Real-time truck tracking

[Michael Ludwig]

@Salma
You don't have to be a big company to have cool tech. In my opinion, it's easier for small companies to have cooler tech than big companies because the the total cap-ex is a whole lot less, and typically has a better ROI.
MacroPoint for example; You have complete control over how your truck is monitored. Basically, you log onto the site and fill in the load's pickup and delivery parameters, set a maximum tracking time frame, and set how often you want MacroPoint to report your position. When you cross the geofence threshold at pickup it starts the track. While enroute it reports your track to your customer as per your tracking interval. When you get to the delivery the tracking ends when either your driver leaves the delivery geofence, or the tracking time frame has expired. At any given point you have the ability to stop and cancel the track. The carrier is in complete control. The only downside is if you are using MacroPoint via cell phone. Your customer will know what your driver's cell number is. When we did it via cell phone we made our customers keenly aware that if they contacted out drivers while they were on a sleep shift, they would have effectively put the driver back on duty thereby burning any hours he had accumulated in the bunk or off duty, and the driver would have to start his 10 off over again. No one ever called a driver ... LOL
Check out their website and read the FAQs. A lot of your questions will be answered. If you would rather, give them a call and ask for Evelyn. She's great to work with.

 

[Jim L]

@Jim L ... Jim, as a former MacroPoint account holder and current MacroPoint user, I can tell you that's not exactly the way MacroPoint works. MacroPoint works by geofencing. When your truck enters the loading point geofence it triggers the track to start. Similarly, when your truck leaves the unloading geofence it triggers the track to stop.
One of my customers is a big user of MacroPoint, but our drivers no longer officially have cell phones, and I'm not about to divulge their personal phone numbers. My back office and MacroPoint have custom triggers that convert Peoplenet Workflow tracking to MacroPoint tracking for the customer's use. We are in control of the outflow of information, not the other way around, and the system only sends my customer the information that pertains to him/her. The system is redundant because the start and end of the tracking triggers exist in both the back office software and the MacroPoint software.
As a matter of policy, my customers do not have direct contact with my trucks and drivers.

I do believe that Macropoint, when used this way, is on the right track to address all the concerns on both parties - those requesting the data and the carrier who wants to limit the data. They now have to get critical mass before other providers come into play.

 

[Michael Ludwig]

I think they are at the point that fosters critical mass. They are already integrated with Trimble products, and are used by many of the big brokers like CHR and TQL.

 

[frtbrkr]

@Salma
You don't have to be a big company to have cool tech. In my opinion, it's easier for small companies to have cooler tech than big companies because the the total cap-ex is a whole lot less, and typically has a better ROI.
MacroPoint for example; You have complete control over how your truck is monitored. Basically, you log onto the site and fill in the load's pickup and delivery parameters, set a maximum tracking time frame, and set how often you want MacroPoint to report your position. When you cross the geofence threshold at pickup it starts the track. While enroute it reports your track to your customer as per your tracking interval. When you get to the delivery the tracking ends when either your driver leaves the delivery geofence, or the tracking time frame has expired. At any given point you have the ability to stop and cancel the track. The carrier is in complete control. The only downside is if you are using MacroPoint via cell phone. Your customer will know what your driver's cell number is. When we did it via cell phone we made our customers keenly aware that if they contacted out drivers while they were on a sleep shift, they would have effectively put the driver back on duty thereby burning any hours he had accumulated in the bunk or off duty, and the driver would have to start his 10 off over again. No one ever called a driver ... LOL
Check out their website and read the FAQs. A lot of your questions will be answered. If you would rather, give them a call and ask for Evelyn. She's great to work with.

Wow Michael, you have detailed it pretty well.

as you explained the Driver can always pause the tracking to avoid the broker to see any other stops they have to make for other delivers on that truck. That should address any and all concerns truckers may legitimately have about tracking the drivers.

The other point users here asked was about giving out the drivers cell, Micheal please confirm i'm right. If i understand it well, Macro point can work Two ways, either the brokers has and enters the drives cell or Macropoint sends an e-mail and a link to the carrier, the carrier types in the drivers cell and setups the tracing, the broker or anyone else has no access to the Driver's cell whatsoever.

If that's the case, then i really cant understand why carrier would mind using it. it helps the customers, it helps the brokers and the carrier by not having to do checks calls (takes so much valuable time for everyone) and of course creates even better accountability got the drivers, i see it a win for everyone with any type of a loss or downside to anyone.

we can do it now with RAIL/AIR/Ocean and with Common Carriers (LTL), there no reason why it shouldn't work with regular carriers, none.

i have spoken to a lot of folks in the industry, i have yet to get a satisfactory answer of why carriers dont want it. The excuse that the drivers pay for their phones is BS, this dosent use too much data and it works even on flip phones (or dumb phones....).

To those who think Brokers are doing it because it's cool or what have you, brokers have one major fixed expense and that is their payroll and employee time. your shippers may not ask for it, because once you mess up theya re done with you, you both know it. with btrokers it's onces the Carriers messes up the sippers are done with thre boker, the brer can do everything right but if the carrier mesees up the brokers respsutions is hapmred and it's extrenly hard to fix it.

You cant imagine how many times, our customers asked us: "you are not doing daily check calls? or you have my freight and you simply believe the carrier?? and stuff like that.

We dont want to do check calls we rather to book ore trucks and and generate more revenue for us and our carriers, but our customers expect from us service and top notch service. By us tracking the drivers cell we can service our customers without spending our time and the carriers time, and the carrier / driver has nothing to loose directly or indirectly

Macropoint is charging only from the broker and we are more then to pay it due to the employee time it might save and for service it will provide to our customers.

 

[Michael Ludwig]

The broker sends an SMS link to the driver's cell number, so the broker does have the driver's cell number. Alternatively, the carrier has a MacroPoint account and sets the broker up on it.

What carriers have a problem with is that brokers do not believe them as to where their trucks and the broker's freight are. The carrier base has no one to blame but themselves. We've done this to ourselves by years and years and years of lying to customers and brokers, instead of telling the customer "We're late because the driver picked up a hooker at the Husky in Thunder Bay and now has a dose of the crabs that he needs to get rid of.". Doesn't make the carrier look very good does it, so instead, "We blew a turbocharger in Thunder Bay and the new part will be there in 24 hours.".

The added beauty of projects like MacroPoint is you can snip the map and paste it to your customer's email.

 

[frtbrkr]

The broker sends an SMS link to the driver's cell number, so the broker does have the driver's cell number. Alternatively, the carrier has a MacroPoint account and sets the broker up on it.

What carriers have a problem with is that brokers do not believe them as to where their trucks and the broker's freight are. The carrier base has no one to blame but themselves. We've done this to ourselves by years and years and years of lying to customers and brokers, instead of telling the customer "We're late because the driver picked up a hooker at the Husky in Thunder Bay and now has a dose of the crabs that he needs to get rid of.". Doesn't make the carrier look very good does it, so instead, "We blew a turbocharger in Thunder Bay and the new part will be there in 24 hours.".

The added beauty of projects like MacroPoint is you can snip the map and paste it to your customer's email.

well, i wish you check that again, i spoke to a MacroPoint agent two weeks ago and she told me it can be tracked even if the carriers are entering the driver's cell without the Broker having it (confirmed with her 2 again minutes ago).

your second point is so true, we had it twice in the past two months with a FTL was picked up from the shippers, but it only crossed the BORDER 4 days after, totally defying the originally requested delivery date, we looked like losses to the customers, but all we did wrong was we were in the 3PL business. nothing else. If only we can have visible tracking, my god!

http://www.macropoint.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/MP_TCV_3PL_B_WhitePaper_062117.pdf

 

[loaders]

Good point Michael. If the carrier tells the broker the truth, no matter how gruesome or scandalous, then it falls to the broker if he wants to tell his customer the actual facts, or "that bloody turbo has blown"! Lies are never good, however two lies are even worse. P.S. Without disclosing my current location, all I will say is, it is damn hot and sunny.......sorry!

 

[Michael Ludwig]

... P.S. Without disclosing my current location, all I will say is, it is damn hot and sunny.......sorry!

Ahhh ... you're up at the old Hershey plant, in the greenhouse, laying under the "pot" lights ... LOL

AND ... frtbrkr is right ... MacroPoint has instituted a new method of carriers complying with broker tracking requests that does not expose the driver's personal information. Kudos to Macropoint.