The Benefits of Telematics in the Heavy Equipment and Construction Industry

Working in the heavy equipment and construction industries means that you'll be in charge of a lot of different vehicles. In addition to bulldozers and the like, you'll also have dump trucks, scrapers, excavators, loads and semis that take things to and from your sites. With all of these moving parts, your company needs a way to identify and track them all.

That's where telematics comes in. 

Automotive telematics systems aren't just for use in the delivery and public transport industries. Telematics for construction can allow you to monitor your fleet and its drivers. Engine telematics lets you know when something goes wrong with the machinery.

Here are some of the various benefits you can look forward to when implementing telematics for heavy equipment and the like. 

What is Telematics?
Telematics refers to a method of monitoring your vehicles and equipment by using GPS tracking technologies. It also uses onboard diagnostics systems to track vehicle behaviour and performance.

Find out why a shipment has taken much longer to reach its destination than anticipated. Keep track of driving behaviours to learn how to improve efficiency and lower user error. Or simply use GPS tracking so you know where your equipment is at all times of the day. 

If your industry uses some kind of fleet, then it can benefit from a telematics system. 

Engine Telematics
Depending on how big your company is, you may have a lot of heavy equipment to manage and oversee. Some of the most common fleet maintenance problems include wheel alignment, hydraulic issues, and an overheating engine.

Engine telematics allows you to see different pieces of information regarding your equipment, such as speed, engine light information, and faults. 

GPS Tracking
There's a good chance that your construction company works across multiple sites at the same time. As such, it may prove difficult to keep track of where every piece of your equipment is at any given point in time. 

GPS tracking is one of the main parts of a telematics system. GPS uses satellites to find the exact position of an object with an associated tracker. 

These systems come in handy in the heavy equipment and construction industry. With a single click, you can locate the exact location of where your equipment is currently being used. If something goes missing, you can find out where it's been taken. 

Telematics for Driver Safety
The use of telematics benefits more than just your fleet maintenance, though. With the combination of GPS and diagnostics surveillance, you can monitor your drivers and their driving patterns. 

For example, the accelerometer and location data show how quickly a driver gets to their destination and what route they took. Driving too fast endangers both themselves and the equipment they're in charge of. You may also notice them taking roads that are dangerous or illegal for them to operate on. 

Monitor Vehicle Health
In some cases, problems with your equipment will develop over time before they break down altogether. Your telemetrics systems can help you notice these signs before they become full-on problems. 

In addition, your systems will let you know if your vehicle is tampered with. That includes if it gets moved, towed, or bumped in a parking lot. 

Optimize Fleet Performance
It can be difficult to try to optimize your fleet performance solely using paper and oral reports from your drivers. Not only do you have to verify their reports through multiple other channels, but you may end up making changes that work against you. 

Automotive telematics systems give you all the information you need to make the right decision. Including GPS software in your fleet management, will provide you with access to business intelligence reporting, and can be exported for easy analysis. One of the most important ways to optimize your fleet is by analyzing the data. 

Use the data to find out who is doing a better job and how they've managed it. You can then talk to your drivers after you've seen the data so you can ask more informed questions. 

Keep Your Heavy Equipment Safe
Recent industry trends show the importance of keeping your long and short term machinery safe. Due to supply chain issues across Canada, we are seeing a rise in the cost of rental machinery. Forklift prices have increased 23% year over year, and motor graders are up 17%. With this in mind, it’s important to prioritize the safety and maintenance of your assets to preserve their lifespan. 

Engine telematics, GPS tracking, and diagnostics systems all come together to keep both your heavy equipment and your drivers safe. If there are any issues, your systems will notify you as soon as they pop up. And that data may also inform your decisions regarding driver safety and performance. 

Cellutrak offers solutions for tracking and managing your assets with GPS. Our devices allow you to manage and maintain your fleet through our remote asset management software.

Fill out our form online to request a live demo and see what we have to offer firsthand.