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WHAT'S ALL THE FUSS ABOUT...?
Page 58
Page 59
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Digital tachographs were seen as the devil incarnate when they hit the industry last year. Panic buying of analogue-equipped trucks sent the market into turmoil, operators didn't want to know and many drivers gave the new driver card the finger.
Twelve months on and the situation has eased a little, though many operators and drivers we've spoken to remain reluctant to embrace the new technology.To date,just over 200,000 driver cards have been issued — approximately 30% of the total driver population and new truck sales remain depressed as a result of an unwillingness to go for digital.
Legislative delay
Truck operators were let down on a number of fronts with regard to digital tachographs. Firstly, the legislators dithered and deliberated over the introduction of the regs.Then, when they finally made their minds up over the date of implementation, gave no opportunity for the industry to focus on what was required for everyone to get their heads around the move to digital.
As a result, the suppliers weren't in good shape to support the market effectively, and the systems to operate the tachos in the cab were, and remain, overly complicated. At Commercial Motor, we hadn't fully realised what a big issue digitachs were going to be for truck operators — despite having reported on the new tachos for more than two years.
Little wonder then that the take-up of the new devices has been slow.We're delighted to note that is now changing and a few applications have entered the market which are not only making digital tachographs easier to accept, but can significantly contribute to the improved efficiency of your fleet.
One of the most impressive products we've come across is Tachomaster from RoadTech. This is a low-cost, easy-to-use system, which is well planned and well executed.Foril per driver per week,Tachomaster makes digital tachograph analysis— and analogue charts if you want — easy Anyone who has already embraced digital tachos will know that getting your drivers' cards and digital tacho-equipped truck is only the start of the fun — you also need a company card and the means to download the information from the cards, capture the information in a readable format and store the data.TheTachornaster offer covers all this.
The Tachomaster software is given away free on CD, or can be downloaded from www. tachomaster.cmuk. Installation is simple — follow the quick-start installation guide provided.
Next you need a smart card reader —available from RoaciTech for £59— which hooks up to your computer and delivers the data to the software application..chis data is then transferred to the Tachomaster website and is available for analysis, all at the click of a mouse.
Online analysis
While the speed of downloading the information from the digital smart cards is impressive, the online analysis is exceptional, giving you all the daily and summary reports you might require to stay on top of your business. Infringements are clearly identified and there are a number of management tools for dealing with infringement issues. In addition, Tachomaster offers vehicle reporting, which enables you to monitor vehicle utilisation.
The system is not limited to digital tachograph analysis— the company also offers a do-it-yourself kit for analogue chart scanning.A chart scanner is available to buy for £570, which gathers the information into the Tachomaster system so it is available to view on the website.
Multi-depot operations are catered for, with reporting offered at different executive levels—allowing managers to see the whole operation, individual depots or individual driver teams as required.
Further updates are planned and are constantly being released to the wchsite. The latest addition is a German language version,signallingTachornaster's international aspirations. A dealer has been appointed for Germany and versions in other languages won't be far behind. •