Great Dane's FleetPulse trailer telematics solution is designed to manage several telematics suppliers, integrating various sensor manufactures or managing multiple locations.

Great Dane intros FleetPulse telematics trailer tracking software and hardware system

Oct. 29, 2019

Agnostic platform focuses on open sourcing, and kicks off with partnerships with Wabco ABS and Grote Guardian

As a trailer OE, Great Dane has entered the telematics trailer tracking market with its FleetPulse hardware and software solution. The agnostic platform allows for open source telematics, through partnerships with Tier 1 suppliers. The announcement comes during the North American Commercial Vehicle (NACV) Show in Atlanta this week.

The trailer manufacturer announced it's first partnerships with the Wabco intelligent anti-lock braking system (I-ABS) and with Grote Guardian lighting monitoring systems.

The system will be 100-percent focused on the trailer and the load associated with that trailer, says Mike Molitor, director, business development, Great Dane. FleetPulse will allow for communication between all areas of the trailer to help lower the total cost of ownership over the average 10-15-year life of the asset.

FleetPulse will not use proprietary sensors, instead offering an agnostic platform. "We were thoughtful and deliberate only using trailer components that are common to the entire trailer industry," Molitor said. "Fleets want data from their trailers, and not just Great Dane trailers."

Great Dane trailers will feature built-in sensors to collect data directly from the trailer’s components, for areas such as tire inflation, open doors, cargo weight, light status, ABS fault codes, and actual mileage of the trailer. Data is collected in a single datastream via CAN and transferred through a 4G LTE platform to the fleet's Connected Trailer Hub.

Molitor said the trailer telematics product is rooted in maintenance, and originated through the idea of improving pre- and post-trip inspections to help lower maintenance costs.

"Driving drown maintenance costs is a huge opportunity that just cant be done with GPS tracking," said Molitor. "Fleets can begin to do mileage-based PMs (preventive maintenance) and receive detailed fault information from the ABS system. The Wabco ABS system is providing over 200 fault codes in real time with FleetPulse. With that fault code is the right repair instructions, the right part numbers, and we can connect them with the closest service center. Versus today, to get that information off the trailer, you have to plug in physically to that trailer o get into the service shop."

The data can also be utilized by maintenance personnel in the service bay. by technicians via a mobile app. Technicians can use a mobile app to scan the trailer plate of the trailer and pull up the specs of that trailer, including necessary parts and active faults.

Trailer tracking functionality through FleetPulse will also allow fleets to better optimize trailer usage.

"Fleets are using accurate trailer mileage, which is coming from the ABS system, not GPS mileage, and combining that data with axle weight to understand how often they’re driving empty trailers, or even half full trailers," Molitor said. "Then they can re-deploy those trailers to different locations where they can generate more revenue. Then they can improve their tractor-to-trailer ratio."

For more information, visit www.fleet-pulse.com.

Great Dane also recently announced a partnership with Coretex, a global provider of supply chain compliance and fleet management solutions. This partnership will provide Great Dane customers a comprehensive solution for refrigerated trailers, including insight into critical refrigerated components such as the reefer unit and temperature controls.

About the Author

Erica Schueller | Media Relations Manager | Navistar

Erica Schueller is the Media Relations Manager for Navistar.

Before joining Navistar, Schueller served as Editorial Director of the Endeavor Commercial Vehicle Group. The commercial vehicle group includes the following brands: American Trucker, Bulk Transporter, Fleet Maintenance, FleetOwner, Refrigerated Transporter, and Trailer/Body Builders brands.

An award-winning journalist, Schueller has reported and written about the vehicle maintenance and repair industry her entire career. She has received accolades for her reporting and editing in the commercial and automotive vehicle fields by the Truck Writers of North America (TWNA), the International Automotive Media Competition (IAMC), the Folio: Eddie & Ozzie Awards and the American Society of Business Publication Editors (ASBPE) Azbee Awards.

Schueller has received recognition among her publishing industry peers as a recipient of the 2014 Folio Top Women in Media Rising Stars award, acknowledging her accomplishments of digital content management and assistance with improving the print and digital products in the Vehicle Repair Group. She was also named one Women in Trucking’s 2018 Top Women in Transportation to Watch.

She is an active member of a number of industry groups, including the American Trucking Associations' (ATA) Technology & Maintenance Council (TMC), the Auto Care Association's Young Auto Care Networking Group, GenNext, and Women in Trucking.

In December 2018, Schueller graduated at the top of her class from the Waukesha County Technical College's 10-week professional truck driving program, earning her Class A commercial driver's license (CDL).

She has worked in the vehicle repair and maintenance industry since 2008.