Geofencing For Smarter Fleet Management: Are You Missing Something?
Summary
The use of geofencing in fleet management can enhance security, align payroll with hours worked, improve customer experience, optimize asset deployment, reward drivers, increase vehicle efficiency, and comply with regulations.
Geofencing creates a virtual boundary that notifies managers if a vehicle enters or leaves a designated area, allowing them to take action in real-time.
It can also provide valuable data about fleet performance and help managers make informed decisions.
When drivers are out with vehicles, you can track their real-time location with GPS tracking. But a manager has several other things to do than keep tracking the drivers’ location.
Besides, it may be possible for smaller fleet management, but it is impossible in a larger fleet management company with hundreds of vehicles.
Then how to track drivers?
Fleet management software has an answer for it which is called Geofencing.
What Is Geofencing?
As the name suggests, it is digital fencing of the geographical areas where the fleet can move.
For example, if you have a fleet for a school, the fleet is supposed to leave for the school and then drop off the kids.
That’s the fleet’s boundary. But what if the driver uses it for personal purposes?
With Geofencing, they can’t. Geofencing creates a virtual boundary and notifies the managers if a vehicle comes in that boundary or leaves it.
The managers can set the boundaries based on the duties of the assigned vehicle, e.g., it can be a street, a neighborhood, a city, or an entire country.
The place inside the pointed area is known as geolocation and the tracking points alongside the border are known as geofences.
There are event-based commands configured in the system. So, if a vehicle is assigned for delivery within the urban neighborhood of Detroit, the system will notify the manager if the vehicle crosses the tracking point.
Say, if the driver steps outside this fence, notify the manager through email. Various industries use this technology and keep a tab on what their employees are doing.
Ways To Use Geofencing For Smarter Fleet Management
Geofencing can be used in multiple ways to improve the way fleets are managed. Fleet management software comes equipped with several technologies like GPS tracking, dash cam, geofencing, etc.
Geofencing uses GPS, Wi-Fi, RFID and deliver the best results in the following ways-
1.Prevent Theft and Enhance Security
Fleets are the most valuable assets of a fleet management company. Their security is paramount.
Geofencing is an essential tool to ensure their security. The manager shall be alerted if a vehicle acts strangely and goes out of the geofence. He can contact the driver and learn the whereabouts.
If the driver is not using the vehicle, theft is the only answer. The sooner you know, the sooner you can act and catch the thief. Also, the geofencing operations are configured to reach the right person at the right time on the right device to take required actions in time.
Say, it can be configured that if the vehicle leaves in the middle of the night, the security personnel should also be alerted.
2.To Align Payroll With Hours Worked
No matter what you do to stop them, there is the possibility that drivers will try to finish personal tasks while on duty.
They may stop at an eatery on the other side of the town, or go out of the planned route to pay a bill or stop at home for a quick homemade meal. If you pay them on an hourly basis, this is wrong.
To put a stop, you can create a geofence and exclude the house or other places where they may stop.
The fleet management software allows you to put a stop to their working hours if they exit the territory.
It keeps a tab on their coming and going time and saves the payroll expenses. So, you don’t pay them extra for the hours when they aren’t working.
3.Customer Experience
Customer is always right, and you must fulfill their wishes in time. Managers can use geofencing to create geofencing around a customer’s place.
If the driver does not reach a landmark in time, the management can inform customers firsthand about the probable delay or assign another driver to complete the duty.
This way, customers don’t need to call the company, inquiring about the delivery. Managers can also handle situations before they go out of hand.
4.Smarter Asset Deployment
GPS tracking is the backbone of geofencing. It is through the former technology that the latter delivers the results.
GPS tracking also notifies the managers about the estimated time to cover a route. If a route always takes less time to be covered, you can redefine the time and move further accordingly in scheduling the tasks. .
This way, managers can enhance their operational planning and assign duties and resources based on the available data.
5.Reward Drivers
Geofencing can be used to protect and reward drivers for their duties. You can make the dangerous areas on the maps and protect your drivers from unwanted situations.
Say you can create a tracking point at a safe distance from the wrong side of the town, so the drivers don’t go there. Their safety is your top priority.
Also, if a driver logs in and logs out at the right time and never crosses a geofence, you can put a rewarding system in place. It encourages the employees, and they work harder for you.
6.To increase Vehicle Efficiency
GPS tracking also provides valuable data about your fleet, such as their mileage, the time they take to cover a distance, if a vehicle lasts longer than others when it comes to auto parts, and their fuel expenditure.
With geofencing, you can assign a vehicle based on the orders to be fulfilled. As things are planned, not two drivers would require to go to the same neighborhood.
By assigning them duties of a particular neighborhood, you can discharge more tasks and save on fuel and assets.
Route optimization is another great feature that allows managers to assign the smallest possible routes to reduce fuel and vehicle deterioration. It increases vehicles’ efficiency.
7.Improve Compliance
Some vehicles are not allowed to enter a specific area during a specific time based on their size to facilitate traffic.
By using geofencing, you can learn if any of your fleets are on the road when they shouldn’t be. The system will send you a notification, and you can stop them in time.
8.Monitor Assets In Real-Time
With geofencing, you can track that the vehicle is parked in the maintenance area or a garage even when the driver could not inform you due to urgent repair in the vehicle.
It allows you to assign another vehicle in its place or schedule the duties after considering the unavailable fleets.
Conclusion
Fleet management software is your one-stop solution for all fleet operation, management and administration-related problems.
Geofencing is just a part of it, and if you use it in the right ways, you enjoy the above-stated benefits. It improves how you operate fleets, assign vehicles and save money smartly.
Team VAMOSYS
Team VAMOSYS have been into GPS business since 2014 and have good experience on GPS Vehicle Tracking, Fuel Monitoring, Fleet Management and GPS Tracker Devices. Writes article on various topics to share the industry experiences and knowledge.