All posts by Andrew Kopecki

Public works are all around us. Roads, highways, drainage, water projects and sewers are all examples of public works activities undertaken by your town, county or state. Maintenance activities like snow and ice removal, solid waste pick up and pothole patching fall in this category too. Every community and individual has the same needs like disposing of their trash and clean water. When a community agrees to solve that problem collectively, public works begin.

To improve their operation, public works service agencies and contractors not only use the resources they have available, but plan for the future. Telematics solutions can absolutely improve both today’s operation and tomorrow’s planning.

There are different triggers for public works activity. Generally events fall into three categories: planned, urgent and emergent.

• Planned events are those that occur based on time such as solid waste pick up, most street sweeping or mosquito fogging. They are predictable and make up the bulk of activity.

• Urgent events are those that are expected but no one knows exactly when they are coming, such as snowfall or post storm debris removal.

• Emergency events are those that are outside the normal scope of a public works agency’s planning. These include both Urgent events that grow past typical scale like several feet of snow in an area that typically sees inches at most; and events that public works agencies must respond to outside of their usual scope such as terrorist attacks, pandemic, catastrophic flooding and riots.

At all three levels, telematics plays a role in providing better service and saving money.

For planned events, municipalities and other agencies can use telematics to support scheduling, equipment purchasing and preparation. Through telematics, public works leaders can confirm that equipment is in good working order with engine diagnostics, that implements such as leaf vacuums and sewer jetters are being used at specific locations to confirm service and that coverage is being achieved in an efficient manner. By doing more with less, an agency can save money and improve service.

By benchmarking capacity of current staff and equipment an agency and verify to legislative bodies the need for additional resources, or reallocate existing resources to other projects when excess capacity is detected. When combined with Geographic Information Systems (GIS) mapping of routes and service locations, a telematics solution can give real-time feedback on completion rates and allow agencies to proactively detect missed service and insufficient resources before constituents complain.

Public works fleet challenges and solutions

Urgent events present a public works agency with some of their biggest challenges. A fresh snowfall, new storm damage or a community event that leaves a significant mess are all examples of urgent events.

By developing Service Level Agreements (SLAs) for interagency activity and to the community a public works agency can clearly communicate their criteria for successfully handling an event. With telematics, measuring progress and confirming internal planning is followed an agency can be most successful in meeting that SLA. With the added benefit of route completion and spreader controller integration, the consumption of material such as salt and brine can also be managed in real-time to save money and protect the environment.

Benchmarking the clean-up or repair activity can again be valuable for a public works agency, for reporting back to their funding source, be it city council or a state legislature, to provide a clear return on investment for taxpayers.

Urgent events also produce the majority of claims of damage, where the agency is accused of having damaged private property during an event or of acting unsafely. Telematics solutions can confirm what safety equipment, such as amber lights and outriggers, were engaged, as well as speeds and locations of activity. Often it is discovered the wrong agency was accused of the damage where there is overlap between a city, county and private contractors.

Emergent events provide public works agencies with another opportunity to act as the first responders they are and get creative. While we all hope to never see these types of catastrophic events, they can and will happen. In these cases situational awareness is the key to success. There is only so much planning that can go into these types of events, and public works agencies are often called upon to work outside their usual jurisdiction doing things they don’t normally do.

During the recent COVID-19 pandemic, for example, many agencies were pressed into service moving mobile medical equipment, PPE and supplies between facilities to meet the immediate needs of the community.

Telematics solutions provide both emergency management groups not familiar with the assets of a given public works agency, and that agency’s leadership, an eye in the sky to confirm what assets are available, when and where.

Rather than waiting for individual radio or telephone conversations with drivers and supervisors, leadership can visualize what they have to work with and make decisions much more quickly. This is especially valuable when the public works agency is asked to join several other types of first responders in reacting to an event. In fact many regional governments will cooperate to purchase telematics that allows them to see their entire asset pool in one single view.

Whatever the situation, public works agencies are vital to our communities. Whether they are fogging for mosquitoes, plowing snow or patching potholes, their operation can be improved with telematics. Being able to plan work, execute the plan and allocate resources all require data that can most easily be generated by telematics. Systems integrations with work order management, GIS and public information software can all provide additional value.

If you’re interested in learning more about improving public works operations, our government fleet advisors will be happy to show you a demo on the different activities mentioned above. Schedule a demo now!

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Chevin strengthens its presence – and enhances its reach – in North America with reputable Geotab reseller, Advantage.

Fitchburg, MA – May 20th, 2021: Chevin Fleet Solutions, the leading global provider of smart fleet management software solutions, further cements its position in North America thanks to a new reseller partnership.

The innovative technology expert will work with New Jersey-based reseller, Advantage Asset Tracking, to promote and support the commercial side of its partnership with telematics giant, Geotab.

The mutually beneficial partnership will see a close working relationship between the two companies, sharing not only commercial opportunities for Geotab integrations and fleet management software alike, but industry intelligence, too.

The integration itself has been designed to help mutual clients increase productivity, decrease costs, and improve compliance across all areas of their fleet operation.

Chevin will continue to work directly with Geotab – and its clients – for all technical requirements relating to the integration with its signature fleet management solution, FleetWave.

Speaking on the new partnership, Will Wycks, Senior Vice President of Product & Marketing at Chevin, said:

“Chevin continues to strengthen operations in North America after realizing substantial global business growth last year, and our joint venture with Advantage is expected to boost this even further.

“The new partnership will add significant value for both new and existing clients, primarily by granting access to a goldmine of information about driver behavior and vehicle performance.

“With this level of intelligence at your fingertips, the possibilities really are endless. And we look forward to further developing our professional relationship in the coming months.”

Andrew Kopecki, CEO at Advantage Asset Tracking, said:

“Through the combined power of Chevin and Geotab in the form of a bilateral integration, Advantage Asset Tracking will bring to customers the performance of a fleet management information system that they’ve been asking for.

“With 10+ years of successful Geotab telematics implementation and Chevin’s preferred vendor status, we bring a best-in-class, hands-on level of support that the market has been craving, along with an additional layer of resources for its fleet management efforts.”

Earlier this year, we wrote a blog post on how governments can get more out of their fleets by implementing Geotab’s Keyless solution. Since then we received many questions from customers asking if Geotab Keyless is suitable for other types of fleets, whether for public car sharing, corporate motorpooling, key management automation, or new mobility business models. It’s become obvious that our customers need more advanced ways to control and manage keys.

Before we get into how Geotab Keyless can be of benefit to your fleet business, let’s first cover the basics:

What is Geotab Keyless?

Simply stated, Geotab Keyless is an ultra-flexible, scalable solution for digitized car keys.The Keyless technology allows users to embed the key of a vehicle into a cellular and Bluetooth connected piece of hardware that’s quickly and easily installed into the vehicle with no wire cutting. A driver can then unlock, lock, and enable the starter of the vehicle using an app on their mobile phone or NFC reader for their specified booking time, in or out of cellular coverage.

Keyless Hardware Add-On Connects Easily to the Geotab GO9

The Geotab digital key is based on our IOX architecture. It is a low cost Add-On hardware that plugs into the GO device to provide access and immobilization functions to the vehicle. We call it IOX-KEYLESS.

The IOX-KEYLESS is flexible enough to accommodate a number of different customer requirements, including:

• immobilization relays that can be used to more deeply secure the vehicle

• Bluetooth connectivity for access to the vehicle while out of cellular connectivity

The IOX-KEYLESS provides authorized fleet personnel the ability to manage the lock state of the vehicle through the GO device, as well as control the mobilization state of the vehicle over cellular or Bluetooth link, and/or using a IOX-NFCREADERA reader mounted on the windshield.

How Geotab Keyless Works

The system works on practically every modern vehicle and installation is simple. The IOX plugs into the GO device, and the GO device into the OBDII port. Geotab maintains the security of the digital keys throughout its lifecycle. Coupling the lock control functionality provided by IOX-KEYLESS with Geotab’s massive proprietary vehicle diagnostics database creates a secured and reliable shared-mobility solution for commercial fleets.

Changes in mobility have led to a need for new business tools. Digitization of the keyfobs itself is one of these tools. Another is a method for remotely assigning their drivers to their vehicles. In the case of public car sharing, this means one user can book a specific vehicle with some (if minimal) advance notice. For government and corporate motorpooling, this might mean allowing the user to reserve vehicles in the same way they might reserve a meeting room.

For simple key management, a set of drivers could share access to a particular vehicle simultaneously for many months. Geotab decided the best way to serve our customers was to partner with best-in-class software companies to provide market-focused solutions for each of these areas.

Is Geotable Keyless Suitable for Your Business?

The Keyless technology can be integrated into an existing vehicle reservation software with the Geotab API. Geotab is also integrated with industry leading vehicle reservation software partners that users could use.

Typically, only large organizations focused on car sharing would have their own vehicle reservation software where they would use the API to integrate into their software. The good news is that now smaller organizations, or organizations not focused on car sharing, could use one of Advantage’s vehicle reservation software partners who are already familiar with the Geotab API.

The standard usage model would be to use the Keyless and a reservation partner software, along with the main Geotab database, to track and manage a fleet. However, if a user is only interested in the Keyless/vehicle reservation software, Advantage can also offer an API-only plan wherein the user could utilize the Geotab Keyless hardware and Geotab API to integrate with the vehicle reservation partner without the main Geotab fleet management platform.

Ready to try a best-in-class digital car key that provides secured keyless access?

Geotab is currently offering customers free Geotab ProPlus + Keyless service for the first six (6) months with every purchase of a Geotab GO device and IOX-Keyless combo. Promotion ends July 31, 2021. Terms and conditions apply. Learn more here.

Technology has affected everything we do, from how we consume media, to how we purchase and receive goods, to how we stay connected when physically apart. It’s no surprise, then, that a key component of the American economy (the movement of goods, materials and other freight) has also adopted the use of technology to remain competitive, ensure efficiency and increase profits. Today, supply chain companies of all sizes are turning to transportation management systems (TMS) to save money, streamline logistics operations and improve customer satisfaction.

How To Select the Right TMS for You?

Selecting the best TMS for your business does not need to be hard. Basically, you will need to start by analyzing three things: your business operations, your goals and the TMS marketplace. When it comes to your business, examine how your company best operates and how it could most efficiently leverage a transportation management system. Having a complete understanding of how your company runs its logistics operations will give you a solid foundation to work from when selecting the right TMS.

In turn, to better understand your goals you’ll need to take a close look at what type of return on investment (ROI) you expect to see from a TMS. Ask yourself, what’s most important: saving time, saving money or avoiding errors? Once you have a clear picture of how your business best operates and how you’d like to enhance that with a TMS, then you are ready to look at the marketplace to begin to rule out options.

Systems that brand themselves as complete TMS solutions, but are in reality are only rate aggregators may not be able to meet your operational needs and goals. If you are looking for a place to conduct all of your logistics operations, you’ll know right away that a simple solution like a rate aggregator won’t work for your company. Alternatively, you may be able to eliminate other TMS solutions that require you to purchase all available features, even ones you won’t use. These considerations will help you to narrow down the field quickly.

Introducing Rose Rocket TMS for Geotab ELD Users

Geotab ELD users have the advantage of being able to choose TMS options that can be easily integrated. Advantage Asset Tracking is happy to report that Rose Rocket is now integrated with Geotab ELDs to enable real-time track and trace. The Rose Rocket TMS helps manage the unique needs of most of today’s trucking and other supply chain companies with one piece of software that optimizes operations from quote to profit. Rose Rocket allows companies to streamline communications between systems, enhance customer experience with shippers, and keep internal teams organized to improve service performance.

This integration allows Geotab’s GPS data to be mapped to Rose Rocket’s order and manifest data, allowing for three major benefits:

• Internal team members can now see real-time location data for manifests and orders right from within the TMS, allowing for better planning and faster response times.

• GPS data is used with geofencing technology to automatically update status on the Order or Manifest.

• This information can be made available directly to customers, which means fewer phone calls and manual status updates for your team, and higher control and satisfaction for your customers.

This integration is available free of charge for companies with an existing Geotab ELD subscription. If you are a Geotab ELD users looking to (1) centralize and automate your activities, messages and documentations on all orders so no details fall through the cracks; (2) simultaneously plan and dispatch different movements on a single manifest and see status updates for on-the-fly changes; and (3) improve your customers’ experience by offering their own private and secure Shipper Portal to create orders, track shipments, and upload documents, which in turn save you time, then call us today to learn how Rose Rocket can easily integrate with your Geotab software.

Advantage Asset Tracking and Geotab are pleased to present a new and exciting event: Leveraging Your Geotab Advantage!

On Thursday, May 20, join the Advantage team for an afternoon of entertainment and networking in partnership with Geotab.

Discover Marketplace product updates, learn more about Advantage Asset Tracking, stay connected with Geotab and so much more. Featuring a comedian (yes, you read that right), meet and greets with Geotab Marketplace Partners and more, this event is a one-of-a-kind can’t-miss experience.

Just in case you needed more convincing, we’ll also be holding live giveaways with some very cool prizes after each event session.

Save the date by registering today! https://docs.google.com/…/1FAIpQLSdUcfBMmUw51X…/viewform

We listed five great reasons why you will love this latest GO RUGGED model.

1.Rated IP68 and IP69K for reliability in all types of environments

Without question harsh weather takes a toll on fleet equipment and vehicles. But GO9 RUGGED is ready to take on any weather condition, any day. Feel confident knowing that this telematics device is designed for all elements.

The newly redesigned GO9 RUGGED allows for more robust and flexible installations. GO9 RUGGED is IP68 and IP69K rated. IP68 means that the product is dust-tight and protected against the effects of continuous immersion in water. IP69K means that the product is protected against high pressure water cleaning with water temperatures of up to 80 degrees Celsius.

A product’s IP Code rating tells you how resistant an enclosure is to the intrusion of dust and liquids. Developed by the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), the IP code is made up of two numbers, the first relating to solids and the second to water.

2. Real-time GPS tracking

The GO9 RUGGED has advanced GPS tracking technology like the Geotab GO. Know where your offroad equipment is at all times. Check MyGeotab to see the location and trip history. If your connected fleet asset is stolen, GO9 RUGGED can help you recover it.

Getting connected means you also have access to other telematics benefits like tracking idling and fuel use, plus access to engine data and diagnostic trouble codes for maintenance planning, and much more.

3. LTE connectivity

GO9 RUGGED supports communication on the 4G LTE network. Why does this matter? LTE connectivity provides faster speed and greater efficiency for cloud-based management processes. For fleet managers, this means real-time access to your driving and vehicle data and reports, when you need it. This feature is available in select markets.

4. Collision detection and notifications

Do you know if your equipment has been in a crash? With GO9 RUGGED your safety program will be supported with collision detection and notifications and you can set up a rule to trigger when there is a possible collision.

The Collision Reconstruction Add-In for MyGeotab lets you view, analyze and interpret collision data, and it’s free. Know where a collision took place and see the point of impact, as well as RPM and accelerometer graphs.

5. Over-the-air firmware updates

Manual firmware updates are a thing of the past. We deliver firmware updates for the GO9 RUGGED over-the-air. Geotab adds new features and carries out maintenance automatically and securely so you can focus on more important tasks.

See all the features and specs in the GO9 RUGGED Support Document.

A vehicle maintenance policy can help keep vehicles in good working order, no matter your fleet size. Having a robust set of policies is a best practice for fleet management as it has many benefits: supporting uptime, improving productivity over time, and optimizing resale value.

A written policy can also help promote a culture of safety among your drivers and other employees. Clear rules and procedures encourage others to look for and act on vehicle issues, protect themselves and others in the process, as well as reduce vehicle wear. A policy also provides important documentation in the unfortunate event of a collision or mechanical failure.

Here are three core reasons for setting up a fleet maintenance policy:

Duty of Care

This is the legal obligation of an organization or a person to avoid acts or omissions that are likely to cause harm to others. Having a well-communicated maintenance policy and program means an organization with fleets only sustains suitable, well-functioning vehicles by systematically maintaining and repairing them. Fleet managers should always be able to show a consistent history of compliance and enforcement.

Driver Safety

Creating a written vehicle maintenance policy helps to promote a culture of safety for drivers. Keeping a fleet in good working order helps mitigate driver risk, so that employees are not stranded with a broken down vehicle. Being consistent and specific is key.

Risk Mitigation

In too many fleets, maintenance is left up to the drivers, and there is little formal documentation on proper fleet maintenance procedures. A written policy that details all proactive efforts towards maintenance scheduling, record keeping and driver training can help. The end result is decreased risk and increased driver confidence by keeping vehicles in good working order.

How Can Fleet Technology Help?

Geotab and its Marketplace have many tools to help you stay on track with maintenance scheduling and understanding engine health, fuel levels, EV charging, and much more. Give Advantage Asset Tracking a call to learn more about how to create a vehicle maintenance policy and how to best utilize the Geotab Marketplace.

The 2020 Commercial Fleet Telematics and Data Analytics report, a series of forward-looking fleet technology publications from Escalent’s Fleet Advisory Hub, reveals that just 15% of fleets surveyed have adopted telematics solutions—primarily due to regulations (such as with trucking and transportation in response to Electronic Logging Devices mandates) or larger fleets looking to leverage economies of scale for increased return on their investments.

While the report shows a low market penetration, close to half (44%) of fleet decision-makers are actively shopping for telematics solutions—including 55% of those leading operations with 6–50 vehicles. Many decision-makers who have not yet adopted a solution are considering how to prepare their business for integration. The relatively low rate of adoption, in conjunction with a comparatively high rate of active shoppers and a general openness to the technology, reveals a market poised to explode.

Importance of Telematics Increases with Experience

Exhibiting value is key to driving adoption. Recognition of the importance of telematics’ role in managing the business nearly triples when knowledge of telematics solutions improves. Remarkably, 90% of fleet leaders with hands-on telematics experience rate the technology as “extremely important” or “somewhat important” to managing their business, according to the report. That’s an excellent sign that bodes well for the future of the market as long as providers bridge the experience gap and find ways to demonstrate the value of their products, both before and during implementation.

How We are Making a Difference

Advantage Asset Tracking has found bold and innovative ways to connect and communicate with prospective adopters. We capitalize on growth opportunities in this space by demonstrating our commitment to the success of our customers’ business. We strive to be excellent educators when describing specific features and work hard to establish personal relationships that allow us to evolve into a trusted advisor role. Our tangible use cases and coaching offer decision makers with evidence of how a data-driven management model can increase ROI the longer they stick with a telematics solution.

Did you know 23,000 of New York City’s fleet vehicles are equipped with Geotab’s fleet tracking solution? Telematics has been instrumental in helping manage and optimize the city’s expansive fleet. It has also played an important role in helping the city reach their goals through the Vision Zero program, an action plan designed to make the city’s streets safer.

When the city installed Geotab GO devices into their vehicles, they gained access to a key feature: real-time tracking. Keith Kerman, Chief Fleet Officer at the Department of Citywide Administrative Services, stated in a New York Daily News article that the technology cost roughly $3 million to deploy, but it has already paid for itself. He credited telematics for helping to reduce the fleet by nearly 1,000 vehicles based on better monitoring of vehicle usage.

For example; In January 2021, Geotab’s telematics solution was used to aid in the recovery of a stolen work truck, valued at $30,000, from the New York City Parks Department. Using the telematics device installed in the vehicle, authorities were able to track it from New York City to Virginia, where the thieves responsible were eventually arrested.

Notifications alert fleet managers to theft

Fleet managers are notified quickly through an alert called an “exception notification” if a theft occurs. The alert allowed them to track the vehicle’s progress as it traveled outside of the city limits and set into motion the cross-state search for the stolen vehicle.

Additional safety features for theft prevention

The solutions used to track and ultimately return the stolen vehicle in New York City are just a few of the safety features Geotab offers. Other solutions that could be useful in theft prevention include:

Geotab Keyless

Geotab Keyless is a scalable, digital key solution designed, in part, to protect fleet assets. The Keyless solution offers starter inhibit functionality which makes it much more difficult for vehicles to be stolen due to its advanced security features. Only pre-authorized users can access designated vehicles with a secure mobile digital key or near-field communication (NFC) tag.

Dash cams

Dashboard cameras are also a highly effective method of theft prevention. Having a dash cam in your vehicle allows you to record anything going on around your vehicle. It can also help you to potentially identify thiefs or spot landmarks to pinpoint a vehicle’s location.

How can you get your drivers to remember to plug in their EV when they return to the lot? How do you make sure a driver isn’t leaving the depot with insufficient charge? While these may seem like tough questions, they have simple answers: by utilizing MyGeotab rules for electric vehicles.

MyGeotab is an easy to learn, fleet management application that offers comprehensive solutions for collecting and managing data. For successful EV management, four new built-in electric vehicle (EV) rules have been added to the MyGeotab platform. These have been added to help manage EVs in the fleet, specifically related to charging activity. Here are the new rules and how they can help your fleet:

EV Low Charge

This rule helps you receive a notification to know when an EV has dropped below a specified charge percentage level and is at risk of not completing its daily routes. With this new custom trigger notification you’ll never have to worry about a vehicle not having sufficient charge to complete its route. Fleet managers can prevent EVs from getting stranded with insufficient charge, or forcing an unplanned charging stop during the day which would create a large productivity and time loss for the driver.

EVs Entering Zone with Low Charge

When an EV is returning to a depot or lot with sufficient low charge, it needs to be plugged in. This will provide drivers with a reminder that their EV needs to be charged. It can also help fleet managers identify which EVs need to be prioritized and charged first. Setting this rule to On via the built-in rule will enable it for all vehicles reporting values for Engine Measurement Generic state of charge, which will include PHEVs, BEVS, and some HEVs.

If you have PHEVs and HEVs in your database, we advise that you customize this rule, and use the Publish to groups option to only apply to a subset of the EVs in a Group, such as to a BEVs group.

EVs Leaving a Zone with Low Charge

This rule will trigger a notification when EVs leave a charging zone of the specified types while their battery charge is still below the configured value. This rule will be extremely useful for identifying EVs that are:

• Leaving an area which has a wider geographical safe zone with a low charge which will put their EV at risk of not having sufficient range to be able to return to a charging location.

• Leaving a lot or depot such as a city center without their vehicle not charged enough in order for them to successfully complete their route. This is useful in cases when EVs need a minimum charge to complete their expected route distance.

A fleet manager does what they can to ensure EVs are sufficiently charged before they start their day. Use this route to catch those exceptional times when your regular checks have failed.

EV Done Charging

This rule will trigger when an EV is charged to the configured value. This helps fleet managers prioritize charging schedules by knowing when an EV is done and fully charged so the next one can plug in. The battery charge takes into account the engine measurement generic state of charge. If your configured value is lower than 100%, change the default to whatever figure you would like to get the notification at.

How we can help

These rules above, plus the others available in MyGeotab, allow fleet managers to proactively manage their EVs to prevent issues and proactively measure performance. At Advantage Asset Tracking, we believe in “management by measurement,” and that is exactly what these rules are created for. As a fleet manager, you will be alerted when something is going wrong or about to go wrong, so problems can be solved quickly and more efficiently.

Contact us to see how you can take advantage of MyGeotab for optimizing your electric fleet.