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Spec’ing telematics systems is something many fleet managers are still getting used to, but with fuel prices rising and the cost of systems falling, now is an opportune time to get in the game.

With any new technology, there are the early adopters and those who arrive a bit later to the party, and telematics is no different. For every fleet person who has turned into a “true believer,” there is another who has no idea what telematics is, much less how it can help their fleet.

In a nutshell, telematics refers to a variety of ways that vehicles can exchange electronic data with fleet maintenance shops and operations centers: Tracking vehicles, monitoring speed and direction, identifying mechanical problems, plotting routes or reporting how long a vehicle was sitting with its engine idling. Telematics systems can send E-mail or other alerts instantly to fleet professionals, allowing for rapid communication and if necessary, corrective action.

With so many available choices, finding the right fit is not necessarily a quick process, but getting the options you need (and avoiding ones you don’t) is important, and it is going to take some forethought: Do you need a quicker way to get your delivery drivers to and from their stops? Are your drivers speeding or taking off-route trips? Are you looking to reduce engine idling time? Today’s telematics systems can help with these and many more issues fleets are facing.

Daily Tool

Western Distributing Company vice president Dino Guadagni says telematics has become critical to his business in recent years, making it important to have the latest technology to help improve his bottom line.

“We use it daily to monitor our drivers’ weekly and monthly MPG progress,” he says. “Fuel is a big issue for us and we have to monitor it as closely as possible. For our needs, the tracking is pretty hard to live without as we have the ability to identify issues with individual trucks and work on the next day’s loads. Without it, we go back to having to find all 245 trucks just to see if they are on time.”

There is still room for improvement, though. Guadagni says he would like to see more engine interface and trailer hookup options included in future systems, as well as a reduction in size, which would help sometimes-complicated installation and removal. Still, going to a telematics system is well worth the investment, he says.