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A Look At How Effective GPS Vehicle Trackers Are
Category: Computers and Technology
All shipping companies start out equal. The difference is in how they perform. Whether or not they succeed is dependent on
whether they can keep up with changing technologies and advancements.
X-Tra Delivers is a company that utilized the changing technological
advances to propel themselves to the top position amongst shipping
companies.
The Example of X-Tra Delivers
All companies, just starting out, are equal in status. This applies to
shipping companies as well. Whether or not they succeed is dependent on
whether they can keep up with changing technologies and advancements.
X-Tra Delivers is a company that utilized the changing technological
advances to propel themselves to the top position amongst shipping
companies.
What is X-Tra Delivers
In 1967 Extra Deliveries opened for business. They originally worked
only in the medium of shipping packages for the USPS and shipping large
luggage for local airports. Within just a few decades, they were forced
to close because of larger companies like UPS. Today, however, they are
considered to be one of the most prestigious of the delivery and
shipping companies in New Mexico and Arizona.
Too Many Problems
As demand increased, a small fleet of only eight trucks like Extra had
was not able to compete. This had never been a problem prior to the
arrival of the larger, more efficient delivery services. When they
arrived, their shipping times were faster and their costs were much
lower. These were services that Extra could not provide if they wished
to make a profit. Even without today’s advanced technologies, the
larger fleets were much more successful than the smaller ones.
Large fleets became the thing of the day in 1983, about the same time that Extra Deliveries went out of business.
X-Tra Delivers came into being in 1992 when Jacob, the son of founder
Thomas Dillon, decided to reopen his fathers business. He began with a
small fleet of 16 trucks. Each of these trucks was given a dedicated
route that included only one stretch of highway. None of the drivers
traveled the same stretch of highway as another. His idea was that he
would eliminate unnecessary fueling stops and hours on the road.
Eliminating overlapping routes would also stop the drivers from
traveling extra miles. Unfortunately, he did not fully realize the
scope of the problem.
Because the paperwork process was still mainly manual, the drivers were
allowed to keep track of their own time and their own fuel consumption.
In time, though, Jacob began to notice some inaccuracies in the reports
that seemed to repeat themselves regularly. These inaccuracies were
creating unnecessary expenses for the business. He began to see that
his customer service department was suffering and the number of
efficiency complaints regarding his drivers was increasing.
Jacob’s business was failing and this was not the way that he had
foreseen it. He quickly began to realize the reasons for his father
going out of business.
Finally, Some Solutions
During the first six years, the company struggled to barely make a
profit. They hired and fired drivers and fought the steadily increasing
price of fuel. It was blatently obvious that the company needed to make
some changes and do it quickly if they hoped to recover and stay in
business. Jacob felt that the addition of GPS vehicle tracker systems
in each of their trucks would allow them to increase their productivity
and efficiency. The GPS units would facilitate the automated collection
of data such as a driver or vehicle’s idle time, fuel consumption,
stops and starts , and speed traveled.
Jacob had vehicle trackers installed in X-Tra’s trucks. These vehicle
trackers did not require any type of driver involvement. They
automatically sent all of the required information back to a computer
in the office. The information that could be obtained included both
historical information and real-time information. Route delivery times
were cut down when dispatchers were able to see a drivers location on
the computer and efficiently map a route to their next destination.
This also cut back on fuel costs by eliminating unnecessary miles.
Productivity increased by almost ten times what it was prior to the
installation of the GPS units.
The Benefits and Cost Savings Realized by X-Tra Delivers
X-Tra Delivers began to see cost saving and benefits in many forms.
Labor costs went down as the company was able to tell the difference
between personal and company time and to track each accurately through
the use of electronic time sheets. Fuel costs went down as consumption
decreased due to more accurate mapping and dispatching. Customer were
happier as they could now receive an accurate ETA on their packages.
Security increased due to the installation of the GPS vehicle trackers.
About the author
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