Fleet Monitoring – By Expert Business Solutions
If you run a fleet for a small business or a larger corporation, you’re likely to use a combination of heavy and light-duty equipment to suit your needs. If you run a company with a lot of vehicles, you know how difficult it is to keep track of them all the time. Misplacing or losing an asset can be a significant financial loss for your business, as well as a significant disruption to day-to-day operations. By providing accurate information about your assets’ position at any given time, an asset tracking system can make this step simpler.
Asset tracking allows you to know where your physical assets are at all times. Knowing where it is at any given time is critical for most businesses that operate complex fleets of movable and fixed assets across various job sites and on the road. Asset management systems also offer fleet managers the ability to log in to a centralized database and look up information about their assets no matter where they are. This means that fleet managers can access real-time asset data whether they’re operating from the office or at a remote job site.
Why Asset Tracking is a Must-Have
Using some kind of asset tracking for your vehicles will help you save money on administrative costs. Tracking mobile assets is currently one of the most challenging aspects of fleet management. The only way to avoid having to spend more time and money manually monitoring your vehicles is to use automated tracking processes. It also gives you information about engine time, asset idling and consumption, speed, and other factors. Companies can better understand their efficiency and gain insight into project management by tracking both jobsite and on-road properties.
Real-Time Asset Tracking
Real-time asset tracking has redefined many industries around the world by giving customers and business leaders real-time connections to all their vehicles. All businesses want to stay updated on a vehicle’s position and speed, whether passive or real-time. GPS monitoring keeps you up to date on the status of your vehicles and cargo in real-time, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Real-time asset tracking is important for businesses because it gives you a clear picture of the various activities that take place within your boundaries. It answers the questions below while saving you time and money.
- For starters, where is the asset now in relation to its destination?
- In terms of personnel, who is assigned to the asset, and is it possible to contact them?
- What is the current state of efficiencies? Are things on time, ahead of schedule, or behind schedule?
- For forecasting, how long is it going to take?
- For location-based information, is the asset on-site or off-site?
What a Fleet can Benefit from an Asset Tracking Solution
An asset tracking solution can support a company in a variety of ways, but there are three main advantages that fleets can take advantage of on a daily basis:
- Track real-time location – Asset tracking software uses GPS asset tracking to provide fleets with real-time insight into the whereabouts of their assets. Additionally, with the ability to build customizable geofences—or virtual boundaries around an area—fleets can safely assume that their assets are exactly where they should be, or obtain geofence notifications if they aren’t. This is especially useful if a fleet manager needs to be able to spot stolen equipment or unauthorized use when he is not on the premises.
- Improved performance – Assets are costly to own and maintain, particularly when maintenance and storage costs are factored in. That’s why it’s crucial for fleet managers to know how each asset is performing in comparison to its capacity. Certain asset monitoring systems provide insights into how an asset is used, which can help fleets drill down on this data. This will help fleets improve asset ratios and even increase revenue by relocating underutilized assets to places where demand is higher.
- Managed inventory – With asset tracking software, you can easily search for equipment by position, name, category, or custom sector, automating your fleet’s inventory tracking. This segmentation allows fleet managers to check in on assets from remote locations and gives them insight into their entire asset inventory from a single dashboard view. By presenting yard spotters with the exact location of an asset, fleet managers may reduce yard hunts and capitalize on unforeseen but profitable loads by quickly determining if an asset is in range and available for a requested job.
Preventative Maintenance with Asset Tracking
Unlike paper documents, where drivers or operators can easily make an error, electronic monitoring reliably records machine hours and mileage. It can also provide integrated fault code monitoring, which sends out warnings before engine faults become a problem. This allows fleets to remain on top of necessary and preventative maintenance, reducing the chances of a malfunctioning or broken piece of equipment delaying a project’s completion. It also ensures that they comply with all applicable legislation and decreases the risk of injuries caused by issues such as a loose machine guard or machinery that shuts down unexpectedly.
Over-the-Road Fleet Operations with Asset Tracking
Asset tracking for over-the-road vehicles can also save money. Fleet managers can fix risky driving habits that result in collisions, penalties, increased fuel consumption, and higher insurance rates by using data on speeding, rough braking, and cornering. Asset tracking can also assist with route optimization, helping drivers to select the safest route around weather, traffic, and other road hazards.