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Telematics allows for construction companies to not just track vehicles, but improve machine utilization, increase efficiency and reduce fuel consumptionBy Lisa Kopochinski

28 Think BIG | Quarter 3 2015 | saskheavy.ca

Twenty-five years ago, it was largely the stuff of science fic-tion. But today, telematics – the

ability to access information and control ob-jects remotely either by cell or satellite mo-dem over the Internet – is an increasing reality for many construction companies.

Telematics has changed rapidly over just the past few years with advances in cell- phone technology and GPS systems. For the construction industry, the expanded use of this technology in equipment allows for not just the ability to track vehicles, but to im-prove machine utilization, increase efficien-cy and reduce fuel consumption.

“Telematics can provide information like locations, hours, daily operational reports, diagnostic alarms, geo and time fencing,” ex-plains Wade Sandoff, corporate manager of Product Support for Redhead Equipment, a leading supplier of trucking, agricultural and construction equipment in Regina, Estevan, Lloydminster, Melfort, Prince Albert, Swift Current and Saskatoon.

“For instance, it can notify you when your machine drives out of a certain area and has the download capability for historical criti-cal operating information.”

Tony Nicoletti, director of sales and busi-ness development at DPL Telematics, a Los Altos, California-based company that

provides technology to numerous indus-tries, including construction, says telemat-ics is no longer one size fits all.

“A contractor has options to pair telemat-ics – or several different types of telematics – with their fleet of both on and off-road as-sets. It can be as simple as just a location or as complex as a full list of diagnostic codes.”

Nicoletti says one of the oldest and of-ten overlooked benefits of this technolo-gy is theft protection and recovery. Simple, battery-powered telematics solutions ex-ist today for the purpose of tracking down missing assets, while advanced options of-fer the ability to curfew or designate times of non-operation, as well as physically disable machines from running.

“This prevents not only theft, but the un-authorized use by other contractors and joyriding.”

Telematics for small and mid-size companiesSandoff says for small to mid-size construc-tion contractors considering telematics to improve productivity and fleet manage-ment, the following questions will flag the need for this technology: • Do you have difficulty keeping up with

machine maintenance?

tech

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Most telematics options available today, like Case CE’s SiteWatch®, can be accessed on a variety of digital devices to make sure the system works best for the client

Telematics can provide contractors with real-time information that can help reduce excessive idle times, which reduces fuel consumption, non-production machine hours and service costs

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• Are you wasting time hunting down ma-chine locations, hours or status?

• Have you ever worked to coordinate di-agnostics on a machine when there is a problem?

• Do you want to be more competitive on bids?

• Do you wonder how effective your

operators are with the equipment? • Would better utilization of your fleet be

possible by knowing your machine’s idle time?

“There are many benefits to telemat-ics,” says Sandoff. “It can help reduce insur-ance costs as machines are now trackable

if stolen. And it provides real-time infor-mation that can help reduce excessive idle times, which reduces fuel consumption, non-production machine hours and service costs.”

Other benefits of telematics include:• Better scheduling of service and mainte-

nance that minimizes downtime

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30 Think BIG | Quarter 3 2015 | saskheavy.ca

• Service and maintenance requirements can be planned in advance

• Problems can be spotted before they occur

• Dealers can troubleshoot faults remotely• Equipment utilization: You can identi-

fy if your machines are showing up to jobsites on time, keeping your crews accountable

DPL’s Nicoletti has been working with construction telematics for over 15 years, which is about the same time the

technology was brought into the industry, he says.

“As you can imagine, it has come a long way since then. On one end you have telematics now available that deliver un-precedented amounts of data. They plug in-to a machine’s CANbus or a vehicle’s OBDII to remotely collect data streaming through the asset – such as fuel consumption, ma-chine health, diagnostic information, fault codes, idle time, etc. It can be literally hun-dreds of data points that can be accessed at any given time.”

On the other end of the spectrum, telematics has become more powerful in a simplified way.

“The size of some units are becoming more compact while the internal battery life is expanding – in some cases getting months of life out of a single charge,” he continues. “These types of units no longer require wir-ing into the host asset or running an anten-na, and are completely self-contained. New GPS technology no longer requires a sky view, so units may be hidden inside assets and in-building locating is now possible.”

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Featuring

“OEM telematics is on the rise and built-in equipment is offered by players like Caterpillar, Volvo Construction Equipment, JCB, Komatsu Komtrax, Liebherr and Manitowoc (CraneSTAR) in partnership with Telogis.”– Dominique Bonte, Vice President/Practice Director of Telematics, ABI Research

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Global usage and trends

ABI Research – a market intelligence com-pany with offices in the U.S., Europe and Asia – provides insight on how technolo-gy is adopted into vertical markets. It fore-casts that telematics penetration in the global construction equipment sector will reach 30 per cent by 2019.

“Recent technology trends in-clude cloud-based approaches, use of

smartphones and tablets and advanced an-alytics,” says Dominique Bonte, ABI’s vice president/practice director of telematics. “OEM telematics is on the rise and built-in equipment is offered by players like Caterpillar, Volvo Construction Equipment, JCB, Komatsu Komtrax, Liebherr and Manitowoc (CraneSTAR) in partnership with Telogis.”

Sandoff concurs: “Volvo has had telemat-ics available since 2008. With the Volvo

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system, CareTrack, there are approximate-ly 500 different alarms, codes, daily hours, production and anti-theft features that can be set up.”

CareTrack generates a wide range of re-ports – including fuel consumption, opera-tional hours and geographical location – via a web portal, as well as sending SMS/email alerts.

“Fleet managers can use Volvo’s CareTrack to proactively manage their parts and service maintenance,” he says. “Benefits include a reduction in fuel costs, optimized machine and operator perfor-mance and increased uptime.”

Sandoff adds that the technology is evolving beyond just providing the data to assistance in the analysis, as depicted by Volvo’s new SmartCare product.

“This is allowing customers more time to focus on their jobs and clients, but still get this relevant, timely information.”

Other construction equipment manufacturers are following suit. For instance, Case CE launched SiteWatch® in 2013, a subscription-based telematics system that breaks the boundaries of fleet management by allowing the monitoring and managing of multiple machines and jobsites from the office. With no more manually tracking down engine hours and fuel levels, users can get vital machine performance, location and utilization data remotely sent in real time to keep crews accountable and projects running efficiently.

Case CE’s SiteWatch® can monitor 12 pa-rameters – or eight customizable parame-ters – and comes standard on all C-Series

“This is allowing customers more time to focus on their jobs and clients, but still get this relevant, timely information.”

– Wade Sandoff, Corporate Manager of Product Support, Redhead Equipment

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32 Think BIG | Quarter 3 2015 | saskheavy.ca

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excavators, F-Series wheel loaders, B-Series motor graders, M-Series dozers and N-series backhoes.

“The one issue that still exists is that there is no standardization of telematics,” says Sandoff. “There is third-party software available that can link telematics reports of multiple brands of equipment to an extent, but the necessity of having one dedicated program to manage all manufacturers will be driven by customer demand.”

Recent reports also suggest Volvo, Caterpillar, Komatsu and John Deere are working with aftermarket telematics sup-pliers to address this issue.

Bonte says major providers of aftermar-ket telematics solutions for heavy construc-tion equipment include Navman Wireless, Telogis, Trimble, Masternaut, Verizon, Telular Corporation and Seeing Machines.

Nicoletti adds that costs for hardware can range from a few hundred dollars to over $1,000 with monthly fees between $10 and $50. Some providers also offer lease op-tions with no upfront costs.

For those contractors interested in ret-rofitting older equipment with telematics, Sandoff says this is possible, but not with-out its challenges.

“Features are limited to technology that units are manufactured with, so not all cur-rent features would work on older units.”

Telematics at a Glance

A relatively general term, telematics essentially refers to a device that merges telecommunications and infomatics – the science of computer information systems. While this definition can be simplified, the implications of this technology is anything but. Numerous types of data can be tracked to help companies make smarter and safer business decisions such as:

• Theft and insurance• Fleet right sizing• Reduced idling and fuel burn• Reduced service

and repair costs• Improved jobsite billing

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