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Consumers live in an on-demand culture, where even restaurant food and alcohol can now be delivered almost instantly. This food and drink delivery culture began with grocery shopping: online orders for fresh and frozen food are increasing as we lead busier lives – and we expect the same or next day delivery. The rise in demand for fresh and frozen food deliveries is one of the reasons that the global market for refrigerated vehicles and equipment is set to rise to USD $9billion by 2020.
Global giant Amazon have sought to enter the growing fresh and frozen food sector with an announcement earlier this year that they had entered into a deal with Morrison’s. The deal was met with lots of speculation. Amazon may be known for their super-slick logistics in their established markets, but many commentators questioned how it would fare in a market with extremely tight margins.
Any logistics manager will be all too aware of just how tight the margins are in the fresh and frozen supply chain market. To keep within the rapid timescales required for delivery of food and pharmaceuticals, operations need to be watertight. If you are considering refrigerated van hire, luckily telematics software has advanced to keep up with this fast-paced supply chain sector.
What do telematics do?
Telematics enable you to access both live and historical vehicle information on your refrigerated vehicles, directly from the web. The technologies have clear interfaces with simple navigation features that are accessible from any PC, smartphone or tablet.
With our van hire, systems can be set up so that you receive regular logs via email, with daily, weekly or monthly fleet updates, according to your needs. If you opt for a refrigerated van rental scheme, this should come as part of the lease agreement.
How telematics can benefit your business
As a business owner with a fleet of refrigerated vehicles, the ability to access real-time information on your vehicles’ locations can provide you with a single overview of – and insight into – your business.
With vehicle telematics you can:
- Plan routes that fully optimise your fleet in the most efficient way possible, with the ability to quickly amend routes if required by ever-changing customer demands.
- Access real-time updates on your deliveries and check on your driver’s arrival and departure times.
- See all of your drivers’ locations.
- Obtain information on driver behaviour to encourage greater fuel efficiency with reports on matters such as: speeding, harsh steering and accelerating, sudden braking, over revving the engine, fuel consumption and efficiency, as well as wasted fuel due to idling.
(Did you know that good driving can also improve fuel efficiency by as much as 33%?)
- Obtain live and historical information on your fleet directly from the web.
All of gives you valuable added insights into where your business processes, timings and staffing rotas could be streamlined, with a resulting potential boost to your bottom line.
The wider role played by telematics
In January 2016 a study conducted by MiX Telematics highlighted a number of key areas in which telematics is playing a greater role within the commercial vehicle industry in the UK, France, Germany and Spain:
- Load safety
“The growth of the temperature-controlled delivery market sees telematics being used by cold chain operators to ensure compliance and efficiency – monitoring onboard temperatures with remote sensing, and the frequency and duration of door-opening events.”
- Vehicle security
“Telematics is also playing a part in tackling freight theft, with operators using its track and trace capabilities to protect vehicles and loads.”
- Fuel security
“Fuel theft is a massive problem across the continent – but telematics is helping here, with fuel level monitors providing system alerts should a fuel tank begin to drain unexpectedly.”
The reassurance of increased compliance
Telematics can be employed to improve your fleet’s compliance, and because both live and historical information on your fleet can be accessed directly from the web, you can receive all the vehicle data you need with ease, ensuring you comply with the various regulatory requirements within the cool supply chain logistics sector.
The major benefits of telematics technology
Short, fixed or flexible term refrigerated van rental schemes gives you access to vehicles with the latest telematics technologies with no initial capital investment. So from the outset, you can:
- Improve your fleet utilisation
- Reduce your fuel costs
- Improve your customer service
And with implementation and full after-sales support, hiring your refrigerated vehicles means that you won’t be left using fleet technology that you don’t fully understand.
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