[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text disabled_on=”|off|” admin_label=”Blog Introduction” _builder_version=”4.18.0″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n
Let’s face it \u2013 most people don’t think much about all the commercial vehicles on the road. For most drivers, they’re big, heavy, slow-accelerating impediments to getting where they need to go.<\/p>\n
What they don’t realize is the huge role technology plays in getting those commercial vehicles around safely and efficiently.<\/p>\n
That technology is called telematics.<\/p>\n
It’s not exactly everyday vocabulary for most people. In short, telematics is the technology and practice of sending, receiving and analyzing information via telecommunications.<\/p>\n
It also happens to be the basis for businesses to keep track of their vehicles and other mobile assets (trailers and generators, for example).<\/p>\n
[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text disabled_on=”|off|” admin_label=”another name for tracking?” _builder_version=”4.19.4″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” hover_enabled=”0″ use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_margin=”50px||||false|false” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n
Is Telematics Just a Fancy Way to Say “GPS?”<\/h2>\n
If you’re thinking about GPS, you’re on the right track. Like a simple GPS tracker<\/a>, telematics is based on devices installed inside vehicles, which then use cellular networks to transmit data back to servers either hosted by the provider or a third-party cloud server. Then, the data stored in the cloud makes the information available to access from any device with an internet connection. The GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System)<\/a>, a network of satellites that help triangulate the location of a device, is what makes all of this possible.<\/p>\n But there’s more to it now, especially with the emergence of smart cameras.<\/p>\n Just about everyone uses GPS for navigation in their personal vehicles, right? But nobody really thinks of that as “telematics.”<\/p>\n Telematics<\/strong> brings a level of analysis on top of simply a driver knowing there they are. To fit the definition of telematics, you also need visibility into speed, braking, maintenance, and even time of day.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.19.4″ background_image=”https:\/\/www.gpsinsight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Blue-Gradient-Pattern.png” background_size=”stretch” max_width=”700px” custom_margin=”30px||||false|false” custom_padding=”50px||50px||false|false” border_color_all=”RGBA(255,255,255,0)” border_style_all=”none” box_shadow_style=”preset3″ use_custom_width=”on” width_unit=”off” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.16″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.19.4″ _module_preset=”default” text_text_color=”#FFFFFF” header_3_font=”|600|||||||” header_3_text_align=”center” header_3_text_color=”#FFFFFF” background_enable_image=”off” custom_margin=”|100px||100px|false|false” custom_padding=”||||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n Find out how much a GPS Insight solution will be for your fleet.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_button button_url=”\/forms\/get-pricing\/?utm_formpage=GPS” button_text=”Get Pricing” button_alignment=”center” _builder_version=”4.19.4″ _module_preset=”default” custom_button=”on” button_bg_color=”#e51b24″ button_border_color=”RGBA(255,255,255,0)” button_border_radius=”100px” background_layout=”dark” custom_padding=”||||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][\/et_pb_button][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.19.4″ max_width=”800px” hover_enabled=”0″ use_custom_width=”on” width_unit=”off” global_colors_info=”{}” sticky_enabled=”0″][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.16″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text disabled_on=”|off|” admin_label=”how it helps” _builder_version=”4.19.4″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” hover_enabled=”0″ use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid” global_colors_info=”{}” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n Many organizations rely on vehicles to generate revenue. The scope of these organizations ranges from a three-person pool cleaning company to your hometown’s trash collection trucks and response vehicles, up to nationwide logistic firms sending semi-trucks on cross-country trips. Most of them find the increased visibility provides huge improvements in accountability, compliance, efficiency, and safety.<\/p>\n Here are a few examples of each category:<\/p>\n With telematics providing insights into vehicle use, you’ll have a level of accountability that was never possible before. You’ll also find that people who depend on you, whether customers or constituents, will feel like you’re truly delivering for them.<\/p>\n Here’s an example: When winter rolls around and snow starts falling, many residents count on their cities or towns to clear the streets. If residents don’t feel safe to drive or they simply can’t, they’re going to complain.<\/p>\n Telematics can prove which areas were services and when. With certain types of equipment monitoring, it’s even possible to tell when a vehicle raised or lowered its snowplow. That’s great for confirming which streets need more attention.<\/p>\n It’s also a perfect way to let people who rely on you know that help is on the way.<\/p>\n We mentioned trucking earlier in this blog post. You know that the trucking industry runs on a complicated set of regulations. Telematics can help truckers, dispatchers, and business owners comply with those regulations.<\/p>\n For example, the Hours of Service regulations ensure that your drivers aren’t too fatigued to operate a Class 8 vehicle safely. Electronic Logging Devices and software aim to simplify complying with these regulations \u2013 and to provide drivers with accurate logbooks should they be inspected for any reason.<\/p>\n Quick \u2013 think of ways to waste fuel and time.<\/p>\n If you thought of speeding, bad routing, excessive idling, and vehicle breakdowns, you hit some of the most-common ones.<\/p>\n Telematics can help with all of these problems:<\/p>\n Speeding burns more fuel than obeying the speed limit. Above 55mph, the effects of speeding get even higher. GPS tracking can send automatic alerts whenever your driver exceeds the posted speed limit by whatever amount you set.<\/p>\n Getting from Point A to Point B is critical. It’s also a vector for wasted time and fuel. If your employees are taking the long way to the job, they will take longer to arrive and waste more fuel in the process. Telematics can provide insights that show you how employees are getting to job sites. By knowing the locations of your vehicles, you can assign the drivers and technicians who are closest to customer sites, which saves time and fuel.<\/p>\n If your employees leave the motors of their vehicles running, they’re cutting into your bottom line. Telematics can show you when vehicles are idling, but it can also tell you when idling is actually getting work done. This will equip you to eliminate “true idle.” Also, some commercial vehicles don’t track engine hours. Since odometers also don’t track idling, your vehicles might get used far more than their mileage indicates. That can create waste in the form of excessive wear and tear.<\/p>\n It can be hard to keep track of vehicle maintenance: Which ones are due for an oil change, when did the brakes get services, how long ago did your trucks get a new set of tires? Telematics can eliminate the guesswork. You can schedule and track maintenance to ensure that you keep vehicles out on the road rather than wasting time and resources on unscheduled maintenance.<\/p>\n Earlier, we mentioned how GPS tracking<\/a> can help you reduce speeding. It can also address harsh driving and seatbelt use. It’s the AI-equipped smart cameras that are poised to make the biggest impact on safety. The very most-effective models can automatically track and analyze every minute your vehicles spend on the road. These cameras automatically tag both bad and good driving events and provide a monthly safety score for the entire fleet and individuals.<\/p>\n Some smart cameras can identify behaviors including distracted driving, following distance, stop sign\/red light violations along with a number of positive driving actions.<\/p>\n For example, a GPS tracking solution can show that your driver made a harsh stop. It can automatically inform the management team of the harsh stop. Since there’s no context, this can look bad for the driver. The right smart camera, though, can show that the driver made the hard stop to avoid a child who suddenly ran into the street. The Driveri camera can automatically analyze scenarios like these and even award a Driver Star that increases the driver’s safety score.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text disabled_on=”|off|” admin_label=”summing up” _builder_version=”4.19.4″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” hover_enabled=”0″ use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid” global_colors_info=”{}” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n Even if you’ve just thought of it as GPS tracking, telematics is already making a huge difference for businesses in governments. More than half the commercial and government vehicles you see are equipped with telematics in some form.<\/p>\n The organizations that own these vehicles are finding that telematics is helping them get more from their vehicles and their employees. Some of them are also considering whether their current solution is getting results that matter.<\/p>\n You can learn more by reading our \u201cThird Level Telematics<\/a>\u201d blog post. This post discusses why it\u2019s important to approach this issue with a strategic mindset. And it provides an overview of the innovative ways companies can use these technologies. You\u2019ll get a better idea of how to approach fleet management on levels beyond \u201cdots on a map.\u201d Finally, you\u2019ll discover ways to mitigate your risk, increase profits, and cut inefficiencies.<\/p>\n By that point, you’ll have a ready answer if your organization’s decision makers ask “what is telematics?”<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" What is telematics? Read this blog to understand what telematic systems are and how they can help you overcome your fleet challenges.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":43,"featured_media":19307,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":" GPS Insight has been selected by Garmin to integrate with the fleet 590 device, which is a portable device that combines GPS tracking<\/a> capabilities for fleet management and the simplicity of Garmin navigation.<\/p> Since outside sales teams are typically given a company leased vehicle, reps use them for work and for personal use. The issue lies with tracking their employees during off hours and weekends. Sales reps understandably don\u2019t want their employer having insight to what they do with their personal time.<\/p> The Garmin fleet 590<\/a> device can be taken out of the vehicle on evenings and weekends so that the invasion of privacy conversation goes right out the window.<\/p> The fact that the majority of GPS tracking software providers sell hardwire installed devices is a problem for companies with outside sales teams, like pharmaceutical companies, seeing as they usually lease vehicles. Fleet managers do not want the hassle that comes with messing with wiring on a vehicle they do not own. This would also make it cumbersome to move the devices from vehicle to vehicle as new reps leave and come on board or as vehicles get traded in.<\/p>[caption id=\"attachment_1989\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"300\"] The Garmin fleet 590 device plugs into the cigarette lighter for power and ignition on\/off recognition. This device works perfectly for companies with leased vehicles, because all professional installation costs and downtime are eliminated.<\/p> With those 2 obstacles aside, GPS tracking software provides not only fleet managers with an array of benefits, but it also supplies sales managers of outside sales teams with powerful information, they wouldn\u2019t otherwise have, to help optimize sales operations.<\/p> GPS tracking software is a powerful tool for sales management and fleet management. Coupling the fleet 590 device with advanced GPS tracking software gives companies with outside sales teams what they need to take advantage of the many benefits and increase their bottom line.<\/p>Get a custom price quote.<\/h3>\n
How Telematics Helps Organizations With Their Vehicles<\/h2>\n
No matter the size or mission, any organization can make enormous gains from better understanding how their mobile resources \u2013 which includes vehicles, trailers, snowplows, generators, and more \u2013 get used every day.<\/p>\nAccountability<\/h3>\n
Compliance<\/h3>\n
Efficiency<\/h3>\n
Speeding<\/h4>\n
Bad Routing<\/h4>\n
Excessive Idling<\/h4>\n
Vehicle Breakdowns<\/h4>\n
Safety<\/h3>\n
But the biggest safety advance in telematics is coming from in-cab cameras.
Vehicle cameras<\/strong> are available in many different forms, ranging from the standard dash cam you could buy on Amazon to smart cameras equipped with Artificial Intelligence.<\/p>\nFinal Thoughts on the Question “What is Telematics?”<\/h2>\n
![\"\"](\"\/\/www.gpsinsight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/gps-tracking-outside-sales-teams-e1387578089373.png\" "\\"gps-tracking-outside-sales-teams\\""){kind=tracking}
<\/a>For the most part, companies with outside sales teams, such as pharmaceutical companies, have not adopted GPS tracking software to monitor their reps. There have been a number of reasons as to why they haven\u2019t, two of which being privacy issues and the hardwired installation of the devices. These are two legitimate issues that we have the answer to.<\/p>Problem #1: Invasion of Privacy<\/h2>
Problem #2: Installing a GPS Tracking Device<\/h2>
![\"Garmin](\"\/\/www.gpsinsight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/cf-lg.jpg\" "\\"Garmin")
<\/a> Garmin fleet 590 GPS tracking device[\/caption]How GPS Tracking Benefits Outside Sales Teams<\/h2>