The Quest For Total Control
Commercial vehicles are, by definition, mobile entities and should, in an ideal world, be out on the road notching up ton-kilometres as much as is legally permissible. For truck fleet owners, this reality is fraught with peril. Africa's roads are dangerous, where unroadworthy vehicles, poor driving, crumbling road surfaces and hijacking all add to the operational risk of the truck fleet.
For commercial fleet owners and managers, out of sight' is definitely not out of mind' and in order to remain solvent in these trying financial times, they need to be super vigilant and proactive in managing their on-road risk. Paul Collings speaks to a selection of South Africa's suppliers of Fleet Management and vehicle tracking systems for some pointers on how best to gain 'Total Control' of those mobile assets.
There are four distinct components to any commercial vehicle - the rig, the driver, the cargo and its 'operating environment'. While operators have little control over the latter, they certainly can do much to ensure the safe and efficient movement of the other three components of their 'asset base. Fleet Management and Vehicle tracking systems are designed to give fleet managers greater visibility of their vehicles while they're on the road doing business. By using the data generated by these systems, virtually all operational risk areas can be monitored proactively, helping fleets reduce running costs while enhancing their overall competitiveness.
Hardware and Software
The evolution of truck electronics and ICT (Information and Communications Technology) over the last decade has enabled a direct real-time flow of mission-critical information between vehicle and home-base. Today, FM/tracking units (black boxes) are able to plug directly into the truck's on-board computer (OBC) via CANbus and deliver highly accurate data on vehicle status, its mechanical integrity and geographical position, identifying exactly where it is being abused.
The 'convergence' of computer software/internet, cellular (GSM/GPRS) and satellite communications technologies has brought about a new paradigm in the commercial transport industry, where fleet managers can help prevent disaster by identifying risk areas within the fleet using the reports generated by Fleet Management software.
These risk areas are numerous but what follows is an encapsulation of the most threatening, with advice on how to best to mitigate them from our friends in the know.
Fuel Control
Diesel has always been a sore point with fleet owners and not only because of its price. Excessive diesel consumption and indeed, diesel theft, continue to plague the bottom lines of most truck fleets. The good news is there are ways to curtail the ubiquitous 'vanishing' of fuel.
The AFS Group, a leader in automated refuelling technology, supplies eFuel, amongst other fuel management solutions, to a number of its clients to monitor
fuel consumption and curb fuel mismanagements, says AFS Group Account Manager, Lisa Esch.
"eFuel is a card-free, cash-free system which enables drivers to procure fuel and oil at a participating retail service station or home-base station using the AFS technology. The options of on-road and home-base requirements are not mutually exclusive as AFS can combine these into a single, integrated solution.
|
