Navman Wireless is offering a new GPS-based speed monitoring service for its OnlineAVL2 fleet tracking system through a partnership with SpeedGauge, a provider of speed management analytics for the commercial transportation industry. The new option - available for fleets in the U.S. and Canada - combines the two companies' technologies to help fleet operators reduce risk, fuel consumption and maintenance costs by detecting violations of posted speed limits and/or company speed policies.

Available as an add-on to any of Navman Wireless' monthly subscription packages, the SpeedGauge service enables fleet managers to identify high-risk driving behavior and analyze speeding patterns over time. Users can:

• Establish thresholds for driving over posted speed limits (e.g. 3 mph over for city, 7 mph over for highway), with different settings for cars, trucks and hazmat vehicles.

• Set limits and thresholds for private roads, truck yards and other locations outside of standard speed zones, and create custom speed zones with electronic geofences.

• Receive daily, weekly or monthly emails that list the time, date, location, speed limit, actual speed and other key data for each speeding incident.

• See the precise location of any violation on a map by clicking on any incident.

• Drill down to additional details at Navman Wireless' password-protected SpeedGauge site, with the ability to sort by parameters such as vehicle and incident.

• Access a variety of trend reports online, including charts and graphs providing at-a-glance information on speed violations and improvements over time. Reports are archived online for a year and can also be imported by the fleet operator for longer recordkeeping.

A study by SpeedGauge found that using speed monitoring to pinpoint and correct speeding behavior can reduce speeding incidents by up to 67 percent, substantially decrease accident risk and associated costs, and lower both fuel consumption and annual maintenance expenses. The findings are based in part on EPA data indicating that driving 10 mph over the limit increases fuel consumption by 15 percent. Reducing speeding on roads with speed limits over 55 mph alone saves an average of $21,000 to $80,000 per vehicle in fuel bills, according to EPA calculations.

"Driving speed has traditionally been a wild card in fleet management because fleet operators have had no way to measure this aspect of driver behavior. Yet speeding corresponds directly to accidents, fuel efficiency, and vehicle wear and tear," said Renaat Ver Eecke, Vice President and General Manager, Navman Wireless North America. "With SpeedGauge, managers can zero in on habitual speeders, use the information to corrective action, and dramatically reduce speeding incidents and related risk and costs through training and policy enforcement."

The new SpeedGauge service marks the second enhancement to the OnlineAVL2 platform in a month. In January, Navman Wireless announced the addition of a route optimization capability powered by Dashfly that enables dispatchers to calculate the fastest and shortest driving routes for up to 25 stops with one click. The resulting routing information is then transmitted to Navman Wireless' M-Nav in-vehicle terminals for driver notification and turn-by-turn navigation.

API Available for Other Integrations

SpeedGauge's integration with Navman Wireless' technology marks the latest use of Navman Wireless' Application Programming Interface (API) to enable seamless communication between the OnlineAVL2 software and third-party applications. The Navman Wireless API can be used both to add new functionality to OnlineAVL2, as in the cases of SpeedGauge and Dashfly, and to leverage Navman Wireless' fleet tracking data to help power other systems, such as a towing application and an after-hours college ride service.

The GPS-based Navman Wireless platform is the only fleet tracking solution that provides location, operations and performance data for both on-road vehicles and construction equipment from a single interface. The system monitors vehicle location in real time while also helping fleet managers reduce fuel, labor and vehicle operating costs. System maps and reports pinpoint problems such as idling, inaccurate timesheets, unauthorized stops and personal vehicle usage as well as improving dispatch efficiencies and optimizing maintenance schedules.

Components include the back-nd OnlineAVL2 application, delivered under the Software-as-a-Service model with no major in-house software installation or maintenance required; the Qube on-road and Qtanium off-road GPS tracking devices; and in-vehicle M-Nav 760 and MDT-860 mobile messaging/turn-by-turn GPS navigation devices.