TechWave Solutions - Geotab Dealer - North West Province

18/03/2016

GeotabAfrica - Social Unrest and Risk Management with thev Geotab GO-TALK

Unfortunately Social unrest and trucks being burnt to the ground is becoming a real risk... and our customers are looking for answers to allow pre-warning their drivers of these "hot spots" across the country, as it happens, when it happens...and only to the drivers that may be entering such an area

We have tested our instant zone creation combined with our in-cab VOICE ALERTS using the GEOTAB GO-Talk device to facilitate this requests, and the results are very promising and could save our customers significant damage and losses...

So the system works as follows...as social unrest and risk areas are reported our customers create a temporary risk area zone instantly within the GEOTAB system, using our highly accurate zoning system (sub 3m accuracy)...if any driver within the fleet enters the specific area a voice alert is sent via the GEOTAB Go-Talk interface... and in an in-cab VOICE COMMAND will inform driver that he/she is entering a social unrest area, and thus driver could perform required action as required by company...

The impact of being able to alert only the affected fleet, instantly, is immensely powerful and aids not just in managing risks of material nature but also to aid in not spreading panic and concern where it is not required...

If you want to find out more just send a mail with your contact details to [email protected] and GEOTAB will arrange a visit to showcase the solution to you with a live demonstration.

18/03/2016

GeotabAfrica - Route Optimization

Not too long ago drivers of fleets were working from paper maps with directions laid out on paper, in addition to their own memory to come up with the best possible route for reaching desired destinations. But with the introduction of advanced technology and fleet management solutions, companies and organizations with large fleets have recognized the significance of route optimization for improving overall fleet efficiency.

In an economy of rising fuel prices, routing has proven to be one of the most important features in fleet management. It can significantly increase the efficiency and productivity of the fleet while simultaneously reducing costs. The routing aspect of fleet management has always been especially important to fleet managers.

For instance, a fleet manager at a parcel delivery company would be responsible for scheduling a delivery plan every day for each driver using the optimal route. The driver would then follow the pre-scheduled route. While this may have been sufficient, it was not the most efficient form of management – there was room for simplification to increase productivity. With the integration of routing into the ever-advancing fleet management systems, drivers now follow pre-scheduled routes that have been imputed into the system and sent directly to the specific driver. At the end of the day, fleet managers are able to observe whether the driver has followed the provided route and can then use this as a determinant of individual productivity.

In the MyGeotab fleet management software, users can easily create a route consisting of multiple zones on a map, which the driver can then see from the GPS device in their vehicle.

Geotab also provides a simple way to compare the planned versus actual routes, as well as important information such as:

Expected arrival time
Actual arrival time
Stopped zone
Idling duration
In addition, managers can access the Route Summary Report to find out the number of routes that have been followed over any given time period. This will allow them to acquire a complete summary of the entire fleet. Through the Route Summary Report, users also have access to important routing information such as:

The route name
First departure
Last arrival time
Office duration
Home duration
Driving distanc

The routing calculation itself can be very complicated.
Many large corporations have developed their own routing calculation system over the years based on their own requirements. Creating thousands of routes one by one, however, is a huge task – especially when routes change over time. In order for users to integrate their routing calculation into the MyGeotab system, and make good use of other fleet management features,

MyGeotab provides a comprehensive solution where users are able to import their routes using the SDK.

In a typical case, with the help of the SDK users can import vehicles, drivers, zones, and routes in just a few API calls, and MyGeotab will automatically pick up the route definition. The fleet manager can then go to MyGeotab to view the routes, dispatch the routes, and run different reports over these routes. In addition, because of Geotab’s powerful SDK, users can update their routes regularly.

For further information regarding the Geotab Fleet Management Solution, contact us at [email protected]

15/03/2016

GeotabAfrica – Power Take Off (PTO) and Fleet Management Telematics

Fleet managers and business owners need to choose a telematics provider whose technology allows for integration with other products and devices. The PTO is a primary example of a device that can be integrated within Geotab’s technology that adds value to the overall telematics system.

What is PTO?
PTO, or Power Take Off, can refer to the activity of any motorized device that is connected to a vehicle. You can think of the PTO as your portable power generator, so that in the event you lose power, you would still be able to run all of your appliances and equipment around the home. Similarly, most companies rely on the PTO to generate power to a specific piece of equipment, without solely relying on the use of the engine itself.

Examples of PTO Use
Some typical applications of PTO use though not limited are: Running a truck mounted hot water extraction machine used for carpet cleaning. Raising a dump truck bed. Operating the compactor on a garbage truck. One of the ways in which companies are utilizing PTO with the GO device is in the use of document destruction and shredding. Companies have mobile trucks with a built on shredder on board, they collect important documents and are able to securely destroy them using the shredder.

The Geotab GO device has the capacity to gather data from the vehicle’s ECM, also known as the engine control module, and provide information regarding the status of the PTO unit. Generally speaking, you do not want to have the vehicle moving while the PTO is engaged. This is one instance where you should monitor the status of the vehicle during operation. If a driver were to have the vehicle moving with the PTO in operation, it could cause severe stress and ultimately damage the motor, leading to expensive repair or replacement.

Another important aspect to consider is the green effect in today’s society that has brought attention to the issue of idling in the operation and management of large fleets. The Geotab GO devices have the ability to set up specific rules to determine the length of time a vehicle has been idling. When a rule is broken an “exception” is generated, which can then point management to a particular trend or excessive behavior that is non-compliant. In the case of the PTO, the device can assist in looking even deeper into the problem and is able to determine the difference between excessive idling and idling due to PTO use.

Connecting the PTO
The PTO module usually has direct connection to the vehicle’s ECM. The PTO is sometimes referred to as a “6 Pack” due to the number of external pins it has. The GO device would typically be connected using a harness to the vehicle’s diagnostic port that would use either a 6 pin or 9 pin connection, depending on the make and model of the vehicle. Therefore, a harness such as an HRN-EZT would be required to connect to the ECM and the GO device would then be connected to the HRN-EZT. It is recommended that one uses a T-harness for connections since this will leave an extra port available for use by a mechanic.

What To Remember When Using The PTO
In order for the GO device to pick up the signal from the ECM, the vehicle with the PTO module installed would need to be returned to the dealership to have the ECM reset and be able to read the PTO module. Only once that has been completed will the GO device be able to pull the data directly from the diagnostic port. Finally, most trucks that were made in 1996 or later will have built-in ability for the ECM to read PTO automatically and therefore there is no need for an auxiliary input.

03/03/2016

Geotab Africa – IT Managers and Data Analysts as the Fleet Managers of the Future, using BigData

The GEOTAB Africa system for over a decade assisted business with leading edge and market leading tools to manage their fleets, these tools were designed on core principals of safety, productivity and profitability.

In recent years however GEOTAB raised the bar to a level well beyond the early days of measuring driver behaviour only, today GEOTAB collects data points from Accelerometer, Engine, Drive Train, Engine Management Systems, GPS, Driver and much more, to such an extent that the analysis of these data points allow for unlocking value for business that go well beyond the point of knowing where assets are and how these assets are being treated, this is the age of Big Data.

Recently GEOTAB got deployed at open cast mining site, with the key objective being to measure the behaviour of drivers to ensure safety on mine, and also to ensure abuse is identified prior to any damage occurring on these expensive assets, in the original requirement being the Dump Trucks deployed on the mine, GEOTAB in this case monitored and recorded speed travelled as well as engine and drive train data such as RPM, Temperature, Gear Position etc.

GEOTAB however highlighted to management at mine that the GEOTAB system could add significant greater value to meet the key requirements of the mine, such as adding GEOTAB units to Excavators and Drilling Rigs, not just to monitor when these assets are operating and more importantly not operating, but also to identify what ore is being mined by the Excavators as an example, in real-time.

The fact of knowing what ore was being mined, then got married with system designed by GEOTAB to record the actual loads collected by Dump Trucks from these excavators, and also where these Dump Trucks should dump the actual ore, to ensue ore is dumped at the correct dump point and to record the correct number of loads actually collected and dumped of each ore type, as opposed to human tally recordings.

This solution allowed the Mine to have a more accurate recording of different types of ore mined, actual productivity achieved and where the different bottlenecks or negative productivity factors on mine exists, allowing management to implement corrective actions.

GEOTAB system also assisted greatly in improving the distribution effectiveness of Brewery that implemented the GEOTAB solution. The model used by Brewery is one of using sub-contractors to distribute the product to distribution points across the country.

GEOTAB’s were fitted to all sub-contractor vehicles, and through data analysis GEOTAB indicated to customer the points within their distribution chain that required attention, this due to delayed delivery times, extended delivery delays at certain points, route deviations, truck breakdowns, non-optimised routing plans amongst others, with corrective actions adding significant capacity within their distribution structure, without increasing costs.

GEOTAB system aided significantly in improving service delivery of public bus service, as data collected and analysed from busses equipped with GEOTAB’s clearly indicated poor route planning, unscheduled stops, extended stops, late leaving and arrival of assets from and to depot (some deliberately so to record overtime hours by employees), and unsafe driving behaviour, and through corrective actions from management asset utilisation and service delivery to public greatly increased, in line with management expectations.

The key factor in the brief case studies and examples above is that these improvements were realised through the IT departments in each of the cases, without any physical engagement with the assets, everything from the IT mangers PC and reporting system designed by GEOTAB and customer, Data knowledge unleashed, over and above the data that allowed Fleet Manager to manage their fleets as usual.

For more Information relating to the Geotab Fleet Management Solution, E-Mail us at [email protected]

26/02/2016

GeotabAfrica - Machine Monitoring Empowering Yellow Machines

Yellow Machine Monitoring – Beyond Location and Information, to Actionable Intelligence.

Dump Trucks, Excavators, Drilling Machines…your machines to ensure you reach your production levels, and ultimately your targeted profitability…whilst doing this safely…you need a GEOTAB to monitor and manage the invisible…

We have installed thousands of GEOTAB’s into Yellow Machines that monitors not just the location and operating parameters of these incredible machines, but our software aided in increasing productivity levels and to manage Service Level Agreements (SLA’s).

Example 1: Below is a listing of some core data used by mining Technical Department to monitor their machines in the field, and that GEOTAB extracts from the specific CAT machine:

J1939\CAN 250k engine protocol detected
Engine coolant temperature
Cranking voltage
Driver seatbelt violation (Unbuckled whilst moving)
Passenger detected
Passenger seatbelt violation (Unbuckled whilst moving)
Engine RPM
Vehicle active (idle or driving)
Total amount of fuel used
Total fuel used (since GEOTAB device install)
Acceleration g-forces forward or braking
Acceleration g-forces side to side
Acceleration g-forces up down
Gear position
Outside temperature
Total Engine hours
Vehicle programmed maximum speed limit
Vehicle angle of inclination
Trip fuel used
Transmission oil level
Fuel level
Accident upload of second-by-second GPS data
Example 2: Customer required load-by-load reporting on the specific ore and quality extracted by Excavators, and wanted to ensure that loads are tallied as well as dumped on the correct ore dump (High quality/Low Quality/Type of Ore)

GEOTAB Engineers used the GEOTAB software and created a solution that provided customer with exact data on number of loads recorded and dumped as well as the type of Ore recorded on each dump.

As part of the solution customer could also identify bottlenecks where trucks took longer than anticipated, customer also got realtime reports on Excavator and Dump Truck status, such as operational or not, greatly enhancing productivity drive to meet SLA levels agreed on mine.

Customer informed us that our solution will be replacing a system that costs them millions of Rands each month, thus saving on their other operational expenses as well.

Example 3: Customer required solution to easily dispatch Water Bowsers to spray roads where high dust concentrations were recorded, and similarly required a report to customer that roads were in fact sprayed in accordance to SLA’s agreed with their mining customer, and proof thereof.

GEOTAB designed a system that dispatched Water Bowsers, recorded the trip as well as when sprayers started and ended, resulting in faster response times as well as ability for customer to report on all roads sprayed accurately.

Example 4: Hours of Service is a core requirement for service and maintenance teams, with a GEOTAB installed service staff could accurately monitor hours of service of machines, schedule maintenance reminders within the GEOTAB system and therefore more accurately monitor and report on service and maintenance schedules.

One of our customers in Namibia (GEOTAB is available across Africa) reported that the savings and productivity increases GEOTAB realised for them amounted to several millions of Rands per month, now that is what GEOTAB likes to hear.

Similarly due to the safety aspects of the GEOTAB system, mining safety was also significantly improved.

So get in touch with us and let’s see if we can help you to do things better, faster, greener, greater…

For further Information, E-Mail us at [email protected]

25/02/2016

GeotabAfrica – GPS Speed vs. Vehicle Speedometer, Which is more accurate?

How accurate is GPS speed? What about my vehicle’s speedometer? Surely, a speedometer is more accurate than a GPS, isn’t it?

GPS Speed vs. Vehicle Speedometer
With a clear view of the sky, GPS speed has shown to be more accurate than most vehicle speedometers. “GPS isn’t perfect, but it’s a lot more accurate than a vehicle speedometer,” said Richard Langley, professor of geodesy and precision navigation at the University of New Brunswick, in an article for the Canadian Globe and Mail. GPS accuracy, however, may vary slightly as the vehicle travels from regions with a good view of the sky to those without. Heavily tree-lined streets and urban canyons are the biggest culprits when it comes to GPS inaccuracy, in addition to tunnels and covered parking lots.

Your vehicle speedometer accuracy can vary based on several factors, most notably differences in wheel size due to wear, pressure, and temperature. It is also typical for many motor vehicle manufacturers to have their vehicle speedometers overreport the speed to ensure that if there are errors from the sources mentioned above, you are still unlikely to be exceeding the speed limit if the vehicle states as such. “Industry officials have said speedometers are set ‘optimistically’ to give drivers an inflated sense of speed (and help them avoid tickets),” says Wall Street Journal columnist Jonathan Welsh.

What Do We See in the Data?
In the past, we have seen erroneous jumps in speed when GPS accuracy varies, as the vehicle moves into areas of reduced signal strength. The most common examples seen are speed spikes of a single second as a vehicle travels under a bridge or overpass. Subtle jumps in position while stopped (GPS wobble) can cause low speeds to appear when the vehicle should be stationary.

How Do We Ensure Accuracy?
Geotab goes to great lengths to improve the accuracy of the speed being received from the GPS. We use GPS settings such as dilution of precision (DOP) masks and GPS reported speed accuracy estimates to invalidate data. We only consider data valid if there are a sufficient number of satellites being used and the changes in speed between subsequent GPS readings are realistic. Geotab also defers to the engine-based road speed if the GPS speed is invalid or the vehicle is stationary to counter GPS wobble.

GPS is not an exact science, and we still see the odd invalid speed making it through the GPS’s, as well as our validity checks. Because of this we maintain that any speeding rules need to see multiple seconds worth of data above a given speed limit.

What’s Next?
Geotab is continuously enhancing its validity algorithms and we are currently working on further enhancing the GPS speed accuracy checks through a combination of accelerometer data, engine-based road speed, and GPS data.

If you have a concern about the accuracy of a particular GPS event recorded by your GO device or want to know more about what Geotab is doing around GPS accuracy and validity, please contact us or leave a question in the comments box below!

24/02/2016

Fleet Management - A Challenging World?

Fleet Managers today are under pressure to minimize fleet costs, but many do not have the necessary information at their fingertips to make informed decisions. Fleet management technology provides managers with the tools they need to better manage their drivers and vehicles on a daily basis. Such information, together with the appropriate follow-up by management, can help achieve notable cost savings. The key challenges that fleet manager’s face on a daily basis include:

Unnecessary Driver Idling
While Fleet Manager’s recognize unnecessary idling can be a significant contribution to those excessive operating costs, not all Fleet Managers know the extent of their fleet idling or what areas they should focus on. The Geotab solution can enable Fleet Managers to:

· Visualize total fleet idling

· Measure idling in the yard, at customer stops, drop off locations

· Understand idling as a percentage of total engine time

· Monitor weekly and monthly idling trends with easy to use custom reports

Fleet Managers equipped with this knowledge can more easily identify the drivers, vehicles, and locations that exceed acceptable levels of idling and take corrective action. Reducing unnecessary idling is a simple way to reduce fuel costs.

Repairs and Maintenance
Fleet repairs and vehicle downtime are an expensive cost that Fleet Managers deal with on a daily basis. Managing these costs can be a major challenge. Using the Geotab solution Fleet Managers can:

· View vehicle diagnostic trouble codes right from a desktop or mobile device

· Identify potential vehicle issues in a timely manner which can assist in prioritizing repairs

· Set up regular maintenance reminders

When Fleet Managers act on this information, they can more efficiently manage vehicle maintenance and identify vehicle issues before they become major repairs. This can help reduce major repair costs and vehicle downtime which is an integral part to all operations. In addition, regular maintenance on vehicles can potentially prolong the life of major vehicle parts as well as increase the longevity of a vehicle.

Fleet Productivity
Are you getting the most out of your fleet? Maximizing one’s fleet potential is a goal that Fleet Managers continuously aim to achieve. Geotab’s fleet management solution can provide great insight into the productivity of a fleet:

· Fleet utilization visibility

· Number of customer stops made in a day

· Time spent at the office versus customer site

· Real time dispatch and ability to identify nearest vehicle to a location

· Driver’s congregating reporting

· Routing

Knowing the utilization of vehicles and gaining insight into the routes taken each day can help management recognize where changes are needed to improve the efficiencies of the fleet and avoid unnecessary miles driven. Having access to such valuable information can help Fleet Managers make more informed decisions on new vehicle purchases. For example, vehicles identified as not in use can be re-assigned to locations that require additional vehicles, thus sometimes eliminating the need to make unnecessary big purchases.

For Further Information Regarding the GEOTAB Fleet Management Solution, contact us at [email protected]

23/02/2016

GEOTAB GoTalk - a World Leading Driver Safety Solution That Speaks To The Driver Inside The Vehicle

GoTalk is an add-on module for the Geotab GO7 vehicle tracking device that combines GPS tracking, accelerometer and diagnostic data, as well as other manager programmable data incorporating time of day and location zones to relay instant, spoken instruction and safety information direct to fleet drivers. GoTalk also passes information back to the fleet management center on driver behavior and the effectiveness of responses to the audible coaching.

“GoTalk is another big step forward in coaching fleet drivers and improving driving standards,” said Neil Cawse, CEO of Geotab. “The solution has road and driver safety at its heart, but fleet managers will also recognize productivity and fuel the savings that GoTalk will deliver.”

With virtually infinite options for event rules that trigger any message to the GoTalk device itself, the new solution offers a wide range of safety and security advantages. Fleet managers can extend the default functionality by adding custom event-triggers into the fleet management control system.

GoTalk can issue coaching notifications to drivers for events such as:

Fastening seatbelt
Entering a restricted area
Exceeding a speed limit set by the safety supervisor
Leaving the engine idling for too long
Experiencing aggressive acceleration and harsh braking
Driving excessive hours
Driving outside of Zone
GoTalk is designed to work with Geotab’s GO7 fleet telematics device which already records and reports data on driving habits, safety, and health of vehicle information such as seat belt use, fuel consumption, and engine diagnostics.

GoTalk will connect to the Geotab GO7 device through Geotab’s IOX add-on interface as an addition to the existing IOX options that includes Driver ID, sensor input, connected smart device and other options for running improving business operations.

22/02/2016

GeotabAfrica – Vodafone/Vodacom M2M Agreement Signed

GEOTAB and Vodacom Global M2M SIM Agreement

GEOTAB in its constant endeavor to provide a high quality service signed an agreement with Vodacom in South Africa to utilize the global M2M Platform of Vodafone within the Fleet Monitoring offering of GEOTAB

The solution provides Geotab connectivity services together with real time visibility and status, and a single global view of all SIM Cards and GEOTAB devices. Managed by Vodacom’s M2M platform and with Vodacom’s converged network at the core, the Vodacom Global Data Services Platform (GDSP) solution is proven and tested globally. Furthermore, the solution has been specifically designed to remove cost and inefficiency from asset monitoring and control.

Thus better service can be provided to GEOTAB Customers

Benefits of the GEOTAB and Vodacom Global M2M SIM Agreement
•A single global SIM which can be deployed in M2M devices across the world without country customisation, simplifying planned and future deployment.
•A unique central technology with secure end-to-end connectivity from M2M devices in any country, across partner networks (National Roaming) providing central control.
•The Vodacom M2M technology is purpose-designed to fulfil identified M2M business needs.
•National Roaming – in order to ensure service availability via network redundancy.
•Where there are roaming agreements with more than one operator in a country, the GDSP SIM allows connectivity to more than one operator using a single SIM.

Security Benefits of the GEOTAB and Vodacom Global M2M SIM Agreement
•APN designed specifically for the customer to ensure that data connectivity remains within the VPN of the customer.
•The SIM cannot be abused for data usage on other networks or the internet
•Where internet is used as backhaul connectivity, GDSP requires a list of destination IP addresses configured into an Access Control List to limit communication to only the applicable customer servers – no general internet abuse possible
•Access Control List on the connectivity ensures that SIMs cannot be abused to communicate between devices on the same APN.
•SMS is limited to within the environment of the GDSP platform. Any SMS sent to the device or originating from the device has to be via the GDSP platform. This also provides a level of control to the customer by being able to manage which SMS has come from the devices and which need to be delivered to the devices
•Voice is not activated on this platform. If voice is required as part of the solution, this would be activated in a closed group.
•Calls will only be possible from one location to the devices and alternatively devices can only make calls to one location.
•Other voice calls would be discarded
•USSD which is used for fraud in various scenarios is not supported on the GDSP platform
•The SIM management console of the GDSP is only accessible from locations which have been whitelisted ensuring that the management platform is protected from attacks

Billing Benefits of the GEOTAB and Vodacom Global M2M SIM Agreement
•Flexible Billing and Reporting
•Customer specific billing build around the SIM roll-out plan and usage patterns ensures that the customer is provided with the best possible pricing
•Roaming buckets allow for the customer to manage on which networks the SIM roams by grouping the SIMs accordingly.
•Using this the customer has control to avoid more expensive networks if not needs or adding these if connectivity is essential
•Near real time reporting providing various levels of usage details ranging from customer overview down to detailed itemized usage per SIM
•Through the web management portal, the customer has access to a number of standard reports. This allows the customer to manage the installed base and view usage patterns for individual or group of SIMs.
•The customer may also use the APIs to extract information to their own processing systems.

22/02/2016

17/02/2016

GeotabAfrica – Fleet Management System

GoTalk for Increased Safety and Management of Fleets

GEOTAB GoTalk

Continuing with our focus on safety, GEOTAB is now providing customers with additional driver feedback choices!

GEOTAB is pleased to announce the availability of its latest Input Output Expander: IOX-GOTALK.

Using text-to-speech, the IOX-GOTALK provides real-time feedback to drivers based on predefined rules. Any rules that the GO device uses today to alert the driver with beeps can be used with the IOX-GOTALK.

Custom text for MyGEOTAB-based rules can be added to provide specific messaging to help the driver understand what they may have done right or wrong. Immediate feedback to the driver, regardless of cellular coverage, includes all device-based rules:

· Reminder for a driver to swipe their NFC fob or sticker

· Revving over a customer-configurable threshold (i.e. 4000 RPMs)

· Idling beyond a customer-configurable threshold

· Speeding beyond a customer-configurable threshold

· Approaching the maximum speed limit defined by the customer

· “Dangerous Driving” as defined by the customer

· Seat belt usage (if supported by the vehicle)

With the addition of Active Tracking, drivers will get near-real-time feedback (generally within 5-10 seconds) when in good coverage from MyGeotab-based rules as well. Benefits to customised messages include the ability to create a message specific to the violation being encountered, as well as the ability to create the kinds of positive messages your drivers will respond to.

Include tokens such as driver name, address of the violation, and zone name to provide the driver with a detailed account as to where and when the violation occurred. Geotab recommends the use of Active Tracking to ensure warning are received in a relevant time frame.

Some examples of time-sensitive rules are:

· Delivering notifications when entering a customer zone or a high-accident area

· Informing the driver of speeding violations based on posted road speed

· Reporting when a third-party device has exceeded a threshold.