Kara Longmire, Co-President/CEO of Alert Management Systems, was recently interviewed by Michael Roth of RER Magazine on the topic of telematics. We thought this would make a great subject for a blog post since it seems to be on everyone’s mind lately.
First, what exactly is telematics? This technology is a robust system used to track rental equipment location, usage, and health. Telematics units are installed in equipment and these units monitor location via GPS, and send that information along with updated meter readings to telematics software. There are any number of reliable telematics companies in the industry, and as long as they use the AEMP standard, their software will integrate with Alert.
Rental operations find several benefits with telematics. First, a piece of expensive equipment is tracked via GPS so the rental company knows where it is. As any experienced rental operator will tell you, customers don’t always keep equipment where they say they will! This is especially helpful in wide geographical places, such as oilfields. Second, meter readings eliminate potential misunderstandings with rental customers. There’s no denying that a piece of equipment was used for a certain number of hours when the proof is sent directly to the rental store. This eliminates arguments at the counter, and is helpful for rental companies to not save overage billing to the last ticket of the rental period. Finally, off-rent times are confirmed. If your customer says they took the equipment off rent Friday, but really used it all weekend, you’ll know. And they’ll know you know.
How does this all fit with Alert? Automation! We love helping our clients become more efficient, eliminate touch-costs and potential mistakes, and become more profitable as a result. Meter readings are updated into Alert at set times, which flows directly into the asset record and the rental ticket. Even cycle-billed tickets will include meter readings and bill for any potential overuse. Telematics readings also feed into the Preventive Maintenance system, so equipment that is out in the field will have a Work Order generated for service when the pre-determined usage or time interval is reached. At that time, the rental company can decide if they want to send someone out to service the equipment, swap it out for a different unit so service can be performed back at the shop, or bring it off rent for service. As Alert rental property software clients already know, a well-maintained fleet of equipment only serves to enhance rental stores’ reputations in their market.
Alert software is driven by our rental industry clients. When our clients, the most profitable in the industry, asked us for an integration between telematics systems and Alert, our nimble team of programmers was able to get the job done. With input from Alert software users from all over North America at our annual User Conference, the integration is robust, efficient, and automatic. Our clients are able to know where their equipment is (where it’s supposed to be!), service a well-maintained fleet, and offer correct billing on time.
For more information on Alert, contact us at sales@alertms.com.
