Dive Brief:
- FleetMind Solutions — a "technology leader" that delivers fleet management solutions for waste and recycling firms — has announced new smart truck features that it says will enhance collection safety, customer service responsiveness, and billing capabilities.
- The new features include a "FleetLink route management system (RMS) with advanced rating" that will track all billable activities of the truck; a "customer service representative dashboard" that can manage customer concerns, generate reports, and schedule maintenance; and a "StreetSmart vision DVR platform" that provides real-time and past views of vehicles, drivers, and their activities.
- FleetMind CEO Martin Demers said the new truck features are in response to a demand for "smart truck technologies" as more industry professionals want to know the status of their trucks in real-time, according to Environmental Leader.
Dive Insight:
FleetMind is introducing important safety features and truck advancements at a time when they are most crucial for the industry. Just last week, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released its 2014 Workplace Injury and Illness Data, highlighting an increase in total recordable workplace injury and illness cases in the waste and remediation sector — specifically in solid waste collection.
"Tragically, our industry continues to be subject to the deadly consequences of distracted driving where inattentive motorists are causing a hazard to employees in our industry, and more must be done to address public awareness and safe driving generally on our highways," said NWRA President and CEO Sharon Kneiss in response to the report.
FleetMind isn't the only company working to improve trucks for fleet management and collection services. In August, Mack Trucks rolled out a new Mack LR low-entry cabover truck, which was built to enhance maneuverability, driver comfort, and visibility.
"By incorporating customer feedback into the LR design, we’ve built a safer, more comfortable work environment for drivers, boosting productivity and driver retention," said Mack Trucks President Stephen Roy.
