Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/1530176
Proactive Maintenance Benefits of Telematics While some construc- tion companies may have maintenance soware and others may have telematics solutions, the key is finding the right fit for your needs, no matter where you are on your journey. A con- struction site is a dynamic environment with many moving parts — heavy equipment, service trucks, attachments, and small- er tools. One equipment failure can bring everything to a halt, leading to costly delays. Running equipment until failure isn't financially viable. To prevent Challenges Without Telematics Unplanned downtime, con- tractors and fleet managers should leverage telematics data for preventive main- tenance. One of the signif- icant benefits of telematics is predicting and fixing a problem before a failure. "Telematics are great for helping you stay on track with regular service, which is a way to prevent issues or catch them early. An advanced telematics service can also simplify the alerts you get, whereas some of the more basic versions can flood you with alerts that are not all urgent and are written with code and jargon that make it difficult to decipher and prioritize," Papania said. "Not having or using telematics will make it harder to know about your machine's over- all health." Mike Kucharski, vice president of sales and marketing with Gauge, identified two major challenges companies face without telematics: limit- ed visibility to hours and location across their entire fleet and duplicative data entry and errors. Kucharski explains that when only part of the fleet is connect- ed, it leads to inconsistent processes and inefficient operations. "It is wildly important to have 100% connectivity," Kucharski said. "Additionally, it is im- portant to have a standard operating procedure for onboarding new equipment and disposing of assets. is ensures that you can keep your information and reporting accurate and maintenance on time." In addition to limited visibil- ity, Kucharski pointed out that hiring great people and retaining the ones on staff are always challeng- es, so using them wisely is important. "If those resources spend hours inputting and retyping data into systems multiple times, these resources are not effectively deployed. Leveraging Gauge's profes- sional services and vista in- tegration framework allows employees to run at full throttle and eliminate du- plicative entry," Kucharski said. Dave Cataldi, sales operation specialist with FleetWatcher, agreed that the main challenge for con- tractors who try to track maintenance and machine hours manually is simply the amount of human effort and error involved. With- out telematics, field per- sonnel must appropriately 28 and timely log machine hours, while maintenance technicians must locate the machine in the field. Bret Brown, associate project manager for Doran Manu- facturing, underscored the critical role of telematics in tire maintenance. "Track- ing tire maintenance with telematics gives drivers and maintenance teams real-time knowledge about slow leaks so their repair can be scheduled at an appropriate time that will not adversely impact safety or service — and thus avoid tire-related roadside service calls," Brown said. Brown believes that know- ing about fast leaks or high tire temperatures allows drivers to find a safe place to pull over, which protects them and the drivers in their vicinity. "Manually tracking tire maintenance does not provide real-time information on either fast or slow leaks and typically ends in solving a problem rather than avoiding one with telematics," Brown said. Continued on page 30 Operators can schedule repairs that eliminate tire-re- lated roadside breakdowns by learning of a slow leak in advance. IDA Universal November-December 2024