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MiX Telematics discusses telematics trends for 2010
15 January 2010
While 2009 goes into history as one of the most challenging years from an economic perspective, experts see a silver line on the horizon for 2010 - even if it is only a small one. The commercial vehicle and transport sector was hit hard in particular, which forced fleet owners to increase focus on efficient management of their vehicles even more.
MiX Telematics, a global provider in fleet management and telematics solutions, expects this overall trend to continue: the efficient usage of existing fleets which is driven by cost savings that can be achieved through the implementation of intelligent telematics, vehicle tracking and fleet management solutions.
According to Charles Tasker, Managing Director of MiX Telematics International, the top 5 trends to look out for from a vehicle tracking and fleet management perspective for 2010 are:
- Reduction of carbon emissions – The UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen in December 2009 was only one indicator of how huge the topic of Global Warming is. The pressure on commercial fleets continues to grow, and they have to prepare for more and stricter regulations all over the world. In Europe for example, road transport contributes about one fifth of the EU’s total Carbon emissions, and it is one of the few sectors where emissions are still rising rapidly. It is imperative for fleet owners to have a clear understanding of what the carbon footprint of their vehicles is and put measures in place to drastically reduce it.
- Mobile applications and ubiquitous access – The number of vehicle tracking and telematics solutions that are accessible via mobile platforms such as the iPhone, Blackberry, Android and Windows Mobile will increase remarkably. The recently launched MiX Mobile application is a prime example of delivering relevant information and features to a user’s fingertips.
- Location based services (LBS) and personal tracking – The potential of LBS has not yet been fully recognised. However, it is been expected that 2010 is the tipping point for the use of LBS in enterprises, which will be an interesting development for the telematics industry. Through the success of LBS in the consumer market, personal tracking becomes more and more popular with end users.
- New devices and price pressure – Telematics technology has not only advanced dramatically but also become more common and affordable. This has two consequences: manufacturer and solutions providers will increasingly feel the price pressure in 2010; and we will see a trend towards substitution of “traditional” on-board computers which will be replaced by fancy mobile devices that can communicate with vehicles as effectively.
- A new level of user experience – Applications like Microsoft’s Silverlight bring a new level of user experience to fleet owners who use web front-ends to manage their fleets. While in the past the user experience was restricted by browser limitations, the web is increasingly introducing new technologies that add an extra layer of user experiences that was never before available. More sophisticated, faster applications put more control in the hands of users and will be a key differentiator between telematics services.
Topics that remain important to the industry
- Health and safety – In December 2009, the Motorcoach Bus Safety Bill was passed by the U.S. Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee. Among other measures to improve the safety of motorcoaches, it will require driver training and on-board computers to ensure compliance with the federal rules on maximum driving hours. This is just one example of many initiatives worldwide to make the transport industry safer.
- Fuel savings – If the world economy continues to rebound, many experts expect the price of crude oil to head back towards USD 100 per barrel again. This will put additional pressure on fleet owners – resulting in cost savings based on decreased fuel consumption to remain a big draw card. In 2009 for example, various bus and coach companies in the UK benefited from MiX Telematics’ solutions, which allowed them to save a total of GBP 6.8 million up to January 2010.
Many of these challenges facing the fleet owners are interconnected and can be addressed with sophisticated vehicle tracking and fleet management solutions as provided for instance by MiX Telematics. The FM range of products and services provides fleet managers with much needed information ranging from vehicle and driver performance to vehicle tracking, from driver behaviour to two-way messaging and navigation.
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