Traditional fleet management has shortcomings. The main problem was that you were not aware of the abuse until your vehicles got damaged or someone got hold of you with hear‐say data and only then you can react.
Currently Fleet management solutions such as information technology and tracking companies feed the fleet owner with massive data dumps, proving what they already suspected, drivers are abusing vehicles.
After the data has proved the suspected negligence the only option is a reactive solution with major HR disciplinary processes that drains time and money in bucket loads. With Dastek’s speed & RPM limiting and the costly hassle of effective fleet management is in the past.
As the fleet owner you have the current data as well as the reactive processes, but the optimal solution is to protect the vehicles with intelligent technology before the vehicle is misused. This is where the IVM can offer an unrivalled solution to vehicle owners and fleets proactively.
Q&A Interview with Cornel Jonker of Dastek IVM.
Can you tell us how Dastek IVM has evolved since its inception, and what inspired the company’s focus on intelligent vehicle management solutions?
It’s a slightly strange story; we almost started from the opposite side of road safety and fleet management. We started out as a workshop +- 50 years ago and soon developed a love to optimally tuning vehicles for better performance, including tuning for multiple racing divisions including Group N and the off-road racing scene.
The dawn of electronic controlled engines (early 90’s) necessitated the design and development of the Unichip, the world’s first piggy-back computer to optimally adjust electronic signals to improve vehicles. The abilities of the Unichip and the countless hours of development here at our head office and 60+ countries grew exponentially over the 30+ years.
Not to get into technobabble but the device can monitor, manipulate, multiple analogues, frequency, CAN Bus, SENT and other signals!
From the early days we were approached by a few customers to use the Unichip to de-tune or slow down vehicles but was never a core business strategy. As the years moved on and the average pickup, panel van and commercial vehicle became more efficient and powerful; speeding and misuse of fleet vehicles increased
The Dastek IVM was born from the backbone of the Unichip but with one mission: create a pro-active fleet management device that assist the driver (and fleet owner). The first few years were spent on robust development in the mining sector, probably the best testing ground for any device. We got involved with the Road Safety Foundation and MasterDrive and the picture was complete, we can improve road safety with a 1st of its kind product that proactively manages driver and vehicle.
Dastek IVM is known for its advanced telematics and fleet management systems — what makes your technology stand out in the South African market?
The Dastek IVM fills the gap between traditional telematics and fleet management systems by managing rules before it is broken. An example, company A has a strict policy regarding speeding, wearing a safety belt, reporting engine overheating and not over revving an engine. In the traditional telematics and fleet management systems world most of these items are only managed after the fact in the HR office!
With Dastek IVM all these items can be configured on the Dastek IVM and the vehicle will not go above the set speed limit or RPM set limit. It will also not go above an idle if the safety belt in not plugged in. When the vehicle starts to overheat the Dastek IVM will slowly remove power to protect the engine and if equipped the IVM will also send the overheating occurrence to a 3rd party device.
How does Dastek IVM help fleet owners and transport operators improve efficiency, reduce operational costs, and enhance overall vehicle performance?
As explained above the functions can be tailor-made for a specific fleets, most fleet managers or owners know what the occurrences are and the main cost and risk drivers are. IVM directly and proactively manages the issues and stops abuse before it happens. We’ve seen consumption improvements on a fleet of more that 700 vehicles in one financial year of 27% with a single point speed limiter!
Driver safety and compliance are major priorities in fleet operations. How does Dastek IVM address these aspects through its solutions?
Proactively stops it from happening but very soon the driver buys into the system as it also assists them (and keeps them out of trouble).
With the growing importance of data-driven decision-making, how does Dastek IVM leverage analytics to empower fleet managers with actionable insights?
Here is where we take hands with large telematics and fleet management systems by tapping into their historic data and addressing the issues from the top of the list downwards.
Sustainability is becoming an industry priority. What role does Dastek IVM play in helping companies reduce their carbon footprint and transition to more sustainable fleet practices?
Yes, it has become priority and Dastek IVM can enable fuel and emissions savings (also tyre-life, brake pads and other items that wear) on an existing fleet by enabling limiting, monitoring and sending data. Waiting for an entire fleet to be replaced by a fleet of electrical vehicles will take many years and investment, we can enable savings now!
What key trends are shaping the future of telematics and intelligent fleet management, and how is Dastek IVM positioning itself to stay ahead?
We believe in proactive management of drivers and vehicles, with our partners Speedfox we have developed ISA (Intelligent Speed Assistance) systems that can add to the functions explained earlier but with multi-point speed limiting to the list. Speedfox enables on-board speed limiting per speed zones and road speed classification.
Can you share any strategic partnerships or collaborations that have been instrumental in Dastek IVM’s growth and innovation journey?
Our partnership with Speedfox was a huge undertaking as the word of ISA is a challenge for OEM’s and all other that attempted to make it work, we can proudly say that it was done, not in Europe but right here and proudly South African
