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OCTOBER 2014
ACT
FLEETMANAGEMENTSOFTWARE
TECHNOLOGY
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crane rental companies todevelop an
equipment-centric schedulingmodule.
“Theyhad specific technical anduser
needs thatwerenot addressed in the
market,” saidCox. “Thisnewmodule is
just being implemented in theirdispatch
environmentwith excellent results.”
The convenience of apps
These systems are allweb-based
platforms that offer the freedomof
remote connection to equipment and job
information at all times. Formany, their
services are cross-platform, regardless of
preferencebetween iPhone andAndroid,
tablet orPC. Some evenoffer adedicated
smartphone application.
Amember of thevehicle and asset
monitoring industry since2004,GPS
Insight of Scottsdale,AZ,was also
established to fill avoid in themarket.A
local trucking company fromScottsdale
approached founderRobDonat to come
upwith a customizableGPS tracking
solution thatwasmore than just “where’s
my truck?”
“Whether you’re a limousine company
or a crane company,we canmoldour
software tomeet yourneeds,” saidRyan
Driscoll,marketingdirector,GPS Insight.
That includes everything from
schedulingmaintenance tooperator
accountability.GPS Insight can see your
vehicleor crane at all times. They can alert
the authorities should it bemoving at an
unusual timeof night or outside a jobsite.
“Alerts canbe sent tomanagement,
drivers or shopmanagers tohelp cut costs
by issuingproactive responses todriver
behavior or theft,” saidDriscoll.
It requires the installationof a “little
blackbox” that goesunder thedashboard
andutilizes the cellularnetworkof your
choice for geolocation.
FleetCost&Care, a subsidiaryof
Michigan-based JJCurranCrane, recently
released an app calledAtom2.1 that
allowsusers towork remotely from the
fieldusing their smartphoneor tablet as
well. It’s aWindows-basedprogram that
integratesunit, component and accessory
tracking into theirNexGenFMS software.
“The initial challenge ingettingpeople
onboardwithNexGenAtomwas a
commonmisconception that not everyone
on the jobwill have the skill set to input or
retrieve informationusing a smartphone
or tablet,” said JeffCurran, president,
FleetCost&Care. “Wedesigned this tool
tobe so easy that if you canuse anATM
machine, you canuseNexGenAtom.”
The appuses awizard format that has
step-driven simplicity for all skill levels.
“I tellmy customers that you can’t afford
not tohaveyourpeopleusingphones and
tablets in the field,” saidCurran. “Itmore
thanpays for itselfwhenyou seehow
productive and efficient you canbe.”
Baseplan, whichwas founded
in Australia, recently
expanded into the U.S.
