Mobile Asset Tracking With Bing Maps: Keeping Your Fleet Fleet
“Fleet.” The word can have a couple of different meanings: You can have a fleet of things, like vehicles. Or you can be fleet, as in fast. OR, in the case of transportation logistics, it could mean both. Because if you have a fleet, you do indeed need it to be, well, fleet.
Fleet Management – Big and Small
And the only way to do that is with proper fleet management. Think about all of the types of businesses that have fleets: public transportation, utility workers, consumer deliveries. Even your local pizza chain has a fleet.
And every single one of these businesses is concerned about where their mobile assets are located and what’s happening while they’re on the road. They want to make the most out of those assets, getting everything to where it should be as quickly and efficiently as possible.
Today, Bing Maps is making that easier than ever.
Real Time Information For Decision Making And Agility
Bing Maps offers software-based monitoring and tracking solutions that allow you to have real-time eyes on your product, people, vehicles and anything else that’s on the move. Viewing these moving assets on a map allows you to change routes based on traffic or weather, add routes and drivers when schedules change and track drivers to learn more about their safety and vehicle fuel efficiencies.
Who’s Using Bing Maps?
Right now, some of the biggest companies in the world – in vastly different industries – are using Bing Maps for fleet management:
Security: G4S, formerly known as Wackenhunt, is the world leader in security solutions. In their own words, they “protect rock stars and sports stars, people and property, including some of the world’s most important events.” G4S has a fleet of human assets – specially trained officers charged with keeping people, facilities and products secure. It goes without saying that G4S wants to know exactly where their officers are at all times. They do this with Bing Maps, pinpointing the location of all security personnel to verify that everyone is patrolling where they should be, within pre-defined boundaries.
Transport: J.B. Hunt Transport Services is a company that has a vehicle to move just about anything – from flatbed trailers to small parcel vehicles to giant refrigerated trucks. In addition to needing regular maintenance, the fact is, vehicles sometimes break down. And with a fleet this large and diverse, they found it challenging to find the right repair facilities in the right places at the right time. They used Bing Maps to develop a system that operators can use to find the perfect repair vendor exactly when and where they need it.
Biscuits: For generations, United Biscuits has been baking. There’s no doubt they have a handle on how to make a wide range of tasty treats. However, with 11 factories, they were faced with the challenge of getting that product from the production line to stores in the most efficient way possible. They used Bing Maps to develop a fleet tracking solution that allows users to find and direct vehicles in a way that reduces time on the road, operating expenses and carbon emissions.
