Navman Wireless unveils new tracking device and announces plans to develop comprehensive fleet management modules
By Gary Worrall | April 16, 2010
Navman Wireless has launched a new truck tracking device amid plans to develop a host of new modules to improve fleet management.
The M-Nav 760 combines vehicle tracking, paging and recording in a single unit and uses a combination of GPS signals and the Telstra 3G network.
“The M-Nav 760 allows a dispatcher to take an order from a customer, assign the job and then track the driver, including providing directions to the pick up address,” Navman Wireless Asia Pacific Vice President Ian Daniel says.
Where the driver has permission to use the vehicle privately, Daniel says there is a switch that when pressed means the vehicle’s movements will not be tracked. It will still monitor trip distance and times.
“We find it is important to offer the driver privacy but still track time and distance for service and maintenance purposes,” he says.
The service function features an email alert to selected personnel such as the driver, fleet supervisor and workshop foreman to notify of an impending service and allow for vehicle changeovers to be prepared in advance.
The M-Nav is an open-ended device and Daniel says the company is planning to expand it to include vehicle data logging and recording information like idling and waiting times.
Other modules under development include one for driver fatigue management to tally hours and distance and instant and average speeds.
Daniel says although Navman Wireless shares the same name as the portable navigation units, it is a separate company spun off from the original Navman business.
“We started in 15 markets globally, including the USA, Great Britain, Mexico and Australia, and became market leaders in most of them,” he says.
“We were able to expand in 2009, entering new markets and becoming top sellers, because we improved client productivity by reducing waste and inefficiency.”
Navman Wireless was part of the initial steering committee for the Intelligent Access Program (IAP) but Daniel says the company decided not to be part of the final program so it could concentrate on broadening its offering to the transport industry.