The Most Important GPS Tracking features to look for
Transportation is the need of certain businesses and the heart of some. Regardless of the scale of a company, managing effective transportation operations is everyone’s requirement. The GPS tracking systems emerged as the once and for all solution to all such needs. They merged management tools with telematics technology to facilitate the various operational aspects of a fleet.
Commercial automobiles require strict monitoring as a lot of business operations are relying on their efficiency. Any minor carelessness can result in dire consequences for the business. With the management solutions, the managers have a platform to keep an eye on fleet activity closely. There are some essential GPS tracking features to look for in a monitoring solution, which are as follows:
Real-time Mapping:
As managers have to look after many vehicles daily, it is hard for them to monitor everyone effectively. They tend to lose track of locations often as checking on every vehicle is difficult. Therefore, real-time mapping allows the managers to view the current positioning on the map. A modern tracking software offers excellent zooming options to get a better view. It enables the users to access the more discreet details like location coordinates.
Geo-fencing:
Usually, the vehicles travel within a specific area during routine trips. The starting and ending points are also known in most cases. A mechanism that ensures that the vehicles are following the designated routes can help in monitoring. GPS tracking systems offer the geo-fencing feature that creates a virtual boundary for a vehicle on the map. Whenever there is a breach of geo-fence, the software shows it notifying the manager about it immediately.
Mobile Location Tracking:
It is difficult for managers to sit in front of their PC to monitor the location of vehicles. They have to leave their desk multiple times a day. With the location tracking feature on their mobile device, they can watch the fleet while on the move. The modern management solutions come with mobile apps that offer vital features, including tracking updates. Due to excellent integration, the data can be shared freely from web software to the mobile app and vice versa.
Read Also: History of GPS and its role in fleet management
Driver Dispatch:
Allocation of tasks amongst drivers can be a daunting task. The driver dispatch feature offers a two-way communication platform between the driver and the manager. It helps in finding the nearest available drivers to the concerned location to dispatch them immediately. Thus, a lot of time is saved, and more trips can be completed in a day. This feature is more prevalent amongst car rental and ride-hailing services.
Notification Alerts:
The notification alert is a beneficial feature for managers to remain informed about the fleet activity. A GPS tracking system allows you to set alerts for maintenance tasks, geo-fence breach, over speeding, traffic violation, or other events. It keeps the managers up to date about the current status of the vehicles. In management software, you can also schedule alert warnings for theft attempts helping in quick response.
Trip History:
Many trips are completed daily during usual fleet operations. To measure the drivers’ performance, the managers need to have a record of all of them. They should be able to check which vehicle was doing what at a certain amount of time. The trip history feature displays all the details about vehicles’ activity during a trip ranging from speed to idling and stops. Some of the modern solutions show the replay of the route taken during every trip.
Points of Interest (POI):
There are some locations or places that are of critical importance in daily fleet operations. For example, the warehouse, fuel station, parking spot, etc. With the points of interest (POI) feature, you can mark those places as priorities. You can create several POIs on fleet management software by adding their name and description. The latest systems also allow the calculation of the distance between various POIs.
Location tracking is amongst the core functionalities of GPS tracking systems along with many others. The additional requirements of the businesses have compelled manufacturers to come up with more innovative functionalities. All of the above features should be kept in mind while searching for an effective vehicle tracking solution.
