FleetBoard in operation on a tour of France by Wiedmann & Winz
Vehicle & Technology
Wiedmann & Winz ran through what FleetBoard is capable of for "Mercedes-Benz Transport". One thing quickly became clear: if the full potential of telematics is harnessed, everyone benefits: companies, drivers and the customer.
Smooth communication. The driver has hardly reported delivery of his first shipment via DispoPilot.guide, when the next order comes in: wine from an estate near Châteauneuf-du-Pape.
The sky is almost as blue as the truck and the thermometer reads 35 degrees centigrade. The dust begins to fly as Jacques Mirbach steers his Actros 1842 into the yard of the precast concrete component plant in Marseille. He is carrying robots used to manufacture concrete sheeting and is eagerly awaited by the technical staff.
Immediately Mirbach parks the truck, he uses the FleetBoard DispoPilot.guide, a device the size of a paperback and equipped with a touchscreen, to report his arrival and the start of unloading to the logistics department in Geislingen/Steige. It is Wednesday, 2.30 p.m. The driver, who has been driving for the haulage company Wiedmann & Winz accident-free for fifteen years, completed the roughly 1000 km-long trip from Meckesheim near Heidelberg to the French Mediterranean coast without incident.
The DispoPilot.guide is both a message and a traffic control centre. In the driver's cab, together with the onboard computer TiiRec, it forms the centrepiece of FleetBoard, the telematics system of Mercedes-Benz. It was via this device that Mirbach got the transport job which the logistics department received on Monday at 4 p.m. "Can you deliver the robots by 2 p.m. on Wednesday?“, was the enquiry made by Vollert Anlagenbau GmbH, a global leader in the construction of machines and plants.
A company like Wiedmann & Winz which regularly transports high-quality machines, has to guarantee punctuality to their customers – and demonstrate transparency regarding transport routes. Scheduler, Julia Gröber creates the order in the haulage software "Soloplan" and uses FleetBoard to check, by looking at the driving and rest times, which driver can take on the job. Within a short space of time, all the relevant data appear on Jacques Mirbach's DispoPilot.guide display. He confirms the job via the touchscreen.
He has to take over the goods on Tuesday at 7 p.m. Even before leaving for the loading site, the checklist on DispoPilot.guide is helping Mirbach to be sure that his truck is in perfect technical condition. Then he inserts his driver's card into the digital tachograph and starts navigation from within the order. Thanks to the truck-specific route guidance, he gets to Meckesheim safely while avoiding a bridge which is only designed for loads of up to three tonnes.
Jacques Mirbach is familiar with the loading berth on the company premises and drives straight to dispatch. Before loading, he exchanges a few words with the Head of Dispatch. Not a problem for the man from Alsace who speaks both French and German. Keeping up contacts is important even if time is often short.
Even during loading, the DispoPilot.guide proves to be a valuable helper: Mirbach carefully checks that the load is complete, comparing it with the stored freight list. As are all his colleagues, the 52-year old is trained in securing loads. He is very careful that the tensioning straps are positioned correctly. In order to further minimise the danger of transport damage, Wiedmann & Winz train their drivers in anticipatory driving – FleetBoard can also provide feedback on braking behaviour.
Transparency. Thanks to FleetBoard, the logistics department always knows where the haulage company's vehicles are located.
Process security. After loading, Jacques Mirbach checks whether everything is on board using the data on the DispoPilot.guide (r.).
Then it's time to go. Mirbach confirms his departure in the
DispoPilot.guide and sets off towards Freiburg, in order to cross the
border into France south of Breisgau. His trip takes him to Lyon and
then further south down to Marseille. Shortly after crossing the
border Mirbach's mobile phone rings: it's a reminder from the
FleetBoard Driver.app, that the driving time is almost up. After
Mulhouse, he stops for a break in a car park.
FleetBoard offers the app for Android smartphones and tablets free of charge in 24 languages. A lot of drivers also use it to chat as Mirbach will do later in the day: he arranges to go for an evening meal with some colleagues in Chalon-sur-Saône, where he will spend the night. As he approaches the car park, a storm demands maximum performance from the windscreen wipers.
It's 5 a.m. the next morning. The South begins just after Lyon – if
only this traffic jam wasn't there! Thanks to Live Traffic
Information, the Actros is guided to another route and hardly any time
is lost. In Geislingen, the scheduler tracks the journey. He informs
the customer that the arrival time is slightly delayed.
Had a break. The FleetBoard Driver.app reminds the driver that the end of the break is approaching but also that he should drink enough.
Guided. Right across Europe, on the best route – the truck-specific navigation uses Live-Traffic Information.
Progress is fast over the mountains. The anticipatory cruise control
Predictive Powertrain Control detects uphill and downhill gradients
ahead by using GPS data and stored map material and thus ensures that
Mercedes PowerShift 3 adapts its gears and its speed to the
surroundings at all times. Before reaching Avignon, Mirbach makes a
last break and allows himself a croissant and some water. It was the
health function of the FleetBoard Driver.app which reminded him to
take a drink.
The driver has just reported via the DispoPilot.guide that delivery of the robot has been completed, when the next job comes through. On the display is an order for the return journey: 20 pallets of wine in Châteauneuf-du-Pape for a wholesalers in Nuremberg. But first the mobile rings: it's fleet manager Carsten Effenberger who wants to go through the tour on the basis of the data from the FleetBoard driving analysis. He gives the driver some tips about setting the speed tolerances of Predictive Powertrain Control – that helps save fuel. Mirbach can take the time later to look at his driving grade in the Driver.app.
After that's finished, Mirbach calls up the new order and starts his satnav. At about 4.30 p.m. he leaves the yard. Mirbach cannot allow himself the luxury of admiring the lovely countryside of the Provence with its gently rolling hills and vineyards. He has to keep his mind on the task at hand. As soon as he has loaded the wine, he drives on to Millau. There, he fills up the loading area with ten pallets of steel for a customer in Ansbach.
Another message on the DispoPilot.guide: the technical centre at Wiedmann & Winz is asking him to make a visit to the garage after the tour for a service. The technicians always keep an eye on the vehicle via FleetBoard: important data is transferred online. That way, the next service can be planned in good time before any problems occur. Mirbach confirms the appointment. Then, he climbs into his cabin and starts the Actros. Northwards we go, heading back home!
Photos: Dieter Rebmann
Infographics:
Volker Römer
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