Location Location Navigation

“Pama PCViewer software enables you to customise settings and output files. It’s a powerful tool for many applications including taxi surveillance, law enforcement, fleet risk management and accident reconstruction,” explains Richards.
“The recorder is your ‘third eye’ observer. It provides irrefutable evidence of any incident that occurs inside or outside the car, van or bus. It features an onboard digital recorder with GPS mapping and G-sensor detection, recorded to an SD card for re-enactment and archiving.
“Viewer software enables viewing on your PC with options for 1/5, 1/2, x1 and x5 speed. Video and audio data can be put out in AVI and JPEG formats. The GPS data provides route reconstruction, utilising Google Maps with graphical readout of speed, direction and G-force,” Richards says.
Lumley Insurance, on the receiving end for vehicular accidents, is a firm believer in the Pama system. They believe more widespread use of in-vehicle cameras could save the New Zealand trucking industry between $40 and 50 million annually in reduced accidents and lower insurance premiums alone.
Lumley promotes the use of the in-vehicle camera technology by the transport operators which it insures. The head of Lumley’s commercial motor division, Ian Taylor, says that there is not a transport company, fleet operator or owner-driver who wouldn’t achieve savings in their business. Based on hard figures from customers, the savings range between 30 and 90 percent of the annual repair bill.
“Unfortunately we still get some pushback from transport operators over the cost of the system and drivers who have ‘big brother’ concerns. But what we know from others who have successfully used the system, is the ROI is both measurable and significant, and driver concerns are without foundation.
“For one or two companies, the in-vehicle cameras have been the difference between getting insurance or not. We had one company facing a $100,000 excess on its policy, and installing cameras was the prudent way of getting the costs down.
“Properly used, the cameras can result in immediate improvements in driver skills, attitude and reduced risk. The tangible rewards are fewer incidents requiring vehicle repairs and reduced premiums.”
Essential business tool
New Zealand, and even Australia, has been relatively slow, compared to the US, Europe and Japan, in both adopting and adapting GPS, but according to TomTom’s Kearney that has changed in the last ten or so months and they are seeing a surge on both fronts.
“The word is out that this is no longer a nice to have – it’s an essential and affordable business tool that pays for itself from safer driving, through time and fuel saved, to better vehicle management and plain peace of mind. The facts are indisputable.
“Our challenge as suppliers is now matching product and service to real need, rather than selling the concept.”
Suddenly, it seems, everyone could be getting in the game. Even if you are Telecom and don’t have a device, team up with Navman and start offering Locate+ – most successfully with one of New Zealand’s favourite companies, the Automobile Association. There they integrated Locate+ into their specialised systems, making it even easier for the AA to manage call-outs efficiently, saving them money and time.
“We’re also working on developments that will give smaller businesses an affordable Locate+ solution,” says Telecom spokesperson, Julia Bell. “Previously it has only really been suitable for corporates or larger businesses because it had a high ROI. But we are committed to making it available and affordable even for single person operations. It’s all part of our SME focus through our Telecom Business Hubs.
“We want to help SMEs manage their costs (petrol in particular) and time better, and provide superior customer service,” Bell says.
If you’re still not a believer and think this has all been a bit too fluffy for your hard-nosed, tightly-run business, reflect on the experience of another Telecom success story: Absolute Air Conditioning.
Within a few weeks of installing Locate+, owner-manager Malcolm Miller discovered some of his staff were ‘double-dipping’ and working for other companies while employed by him. By tracking their movements he put paid to it virtually overnight.
“I’d invested $1000 and immediately got back $10,000: the best return I’ve ever had,” says Miller, who believes the fact that Locate+ removes the log book chore from his drivers makes it a worthwhile investment anyway.
Kevin Kevany is an Auckland-based freelance writer. Email [email protected]