Tech Watch: GPS Tools Help Optimize Use of Time, Vehicles
1 Feb, 2006 By: Dean Stanbridge Pest Management ProfessionalThe concept of the global positioning system (GPS) originally was created by the Department of Defense (DoD). The satellites, also called space vehicles (SVs), are still predominately owned and controlled by the DoD.
 DEAN STANBRIDGE |
Although GPS is really cool, and it's neat to think that we can use the same satellites as the military, does it really have an application to PMPs? I think it does, and so do several others including Stuart Aust of Bug Doctor Termite & Pest Control (see story).
BEVY OF BENEFITS
Passive GPS essentially is a stand-alone receiver that stores data for future analysis. It's ideal for companies that don't need to know where their vehicles are at any given moment.
Most of these passive GPS units can collect data for several hundred hours, and when the vehicle enters a downloadable area or is connected to a download station, the information is loaded to a computer, interpreted and formatted. Data can then be viewed on maps or charts displaying tracking reports on stop times, routes and miles traveled. The advantage of this system is there's no need to pay a monthly service for "live" reporting.
Real-time GPS, also known as automated vehicle location (AVLs), is a far superior technology to passive GPS. As owners, there are several advantages to being able to pinpoint a vehicle at a moment's notice.
It's great to be able to locate a service vehicle to see if it's close to the location of a client emergency. Routing service calls becomes a snap, and you can compare estimated call lengths and drive times to actual data and increase routing efficiency.
Real-time GPS has been proven to increase productivity, decrease overall mileage and improve employee satisfaction throughout the trucking and courier industries.
As business owners, we all want to make more money, but for the employees, the built-in safety features are the key GPS incentive. Most of these GPS devices contain a panic feature that automatically identifies the vehicle to your dispatcher or the authorities when there is an emergency.
In addition to driver safety, most of the systems also offer an ignition lockout feature allowing a dispatcher to remotely lock out the ignition if the vehicle has been stolen. This feature, along with vehicle location, can provide an insurance cost savings of 20 percent to 35 percent. Most of these units also contain programmable features to monitor oil pressure, vehicle speed and other key performance indicators.
THE BOTTOM LINE
The average passive GPS unit costs less than $300, and the average real-time unit costs around $500. Equipment costs haven't decreased much since 2001, but the devices' size, reliability and programmable functions have improved dramatically.
Monthly two-way communication packages have decreased but they still run $8 to $15 per month per vehicle. These units easily pay for themselves when you consider just a few of the combined savings.
In an average city, you most likely will save in excess of $1,000 per route per year over the cost of one of these units. The return on investment (ROI) increases in subsequent years as the system is paid off. These ROI figures don't include improved office efficiency, customer service and employee safety.
The numbers speak for themselves. The pest management industry should "keep on tracking" with GPS systems.
Stanbridge is president of Professional Pest Management Consultants in Milton, Ontario. Contact him at
dstanbridge@questex.com.
Please send any technical comments or questions to our webmaster.