White van man tamed with satellite technology, says Masternaut 29 October 2010

Allegedly notorious dangerous driving by 'white van man' may be on the wane, as tracking firm Masternaut reports 70,000 vehicles now in its sights on UK roads.

Masternaut UK managing director Martin Port claims that fleet operators are embracing his technology and forcing safer driving behaviour, reducing speeding and guiding drivers to more suitable and safe routes.

He makes the point that, unlike HGV drivers, commercial van drivers do not need to pass any additional driving test. Companies freely allow the most inexperienced drivers to take control of their vehicles, he says, despite evidence that points to very high accident rates amongst young commercial vehicle drivers.

With Masternaut telematics, driving performance is automatically monitored and alerted – and that includes recording vehicle speed against speed limit, as well as checking for excessive fuel consumption and rapid breaking or acceleration.

"As well as protecting staff on the road by encouraging safer driving, Masternaut provides intelligence on routes and jobs completed versus planned schedules," comments Port.

And he adds: "The real-time functionality of the system gives the fleet management team a bird's-eye view of each driver's progress, which allows them to amend schedules as necessary."

Facilities management firm Romec says it has already reduced speeding by 82%, since installing Masternaut. Lee Russell, IS Business Partner at Romec, says that the system has also cut fines by 26% and reduced its road traffic accidents by 28%.

And Total Foodservice Solutions, which uses the system in conjunction with the SAFED training programme, comments that it is saving 10% in annual fuel costs, according to Paul Nowell, operations manager.

"The Masternaut system has made a big difference… Because we get a real time view of the fleet, we are able to work with our drivers to encourage them to conform to speed limits," he says.

Author
Brian Tinham

Related Companies
Masternaut Ltd

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