Peter Mansfield, group sales and marketing director for vehicle technology specialist Trakm8, examines the important role telematics will play in keeping Britain’s key vehicles on the road during the coronavirus crisis.
It’s clear by now that Britain, and indeed much of the rest of the world, is facing a crisis completely unprecedented in modern times. The ongoing Covid-19 pandemic is impacting every business, and every sector, in the UK, none more so than than the logistics industry.
Indeed, the transport and logistics sector is sitting at the very forefront of the country’s pandemic response, from pharmaceutical deliveries, to the trucks and trailers across the FMCG supply chain that are keeping supermarkets stocked nationwide. What’s more, SMEs that are unable to keep ‘business as usual’ at the moment are ensuring their vehicles are put to use, with light commercial vehicles used to run supplies to the vulnerable or those in enforced lockdown.
Over the coming days and weeks, we can expect to see the need for LCVs grow further still, particularly among retailers, utilities providers, cleaning businesses and courier firms. This spike in requirement of on-demand mobility is likely to be most keenly felt within the leasing sector, with short term rentals a workable solution for businesses needing to rapidly scale-up their fleet capacity.
Keeping track of these vehicles, and ensuring they are operating in the safest, most efficient means possible, ultimately keeping the supply chain moving, will be a key priority for businesses; a necessity that could be solved by the installation of plug-in telematics solutions.
Trakm8’s self-install offering, Prime, is low-cost and simple to use, offering vehicle tracking alongside a host of additional features, including vehicle health alerts; important for maintaining a van’s efficiency. Trakm8 Prime can be installed into a vehicle in seconds, meaning there’s no need to take the vehicles off road for installation – an important consideration when businesses are looking to keep asset downtime to an absolute minimum.
The vehicle tracking functionality gives accurate vehicle locations in real time, an important tool for providing accurate arrival times, and enabling businesses to be as reactive as possible to customer emergencies or last-minute requests. Coupled with this is Trakm8 Prime’s early warning system, which can flag vehicle health issues – such as flat batteries – before they become critical, ensuring important vehicles don’t lose time by being taken in for repair.
Furthermore, Trakm8 Prime devices can be easily transferred between vehicles, at no extra cost, maximising coverage across an entire fleet and delivering greater ROI for businesses. Recognising the uncertainty facing businesses nationwide, Prime is available as a flexible, month-by-month subscription service, with no contractual commitments necessary.
There’s no question we’re facing one of the most important crises in a generation, and businesses that are keeping the supply chain going are doing a truly fantastic job. That’s why we’re committed to standing right beside them, providing the technology they need to do their jobs as efficiently, cost-effectively and, above all, safely as possible.