Omnitracs recently made available new COVID-19-focused location insights for Enterprise Services customers in an effort to keep fleets, drivers and the general public safer.
By leveraging COVID-19 datasets from Johns Hopkins University and the Kaiser Family Foundation, Omnitracs developed a new feature that integrates COVID-19 location-based intelligence into its Fleet Mapping tool, the company said. This integration makes it possible for fleet managers to make sound safety decisions for drivers in near-real time.
“Drivers are on the front lines of national response efforts around this pandemic while putting their own lives at risk,” said Paul Nagy, chief product officer of Omnitracs. “As an organization, we have a responsibility to do our part to mitigate those risks by providing fact-based information that will allow our customers to continue operating their businesses safely and protect their drivers.”
Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, truck drivers have faced unprecedented health risks and operational demands. According to a survey from Change to Win, seven in 10 truck drivers reported more dangerous working conditions during the pandemic. In order for fleet personnel to provide drivers with critical information to remain safe, fleets must be able to stay abreast of rapidly changing local pandemic conditions and state restrictions. By adding location intelligence into customers’ Fleet Mapping view Omnitracs maintains it is providing critical COVID-19 information to the fleets’ back-office managers for the current location of each truck, allowing them to provide the safest, most effective routes.
“Safe and timely service has been a part of C.R. England’s core values since its inception,” said Dustin England of CR England. “Partnering with Omnitracs in this uncertain climate has been empowering for our fleet managers. These datasets will help them understand the potential risks, adding an additional layer of protection to our load planning strategy.”
Data provided in the new Fleet Mapping view includes:
- New COVID-19 cases and deaths in the last seven days for the location
- Quarantine and stay-at-home restrictions
- Group and gathering limitations
- Restaurant limitations and business closures
“We believe that serving up timely insights about locations is a critical component for making fleets more efficient and helping to improve driver satisfaction,” said Michal Yariv, head of Omnitracs’ innovation lab. “The integration of COVID-19 data into our products is just the tip of the iceberg in terms of where we are going with location intelligence.”