Telematics Review – kd-trucking

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Tracking, text messaging, and navigation: Ten years ago, a telematics system with these basic functions was state-of-the-art. Even then, the logistics provider Karl Dischinger wanted to get more out of this technology. The ideas focused on temperature monitoring in the cargo area, driver style analysis, and driving time monitoring.

Long-standing partnership

However, in 2004, there was still no off-the-shelf solution available to meet these high requirements. Against this backdrop, the company, based in Ehrenkirchen near Freiburg, began a long-standing collaboration with Trendfire. “In 2006, after the location tracking, we quickly implemented order management and monitoring of consumption values as well,“ recalls Stöhr. From the very beginning, the basis for all recorded data was the in-house developed telematics unit “trendbeeTRUCK,” which connects directly to the truck’s FMS/CAN bus and transmits the collected data to the data center in Karlsruhe.

Extremely well-positioned

Monitoring working hours, driving times, and rest periods was already an issue in 2006, but it didn’t “really take off” until the introduction of digital tachographs in 2006, says Stöhr. Today, roadlox informs the dispatcher and the driver in good time of impending infringements of the Working Hours Act or the driving and rest period regulations. In addition, dispatchers and drivers can view the current remaining driving times per day and week at any time. All legal regulations, including the one-minute rule and the double week, are taken into account. Offenses can be traced exactly on a road map and conclusively justified during inspections. “Years ago, the trade supervisory office confirmed that we are extremely well-positioned in terms of driving and rest times,“ reports Stöhr. Another milestone followed in 2009 with trailer tracking using its own dedicated telematics unit for towed units. In addition to the position data, these also provide the temperature values of the cargo compartment and the EBS vehicle data. An integrated battery enables operation independent of the truck unit's power supply.

Automated Expenses

The next big step was automated expense reports. “This has significantly simplified and accelerated our administration,“ states Stöhr. Location data and driving and rest times are processed into an expense claim with Trendfire's “Pay Manager“. All European borders as well as country-specific expense rates are stored in Pay Manager. The drivers’ private addresses, which can also be linked, ensure reliable demarcation and guarantee the highest accuracy of the results.

Digital pre-departure check

Drivers benefit not only from accurate expense reporting but also from significantly streamlined processes.The best example of this is the customer-specific form section. Before the start of a tour, a checklist with all the points of the pre-departure inspection, among other things, appears on the smartphone. The document management system also ensures simpler processes, as it makes all relevant documents, manuals, vehicle registration documents, cleaning schedules and certificates available. “We are currently working on ensuring that each driver can only access documents relevant to them, depending on the assigned truck,“ says Stöhr. “This way, we save a lot of paper and, above all, can maintain all information centrally in one place and keep it up to date at all times.”

Moving forward together

In addition to the refined DMS, another highlight will be introduced at kd-trucking in 2014—the manufacturer-independent driver evaluation system, which considers the specific route profile, the severity of the assignment, idle time with the engine running, and many other parameters. “This will be a truly fair system and will motivate our drivers to drive even more economically,” Stöhr is convinced. However, Stöhr has not reached the end of the project by a long shot. Many more ideas and functions are to be implemented together with Trendfire. The introduction of new smartphones with integrated barcode scanners is just one example of many.