Managing Field Workers using GPS Tracking

GPS trackers, (also referred to as Telematics Devices, AVL - Automatic Vehicle Locators, IVMS - In vehicle Monitoring Systems, IVDR - In Vehicle Data Recorders)
are devices that are fitted to the vehicles in your fleet. They receive signals from GPS Satellites orbiting the earth. The GPS information is stored within the GPS Tracker and immediately sent to an IntelliTrac server in the cloud using wireless internet over the mobile phone 2G/3G or 4G networks.

The GPS data is processed at the server and displayed on your Office PC Internet Browser or Smartphone/Tablet app as:

• Vehicle icons moving along on a map
• Easy to read dashboards of trending data
• Vehicle Movements Activity Reporting

The raw GPS data received by the server can be processed and analysed to provide many value added features such as:

• Alerts on any defined events such as leaving an area after hours
• Reminders on when services are due to Road Tax, Insurances, Regos, CTP, RUC etc need payment
• Analysis of Driving Behaviour
• Other Compliance related reporting such as electronic logbooks

The first thing you should consider when buying a GPS Tracking Solution for your company vehicles is the reputation of the company.
With so many companies out there supplying similar solutions, it is very confusing to know which ones are reputable and have a proven track record.
Many GPS Companies do not make it passed 5 years as the business is similar to a Telco and requires significant investment in back end support services such as help desk, field support and sophisticated accounting and automated billing systems.

You should then consider what you are wanting to solve with the implementation of GPS Tracking.
This may be:

• Improve efficiency within the field
• Quantify any bad practice such as late starts, early finishes, or excessive after hours use
• Quantify Fuel Usage and Possible Fuel Theft
• Analysis of Driving Behaviour to improve WHS, Maintenance & Fuel Costs
• Streamline compliance related reporting such as electronic logbooks
• Improve WHS/HSE by utilising Duress/SOS, Rollover detection type features

It is important that the Vehicle Tracker and Server Software work hand in hand to get the best results.

Once you have the answers to the above questions, it is important to choose the right Vehicle GPS Tracking Device which is able to process the required vehicle information prior to sending it to the central server.

For example:- If one of your primary goals is to determine that drivers are wearing their seat belts, then you need to choose a tracker that can detect the wearing of seat belts and send that data to the server.

You should then consider your future needs and select a product which is Scalable.
For example: Today you may only require a very basic solution, but as your business grows and more vehicles come on board, you may require Driver Identification Swipe Cards so you know who is driving a vehicle at any time.

With so many products and software combinations, it is difficult to provide indicative costs, however there are a few factors to consider when purchasing a GPS Tracking Solution for your business.
Most providers will use the following pricing models:

• Buy GPS Tracker Out right without any contract, supply your own sim cards, pay a software & mapping licencing fee annually in advance.
•      This option is not recommended as the wrong Sim Card metering plan can result in massive bill shock of hundreds of dollars per month.
• Buy GPS Tracker Out right without any contract, pay for a packaged sim card data, software & mapping licencing fee annually in advance.
• Buy GPS Tracker at a reduced subsidised price on a minimum 3 year contract, pay for a packaged sim card data, software & mapping licencing fee monthly in advance.
• Lease or Rent a GPS Tracker on a minimum 3 year leasing or rental contract which includes sim card data, software & mapping licencing fee monthly in advance.

Reputable GPS Fleet Management providers like IntelliTrac, are required to pay companies like Google Maps for commercial licences, and for more complex solutions we are also required to pay other mapping companies for the provision of speed limit data and other map data which is taken for granted these days.
In addition your annual or monthly subscription will also include:

• Provision of the sim card in your GPS Trackers as well as the data costs for transmission of data from the tracker to our servers
• A cost for running a cloud service to host the GPS tracking software whether it be with a reputable cloud provider such as Microsoft, Amazon or Google, of whether it be in proprietary data centres with dedicated or shared servers.
• A cost for providing support and help desk staff to answer your calls, provide training and rectify any issues if and when they occur.
• A cost for on going product development, as browsers, operating systems, mapping interfaces and other features are constantly changing and require updating to keep your service active and working at its best.
• A cost for maintaining a field service crew of technicians and account managers to be at your service as vehicles are sold and devices require removal and refit, or to provide a consultative approach to ensuring you are getting the best from our solutions.

IntelliTrac has the most flexible and Scalable software in the industry.
That's because unlike other providers focusing in specific industry segments such as small service based businesses, transport or minining, IntelliTrac has world wide experience across all market verticles. Our software can be fine tuned to meet your needs today in a simple easy to use interface and grow with you as your business grows. An online demo is a perfect opportunity to view the flexibility of our software.

These days GPS Tracking Systems are common place in many businesses in the Asia Pacific Region, USA and Europe. If your business doesn't already have a solution in place, then you are the exception rather than the norm.
When introducing these solutions in your business it is important to communicate directly and honestly with all staff and explain to them the reasons why you are considering the technology.
Generally most staff will understand that the technology is used to improve efficiency, security and safety in the business as well as fairer and more distributed allocation of work, meaning that staff will get more done, quicker with less paperwork and phone calls.
Most staff will appreciate that you are being progressive in the adoption of technology to make the business more profitable and therefore improving their job security and career prospects.
Most importantly, the GPS Tracking device should not be seen as a big brother tool, because that generates mistrust.
A successful implementation is one that is done for the right reasons

The great thing about IntelliTrac is that is provided as Software-as-a-Service (SaaS). That means that there is no need to load any software on your computer and you don't even require any IT technical staff in your business.
All you need is a computer, a mobile phone or tablet that can connect to the internet running an up to date browser like Google Chrome, Firefox, Safari or Microsoft Edge.
You can even use your Android or Apple device to access key information about your fleet vehicles and today’s jobs.

IntelliTrac provides automatically emailed scheduled reports of vehicle activity. These can include:

• Journey Time & Distance Reports
• Stop Duration, Time & Location Rpeorts
• Daily Activity Reports
• Working Hours Reports
• Out of Hours Rpeorts .....Just to name a few.

In addition IntelliTrac can be configured to provide instantaneous alerts and emails for specially programmed issues, such as "leaving work after hours"
The options and flexibility are endless.
Of course you can always log in and view live vehicle locations on a map, look at replays and generate reports whenever you like.

IntelliTrac understands that as your business grows our software needs to be Scalable and adapt.
Our flexible and Scalable software can be massaged by our support staff to be easy to use whilst giving you access to the full range of functions and modules required as your business grows over time. Simply contact your customer services team to discuss your growing requirements at any time.

There are many studies available on the internet which show the benefits of GPS Tracking and Telematics in business.
We will refer to a studies conducted by Software Advice and business.com which demostrated the following summation:

• 95% of businesses surveyed increased punctuality to service calls and appointments
• 95% of businesses completed more work orders
• 92% of businesses spent less time traveling to job sites
• 89% of businesses saved on fuel costs
• 85% of businesses attended and fixed more issues on the first call out

Just like using your iPhone or Android phone, at IntelliTrac our software engineers work hard to make our software user friendly and intuitive.
Actually most of our clients rarely ask for training, however when you join us we guide you every step of the way with our online one on one training program, and at the same time we customise the look and feel of your system so it does exactly what you want it to do.
We also move out of your favorites those features that you are not likely to use, making our software less cluttered.
Of course we also provide online training manuals and training videos with indexes so you can get to the topic of choice and quickly familiarise yourself.
We also have local support teams who can assist you, either over the phone, via online webinars or via email.
IntelliTrac is powerful software with lots of features which you will use as your business grows, but it’s also designed to be quick and easy to use for anyone.