Fleet technology leader Agile Access Control Inc., (Agile) creators of the FleetCommander web-based fleet & motor pool software, announced today that they launched their newest innovation, the FleetCommander Utilization and Diagnostic Chip (UDC). The 1" x 1 ½" device quickly plugs into vehicles to enable the effortless, automatic and secure collection of data when vehicles pass by a wireless access point. The UDC is available for most passenger vehicles and light-duty trucks.
"We are thrilled to launch the UDC capability within FleetCommander. It's an effortless way for fleet managers to collect the statistics they need to really understand how their vehicles are being utilized," says Ed Smith, president of Agile. "Getting accurate data is crucial to really understanding what the right size of your fleet should be. And when it costs upwards of $4,000 - $5,000 per vehicle every year in maintenance and depreciation costs, fleets with too many vehicles can be wasting tens of thousands of dollars every year. We view the UDC as another important tool to help reduce costs."
Agile's UDC is already in place at Cornell University in Ithaca, NY. Analyzing the data collected by the UDCs offers Cornell the opportunity to reduce their carbon footprint by tweaking vehicles for maximum fuel efficiency, making policy changes that change high fuel-consumption driver behaviors, and much more.
Understanding driver behavior, safety and fuel efficiency can also add up to savings for fleets, since the insurance industry is now recognizing the value of using in-vehicle telematics. Many insurance companies are offering discounts of 15% and more on commercial auto insurance to organizations using in-vehicle data collection devices to analyze their fleet's driver safety behavior and fuel efficiency.
Using wireless technology, the FleetCommander UDC securely uploads data to FleetCommander. In addition to capturing end-of-trip odometer readings automatically for use by the self-service FleetCommander motor pool key control systems, the UDC data is available in multiple FleetCommander reports. Reports provide visibility into the following:
- Trip mileage, date, time, and duration
- Fuel used per trip
- Fuel used for a specific date range
- Fuel efficiency (moving and idling)
- MPG
- Maximum and average speeds
- Hard starts and stops
- Maximum and average RPMs, and idling duration
FleetCommander generates fleet utilization reports with the ability to drill-down to see utilization and trips by vehicle type, driver, location, department, and more. With that data, fleet managers can make recommendations to drivers regarding safe driving practices, and understand if they have too few or too many vehicles needed to fulfill their mission. According to Agile, the cost for the device is less than $300 each.
