MarshallGIS

You are here: Home Arrow Blog

Using LiGO® reports to run smooth operations

Sep
2017

With LiGO reports, you don’t have to be a computer technician to retrieve and display reporting data that’s going to improve the quality of work. accessibility and compatibility is something we can guarantee with LiGO reports. Reports are an indispensable tool for running businesses. It can be said that a successful business is one that critically utilizes its reports to mediate its future actions. Expedient use of reports can achieve three things very well. The first, is tracking progress towards specific business goals. Secondly, reports aid in increasing revenues, whilst controlling expenditures. Thirdly, when it comes to gaining an advantage over your competitors, reports help managers predict both operations and industry trends.

That is where we come into frame! LiGO® software has extensive reporting capabilities with over 20 standard built in report formats. These built in reports can easily be customized and then saved as custom reports for later use. LiGO® runs intuitive user friendly ad-hoc reporting capabilities in a variety of types, formats, and methods. Compatibility features mean you can easily upload reports onto office programs like excel, and make reports available to other levels of operations across the board. Reports can be created, printed, or exported in real-time based on specific vehicles, time-frames, and events such as idling, or reckless driving.

Reports can easily be programmed to be emailed automatically based on user specified schedules which makes the task of keeping up with reports more streamlined in operations. The reports features are also compatible with LiGO® mobile for when you’re ‘on the go’. With reports you may also create score cards for your drivers to reward those that are efficient.

Bellow are some sample images of different types of reports.

Rate the level of productivity of each driver

Recieve detailed reports of driver total activity during work orders

For work order specific jobs, software can be set to recognize utility vehicle activities

Comments Off

View Full Detail

The Growing importance of Telematics in the Insurance Industry

Sep
2017

Often in motor vehicle accidents, the details about what occurred that resulted in damages are obscure. Disputes become a ‘word against word’ situation with both parties reflecting separate versions of the truth. Accidents that happen with no witnesses or police officers around, in places like parking lots or the countryside can be hard to deal with if the information is coming from only those directly involved. There are many other circumstances in which insurance claims can get complicated very quickly and force two or more parties into a legal battle. Collision accidents, are one of the ways; there are also delivery services usually held accountable for the location of things, construction companies responsible for equipment, as well as other real world problems like fraud.

Telematics services like the ones offered by MarshallGIS do an incredible job of gathering and storing vehicle data that consequently ends up being valuable in legal insurance disputes. With the ongoing rapid industry growth, this data is only going to get better and more accurate. In many ways we are only beginning to see the full potential of the way telematics could revolutionize insurance. Numerous car manufacture’s like Nissan and Ford, as well as Many parts of the developed, and developing world alike, have seen an increase in the use of telematics as a tool for insurance claims. Furthermore, regulatory bodies like the FMCSA moving forward with ELD regulations, paint a fairly clear picture of the direction in which we are headed.

The data collected can be used as puzzle pieces that help uncover the ‘full picture’ about what happened to the vehicles in consideration. At a basic level the data collected that can be used include:

Direction
Speed
Time
Location
Force of impact
Driver behavior
Vehicle Damage
Sensor information

The combination of this data helps insurers and parties involved recreate accidents in a court setting and assign responsibility in a fair manner. This data also aides in acquiring estimates for damage costs, reducing the likelihood of fraud, and create a more systematic claims process which in the long run reduce costs for everyone. Already, there are insurance systems designed to reward and lower premiums for better drivers judged by the telematics data they’ve accumulated.

MarshallGIS can help managers retain consistency and organization while providing them with the most information possible to safely and efficiently run operations that have potential for accidents and high costs in damages. Through our numerous software features such as LiGO reports which make data easy to understand, as well as the compatibility of smart devices with LiGO, YOU, as a manager will never be caught off guard. We equip you with the tools to make sure that you are not only operating cost efficiently but also that you are not losing money to fraud claims.

Comments Off

View Full Detail

LiGO® Features: Smart Tracking System

Aug
2017

LiGO® devices have been specially programmed to track data when a significant event occurs. A significant event could be an on board system being engaged, vehicle direction change, Miles traveled, and/or time elapsed. The Smart Tracking System™ relies on event-based, rather than just time-based.

This keeps the data stream to LiGO® reduced to only meaningful data, reducing post processing requirements (data reduction) and significantly reducing M2M data costs. To the right is an example of how smart tracking also provides better adherence to the base map – no crossing buildings and parcels which might happen with delivery of data based only on time. This is significantly better than just gathering a track point every 2 minutes or even at 10 second intervals.
Additionally, event based tracking can provide fleets such as garbage collection trucks, street sweeping fleets, or public transportation fleets, and the managers in charge of them, with the ability to merge track data with other GIS data.

The use of a dump truck’s hydraulic arm, or the moment a street sweeper deploys its brooms can be set as events and displayed as data points view-able in LiGO.

You can also see when perhaps someone is overworking a task, as show in the beyond superior sweeping in the cul-de-sac shown below

beyond superior sweeping in the cul-de-sac

Below is a side by side comparison of smart tracking (on the left) and time-based tracking (on the right).

Comments Off

View Full Detail

Coming to a county near you!

Aug
2017

Here at MarshallGIS we work towards expanding our business relationships through the application of our software in both public and private sectors; going above and beyond to provide an avenue for optimizing operations. Our goal is to equip businesses of varying sizes with the latest in telematics technologies which make fleet management more efficient, safer, and economically organized. We’ve seen a clear shift in the way fleets are managed with the advent of technology and digitization of information, and believe in our ability to maximize our software to most professional needs. Below is a map highlighting states in which we’re currently providing our services through GeoKNX Software, LiGO Vehicle Tracking, and Professional Services alike.

Comments Off

View Full Detail

Electronic Logging Devices to be Required Across Commercial Truck and Bus Industries

Aug
2017

“Since 1938, complex on-duty/off-duty logs for truck and bus drivers were made with pencil and paper, virtually impossible to verify,”. This quote by the US Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx sheds light on the relatively antiquated methods of logging that the fleet-vehicle related industries have used for nearly a century. Hundreds of hours of handling paperwork, billions of dollars in paper production and consumption, and the environmental damage is precisely why the U.S department of transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) announced on December 10, 2015 the adoption of Electronic Logging Devices (ELDs) like the ones offered by our services.

On top of the organizational and environmental motives to make this switch, there are also the safety benefits. Fatigue is a major cause of accidents for commercial drivers, with one report by the FMCSA claiming that at least 13% of commercial truck crashes are directly due to driver fatigue. ELDs improve the quality of monitoring driving times, engine hours, vehicle movements, and vehicle location reducing the chances of drivers being over worked. The FMCSA estimated that this switch will prevent up to 26 on road fatalities, and up to 526 injuries that would result from crashes involving commercial motor vehicles, not to mention the cutbacks in costs.

The National Safety Council found that of those polled, 43% of american workers claimed that they do not get enough sleep to mitigate critical tasks. Of these polled, 81% of them held jobs that were at high risk for fatigue, jobs that required high attention, or were physically or cognitively demanding such as drivers or construction workers. All aspects that that with the use of ELDs, can be monitored and prevented.

Source

Comments Off

View Full Detail

Fleet Management is Changing

Aug
2017

This is what Steve Anderson, fleet manager for Sentry Insurance had to say when asked about the ways in which fleet management is changing; “In the future, making decisions based on data will be critical. As younger drivers enter fleet, finding ways to appeal to this group through the use of mobile apps and other technology is also important. When you look at the changes made in technology over the past 10 years, it’s pretty incredible.” (Via AutomotiveFleet) Similar sentiments were expressed by Sheri Bonsall, John Dmochowsky, Anthony Foster, and Erin Gilchrist all notable figures in the fleet management industry. Between selecting vehicles, record keeping, maintenance, driver management education and training, and managing profits and losses, the demand for competent fleet managers is increasing, and so is the extent of the operational tasks.

The truth of the matter is that technology never stops and neither will the subsequent transformations of today’s industries. The modern conceptualization of fleet managers began to gain traction in the second half of the 20th century specifically in the 70’s and 80’s when businesses began expanding beyond their immediate surroundings. This was largely due to the rapidly growing global economy with the exception of the economic crash of 87. Increases in cross border trade deals, and advances in technologies made mass production possible, this amplified by an overall increase in consumerism also played a role. Survey data gathered from fleet managers in the US suggested that the amount of time spent between finances, operations, recruitment and other related activities usually exceeds an eight hour work day.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) announced regulations requiring (with very few exceptions), that carriers and drivers who are using on paper logging and other hard copy logging methods must transition to Electronic Logging Devices (ELDs). These are set to take precedence beginning on December 17th, 2017. This also applies to carriers and drivers who use AOBRDS. These regulations will no doubt affect a large portion of fleet businesses and public works operations. The push is being made to promote better driver safety regulations and essentially move away from the archaic method of logging, into a greener more streamlined electronic method.

So why MarshallGIS? Because we can grow with you as your business grows. We are expert at integrating LiGO® with business systems and mapping systems that you use every day. We understand that these types of transitions seem like daunting tasks, especially for managers who have been in the business for a number of years and have become accustomed to a certain way of running operations. We accommodate a variety of work management business systems integrations. Our developers, trainers and support team are all in one company with a 23 year track record of success! Our software is designed to create user-friendly access to the large sums of data and logging information. The integration of smart devices with our software means that as an overseer of operations, you will always be up to date with the status of each individual, asset, and job under your watch!

Source

Comments Off

View Full Detail

Bye Bye CDMA 1X Network, Hello LTE!

Aug
2017

Verizon has announced that it will be moving away from its traditional CDMA 1X network coverage which composes of the 2G, and 3G networks. This move follows an industry trend in efforts to move forward in providing its customers with the latest in LTE, 4G, and higher network services. This is big news and will likely affect a large number of fleet operating businesses and managers currently using AVL systems, and machine to machine (M2M) technologies. The changes are only set to take place in 2019 giving customers a 2.5 year time span to plan the transition, which is a little earlier than previous predictions by top Verizon executives who in 2012 predicted this change to occur by 2021.

source

The goal is to shut down, and re-farm the CDMA 1X spectrum to accommodate its LTE network which has far better data sending and receiving capabilities. To put it in perspective, compare the speed and data capabilities of your 2003 Motorola flip phone to your iPhone 7 or Samsung S8 today. Verizon is not alone in this movement as many other service companies are currently, or already have begun the same process.

Before the feeling of doom and gloom sets in with the thought of having to make yet another technological transition, there are some things I should clarify to set you at ease. The cost’s of replacing 1G, 2G, and 3G devices has decreased dramatically in the last couple years. Switching to higher bandwidth services like LTE earlier might actually save cost’s in the long run by preventing interruptions from loss of connectivity that could occur by continuing to run the CDMA 1X services that are gradually being shutdown. The transition does not have to be difficult and may in fact be an opportunity for an evaluation of overall needs, and a chance to add additional on-board services. All in all, it would be wise to begin the transition since the shift towards LTE has already begun. We will work closely with our customers to facilitate this transition as much as possible and continue to provide the best service available.

source

Comments Off

View Full Detail

4 Ways Your Business Can Benefit From Our Services

Jul
2017

Improved productivity

With LiGO metrics you will have the data to support management of workflows and performance – bridging the gap so often found in operations where the numbers simply do not add up with the workflow.
With features like the ‘real-time tracking’ you will be able to reduce downtime and unauthorized work breaks and travel. Alerts can easily be sent to any device and the user friendly interface is designed to be intuitive and easy to read.
Optimized routes, and prearranged time allocation allows managers to deploy drivers more efficiently.
The digitization of information means no need to go through mounds of papers and time sheets, or time spent calling and trying to reach employees. LiGO features help managers spend less time tracking down vehicles and drivers.
Identify actual time spent at job sites, or performing tasks.

Improved Safety & Reduced Risk

Monitored driving reduces the likelihood of speeding, accidents and loss of equipment. With fatigue being a major cause of on road accidents with LiGO you can more accurately monitor driving hours; not relying on data from hand-entered time sheets.

Improved Fuel Efficiency

Eliminate unauthorized vehicle use and stops, and any uncharacteristic behavior by fleet vehicles can be set to automatically send alerts to managers.
‘Geo-routes’ lower costs by deploying vehicles more efficiently
Reduce idle time
Less speeding means better mileage

Lower Vehicle Maintenance Costs

Comprehensive maintenance tracking and alerts lead to better maintained vehicles which results in longer vehicle life and subsequently fewer costly breakdowns.

Comments Off

View Full Detail

Improvements to LiGO® mobile apps

Jul
2017

In our latest updates to LiGO® we have now made it easier to connect to the your mobile fleet. Managers’ connections to their fleets is an integral part of operations, and keeping that connection easy, and constant is what will get your operations running at full efficiency.

Having two-way mobile functionality can increase productivity as fleet directors and managers can monitor, analyze analytics, and receive updates at any time. LiGO® will cut costs for operations by allowing users to set up alerts for idling. Managers can be alerted for fleet stops lasting longer than necessary, fleet divergences from routes, and other unexpected events. Thanks to our IT lead Ken Travis, updates to the mobile app is continuously tested and made operational with our priority being providing uninterrupted service to our customers.

Comments Off

View Full Detail

LiGO® Features: “Real-time” Views of your Operations

Jul
2017

LiGO® provides real-time views of your operations. Think about how much you know about what goes on in your physical office, by being there…listening, seeing, (sometimes smelling), what’s around you. Our goal is to bring more information about your mobile resources to you in the back office so you have that more intuitive understanding of your operations (maybe without the smell though).

Views can be set to see all vehicles or be set up for different levels: Departments, Divisions, and Crews etc.

This feature can be useful for those on strict deadlines and time constraints. With the click of a button, managers are able to know exactly where fleets, or crews might be. Or they get an email when a critical exception, that they’ve defined, occurs. With this feature there will never be a time where you as the manager or planner are unable to know exactly what is happening in the field. This feature can also be used for gathering data on the fastest routes, and how efficiently fleets are working, whilst simultaneously providing a level of security and protection to fleets.

A great feature for business use, ‘real-time’ tracking is being used in a number of industries spanning from government, universities, to even sports, and without a doubt most has usefulness in YOUR industry.

Comments Off

View Full Detail

1 2 3

Blog

Using LiGO® reports to run smooth operations

The Growing importance of Telematics in the Insurance Industry

LiGO® Features: Smart Tracking System

Coming to a county near you!

Electronic Logging Devices to be Required Across Commercial Truck and Bus Industries

Fleet Management is Changing

Bye Bye CDMA 1X Network, Hello LTE!

4 Ways Your Business Can Benefit From Our Services

Improvements to LiGO® mobile apps

LiGO® Features: “Real-time” Views of your Operations

Recent Posts

Categories

Request a Demo