The fleet industry, just like any other specialized asset-tracking industry like oil or gas, is in the midst of a technology-induced cusp of change. Here’s a look at the top trends from the industry to look forward to in 2019, or what’s left of the year:

Data, data, data

With telematics being adopted at such a major scale, there’s a whole lot of data fleet managers can draw meaningful insights from. Hitherto data was used primarily to improve efficiency. But with industries getting competitive, there are other aspects of the business that fleet managers can focus on. For instance, if safety is critical, they might have to pay attention to accident and maintenance data. Similarly, data analytics can be leveraged to manage environmental impact, retain skilled workers and increase operational efficiencies.

Driver tracking and behaviour monitoring

One major area where the use of data analytics will possibly see a growth spurt in the near future is behaviour monitoring and tracking. Think about the well-being of the drivers, tracking the vehicle while it’s in motion and the safety of the cargo among other operational factors. All this, thanks not just to GPS trackers, but computers onboard that offer real-time cloud analytics. With this, you can reduce accidents, optimize fuel consumption and eliminate unnecessary slacking ⁠ — thereby allowing the fleet manager to retain control of their fleet.

The role of fleet managers

The influence of technology and analytics has transformed the role of fleet managers globally. Since the focus is on being strategic and analytical, the fleet manager of tomorrow might be an IT professional rather than someone from the automotive space. As such, he or she will be expected to stay in line with the company’s core mission and develop KPIs accordingly, engage with relevant stakeholders, set performance metrics and leverage the data produced to improve fleet productivity, cost, and safety.

Security in fleet management

A stolen commercial vehicle can be a severe loss to the company and pose a major security threat. Zeliot, for instance, offers a geofencing tool in their application that alerts you by text or email whenever a vehicle enters or leaves specific areas. You’ll also get alerts when there is immobilization, over-speeding, harsh braking or acceleration. There’s also a ‘God’s View’ feature that’s designed to allow the owner of a fleet a view of all their vehicles, live, without any lag.

Increasing use of automation

IoT is all set to take proactive maintenance to the next level. We’re talking about reminders to drivers about when the vehicle servicing is due, when a component is overheating or when the oil needs to be changed. This leads to fewer maintenance costs and better fleet utilization. Machine learning and AI, in general, are cause for excitement because this means that there are plenty of custom fleet management solutions and enhancements available. For more information, chat with us at Zeliot.