If you’re an employer it can be scary to stop and think about how responsible you are for your employees and their actions. In a lot of cases the law holds you and your company liable for any damages an employee causes.
For fleet managers, the risk a company is exposed to is far greater than staff who may be limited to working within an office. The chance of an employee being involved, or causing, an accident is much higher when a significant amount of their time is spent on the road.
What if a driver kills someone? Does your company share some of the blame? And how can GPS tracking help to minimize the risk?
Do you know what your carbon footprint is? Or what your GHG emissions are? If you’re a business and you provide goods and services to the U.S. government very soon you will be requested to provide that information.
In what is seen as somewhat of an inevitable move towards more sustainable business practices, the EPA and the Obama administration are pushing for more reporting by businesses on their environmental impact.
Recently the EPA handed down a ruling that requested suppliers in the U.S. to report their GHG emissions. For some American fleets this will prove to be a major headache, for others, like those using Telogis Fleet management software, it won’t be a problem.
When the bugs invade your home you don’t stop to think too much about how that pest control technician makes it to your house. You just want him there – fast!
But let’s take a moment to step into the world of a pest control business and go behind the scenes. What’s involved for a pest control business, from the moment you contact them to tell them you’re being overrun by termites or tarantulas, to the actual arrival of a technician, ready to fight those nasty bugs?
There’s growing discontent amongst truckers who are complaining that anti-idling laws are not only a huge inconvenience but also putting lives at risk, and not just driver’s lives either. If truckers can’t regulate the temperature in the cab by keeping the engine idling, some say this will potentially result in drivers freezing to death in their sleep or sleep-deprived drivers on the road, threatening the lives of other motorists.
Are these claims simply scare-mongering by truck drivers? Are the state trucking regulations forgetting commonsense and putting environmentalists ahead of people’s lives?
From June 1, 2012, any fleet that fails a DOT audit will be required to install an EOBR (Electronic On Board Recorder).
The FMCSA (Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration) announced the new ruling on April 5, 2010 and the change will impact over 5,500 trucking companies around the U.S.
The rule states that fleets breach HOS (Hours of Service) rules 10% of the time or more, based on a single DOT audit, must use an EOBR to monitor driver hours.
Carriers that refuse to install an EOBR will not be allowed to work interstate and may even have their operating authority revoked.
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How secure is your online software?
With the popularity of online software growing there is a concern that it is not as secure or reliable as desktop-based applications. GPS fleet tracking software is generally run online so it’s of particular interest to fleet managers to know that the infrastructure used by providers is both robust and secure.
But before you make the switch to online software, it’s important to check a few things about the provider to make sure they are taking the best care of your data and you can enjoy a reliable software service, something that is vitally important when you’re looking at running mission-critical applications.
Here are five things you should check with your online software provider before you buy.
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5 ways to beat GPS jammers
May
In our last post we looked at four ways that GPS jammers attempt to tamper with a GPS unit to prevent it from working correctly, and transmitting accurate data back to the user. If you are worried about your GPS hardware being tampered with, here are 5 ways you can counter these attempts to disrupt GPS tracking.
It is also worth mentioning that it is only a small number who will attempt to tamper with a GPS device. Not only it is becoming increasingly difficult and illegal, most recognize the legitimate use of GPS tracking. For example, fleet managers may use GPS fleet tracking to measure overall fleet and driver performance to make a fleet more profitable (and thus improve job security) and ensure all drivers are fairly following company policy.
Instantly knowing which vehicle is closest can save lives
The many uses of GPS technology continues to grow as great minds apply the technology in different ways. Using GPS systems to locate the nearest point of interest is growing in popularity not just from consumers seeking business but businesses broadcasting to consumers who happen to be in the vicinity.
For example, Foursquare has become very popular as a way for businesses to offer discounts to shoppers who visit their store, or ‘check-in’, using the GPS feature on their phone.
Other social media tools, including Google Buzz, Gowalla, Loopt and Twitter, are adding features related to pinpointing a user’s location (geotagging) for people who want to let their friends know where they are. But there’s more to the ‘near me’ technology that just finding your nearest coffee shop or getting reviews on a restaurant you’re standing outside of; it can actually be used to save lives.
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It’s hard to criticize environmental causes. When you do you’re automatically labeled as anti-earth, greedy, selfish or all three. Green movements have quickly become the white knight of society, perceived to be undoing the ills of a world stuck on consumerism and driven by short-term profits.
So what’s wrong with going green?
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Could a Taxibus system revolutionize public transport?
Technology is a powerful force in the world today, and like any power can be used for good or evil. A group of aspiring students, known as Team Phoenix, played their part in helping save the world using technology by developing a Taxibus system to promote more efficient and convenient city commuting.
Conveniently it was all part of the Imagine Cup held in France in 2008, promoted by Microsoft as an opportunity for young programmers to showcase ways technology can be used to help build sustainable environments.
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