Trimble MRM awarded Innovation in Fleet Safety Award

June 13, 2008 - PRLog -- Trimble Mobile Resource Management (“Trimble MRM”), a global leader in GPS vehicle tracking - http://www.trimble.co.uk/eutrim/products/what-is-gps-vehicle-tracking.html solutions, has been awarded the “Innovation in Fleet Safety Award for 2008” by the Institute of Transport Management (“ITM”).  The accolade was given for the company’s  DriveSafe™ solution which provides a non-intrusive observation platform from which fleet managers can asses their drivers’ behaviour.  It is an added option with TrimWeb, Trimble MRM’s standard GPS vehicle tracking tool.

According to the ITM, “statistically, company drivers stand a one in three chance of being involved in some form of road traffic incident every year. This statistic increases further for those who cover more than 12,000 miles per year. With the arrival in April of the ‘Corporate Manslaughter’ and ‘duty of care’ legislation, addressing inappropriate or hazardous driver behaviour is now becoming the bailiwick of the fleet owner/manager. Yet, it is usually impossible to detect unsafe driving practices until after a traffic violation, or worse, occurs.”  

However, with Trimble’s easy to install GPS vehicle tracking solution the fleet operator can have a clear understanding of what is happening in the field to more effectively manage mobile workers and discover poor driving behaviour before it becomes a problem.  Particularly suitable for those fleets with drivers of heavy, loaded vehicles DriveSafe™:
•   Measures the acceleration of the vehicle during various driving manoeuvres such as turns, starts and stops
•   Measures the vehicle’s speed when cornering
•   Measures the average speed of the vehicle via GPS positioning
•   Measures the deceleration rate when braking

Having gathered this information for each vehicle, DriveSafe™ calculates a mean score for each manoeuvre and then compares individual scores to the average scores for the fleet, allowing fleet operators to identify dangerous driving behaviour so they can then mitigate it.
Patrick Sheedy, Media and PR Director for the ITM, said “This award comes to an outstanding company which created a whole new sector of the market place from the day it was launched and has been a class leader ever since.  In honouring Trimble MRM and its DriveSafe™ product, - http://www.trimble.co.uk/eutrim/products/product_demo.html  the ITM is paying tribute to a company which through its continual programme of research and development in the field of driver safety and monitoring is helping to raise the overall safety and professional standards of the fleet sector. It only remains for me to congratulate all at Trimble on this great achievement and wish them continued success in the future. With the soaring prices of fuel, fleet managers must take every measure possible to optimize fuel consumption and it is widely recognised that by improving driver training and behaviour, fuel consumption can be reduced by an average of seven per cent.”
Andrew Yeoman, Managing Director of EMEA at Trimble MRM, said “This award represents a fantastic endorsement of Trimble MRM’s DriveSafe™ solution.  Driver and vehicle safety are major issues facing fleet managers and we are delighted that our product has been recognised as an important tool for detecting and helping to correct poor driving behaviour.  In addition, companies also need to be aware that they can reduce operating costs by encouraging better driving.  Not only will they see a reduction in fuel use and tyre wear and tear but also lower insurance rates.”
Other health and safety benefits offered by Trimble MRM’s vehicle tracking solutions include being able to find a driver’s location immediately if they are in trouble and the provision of reports on vehicle condition and mileage for service booking to ensure fleet safety.
For further information please visit www.trimble.co.uk or contact Tabitha Taylor-Higginson, European Marketing Manager, Trimble MRM at tabitha_taylor-higginson@trimble.com or on +44 (0)1473 696343.