With the number of commercial vehicles on the road increasing again post-lockdown, Peter Mansfield, Group Sales and Marketing Director at Trakm8, examines the critical role technology plays in minimising vehicle downtime.
As measures against COVID-19 continue to be eased nationwide, new reports show that business and commercial vehicle mileage is beginning to return to pre-lockdown levels.
Indeed, businesses travelled an estimated 2.51 billion miles more in June than in May, whilst the UK’s transport sector has recovered to 84% of its pre-Coronavirus baseline. This is obviously positive news for UK business and once again demonstrates that commercial vehicles will sit at the heart of the national economic recovery effort. Now more than ever it’s crucial to ensure that commercial vehicles are running in top condition. After all, unexpected vehicle downtime is a disruptive and expensive hassle for a business at any time, not least during a period where so many businesses have to count every penny.
That’s why it’s so important for fleet managers to identify potential vehicle health problems before they become disabling and keep the van or truck where its delivering the greatest ROI – out on the road.
One of the easiest ways to achieve this is via a programme of regular vehicle maintenance and preventative care. Doing so can help commercial fleet managers quickly diagnose – and rectify – any issues before they result in a break-down or unplanned time off the road.
But for an even more proactive approach to vehicle care, fleet managers could consider investing in intuitive telematics systems, which afford even greater insights into vehicle performance.
Trakm8’s Connectedcare solution is designed to provide advanced vehicle status and health data insights for both vehicle and plant OEMs, alongside leasing and hire firms, to ensure that vehicle assets are maintained as stringently as possible, minimising the risk of unplanned downtime and helping vehicles work as efficiently as possible.
Connectedcare affords users remote access to readings directly from the dashboard or instrument cluster, via deep CANbus connectivity. For LCV operators, the solution provides an array of insights, including a total overview of diagnostic trouble codes and an overview of dashboard warning lights; all available at the click of a button via easy-to-use web portals and mobile apps. Trakm8’s solution goes beyond the standard telematics offering, bringing together a range of value-added services into one seamless offering. This includes a patented battery health algorithm, which enables operators to keep a close eye on battery performance and safeguard against unexpected outages, alongside access to AdBlue and DPF levels, and accurate tyre pressure readings.
Trakm8 understands that the modern LCV fleet is likely to comprise a range of makes and models; diversity which has, traditionally, made a centralised telematics solution tricky to implement. Recognising this, it has developed its Connectedcare solution to automatically configure to unique vehicle types – eliminating the hassle of manually inputting vehicle details into the unit.
And, at a time when drivers and vans are having to work more effectively than ever before, often to tighter budgets, the Connectedcare unit can be easily moved from one vehicle to another, automatically reconfiguring as it does so.
Commercial vehicle fleets are facing unprecedented demand at the moment, and fleet managers are having to adapt to totally new ways of working. That’s why Trakm8 has ensured its Connectedcare solution is as accessible as possible. Available as a standalone product or part of a wider telematics offering, Connectedcare is an essential tool in a fleet managers arsenal for guaranteeing better-maintained assets, and keeping their businesses moving.
