would increase the efficiency of the whole operation. This kind of on-the-go tracking and command can help avoid a lot of potential losses and can catapult your business’s production.
Telematics
Telematics may sound like a concept from the future but in actuality, it is quite simple. You can think of telematics as a kind of a black box installed in vehicles that collect and transmits all kinds of information about the vehicle to the management software. There are a lot of things included in this like – vehicle velocity, range, fuel economy, load on the vehicle, which gear the vehicle is in, condition of the brakes and rash driving, and so on. There are some telematics systems that go all the way and relay information about things like an open door on the vehicle, ignition left on for too long, or panic alarms being activated.
Security
The security, in this case, is not just related to the security of the vehicle but also to the security of the driver and the general public.
In this era of technology, there is a lot of concern regarding cyber security. Since most of the vehicles have a computer chip and have an IoT-based platform it becomes imperative that the platforms are protected by strong encryptions.
The fleet management system in turn provides safety by offering things like biometrics so that the vehicle can only be opened or started by the registered driver. This helps in dealing with insurance claims, traffic tickets, and more. It also ensures the safety of the general public by relaying information about the rash driving of the driver to the company in charge.
The basic tracking feature obviously helps in keeping the whereabouts of the fleet known to the company which is again a huge safety factor.
Management Software’s
This is again something that helps increase the productivity and efficiency of the entire business operation. Management software’s is the backbone of fleet tracking systems. They collect data from all sources and display it in an organized manner so that the user can understand, plan and execute commands based on what he/she sees. It is a lot more than a simple GPS fleet tracking system. The data can include things like expenses, customer reminders, compliance tasks, over speeding, fuel economy, and many more. Having all of this in one place with the help of AI suggestions the management software is bliss when it comes to the management of the various components of the fleet.
Maintenance
It may not seem like much but the fact that fleet management software’s helps keep track of vehicle maintenance and its schedule is a huge help to a company. The vehicle fleets are obviously a huge investment of a company and their maintenance is vital for efficiency and productivity.
The management software helps keep track of the maintenance schedule which includes things like the last time the oil was changed, the time to get new tires, the condition of the brakes, the need for steering fluid, and so on. It is obviously hard to keep track of all these things and software handling all of this obviously makes it easy. Apart from setting reminders and alarms, the software can also help in fixing up service appointments or an order to import certain parts, and so on.
These software’s do all of this while suggesting the most cost-effective and productive ways to go about the maintenance of vehicles.
Fleet management systems are growing rapidly in the market. People are slowly finding the advantages of these systems and are inculcating them in their business. They have many benefits for businesses of all sizes and types. Thus it is important to know how they work and understand all their functions.