NETE Installs Telematics to Streamline Vehicle Management

North Eastern Tyre and Exhaust Ltd (NETE) has equipped its fleet of 50 delivery vehicles with Aerotrack vehicle management equipment. The system, manufactured by Aeromark of Bedford, uses wireless telematics technology to track the location of every vehicle on the fleet and to monitor other important management information.

North Eastern is one of the UK’s largest distributors of tyres and exhausts delivering to more than 3000 customers in the north of England and Scotland. Speed of delivery is key in this highly competitive sector and the ability to deliver quickly, sometimes within one hour of an order being placed, is vital to the company’s success. Actually knowing, not just estimating, the precise location and progress of each delivery vehicle enables the management team to plan journeys more accurately and optimise the use of their valuable recourses.

Keeping a careful track of the position of vehicles has other advantages too. Private use can be monitored for example and the precise time that a driver started and finished a run can be logged and stored on the company’s vehicle management system. It is also possible to remotely immobilise a vehicle if it is stolen, and of course inform the police of its exact position.

Mark O’Conner, North Eastern’s assistant IT manager agreed that the system would provide an excellent return on investment. “We’ve had the Aerotrack system for about a year and it really is a great management tool. I’m currently working on an upgrade for our vehicle management system and the data provided by the Aerotrack system will play a big part in its development.”

Roger Marks, Aeromark’s managing director said: “People rely heavily on our equipment to run their businesses, if the system stops, so does the business. Over the last 20 years we have achieved a high level of customer confidence by ensuring that software, hardware and system back up systems are all designed and built in house. Our overheads are mainly in product development and support, not sales. This means that we can react quickly and develop systems that are designed specifically for each individual customer.”