Construction Law

How Telematics Can Help Your Construction Business

If you own a construction business, you’re likely interested in reducing liability, increasing efficiency, and improving your bottom line. Although timely legal advice from our Ft. Myers construction lawyers can help you achieve these goals, so can implementing the right technology and adopting new processes. As we enter a brave new world after COVID-19, contractors will need to track their margins tightly and implement technologies that can help them accomplish these tasks. One such technology is telematics.

In this article, we will discuss the benefits construction business owners can enjoy when they implement telematics technology into their operations. As we will cover later in the article, one benefit is that an effective telematics system can help you place more competitive bids on projects. For assistance procuring government contracts, consult the Ft. Myers construction attorneys with Cotney Attorneys & Consultants.

What Is Telematics?

Telematics is utilized to track the location and performance of construction equipment and work vehicles. Telematics systems improve communication between jobsites and construction offices, and the technology is most well known for tracking the GPS location of a piece of equipment or a vehicle. In fact, many construction firms originally invested in this technology to track stolen equipment. Today, telematics can improve several areas of a construction business by assessing the performance of the company’s most valuable assets.

Telematics provides data instantaneously to the employees that need it most. The technology can provide businesses with in-depth information about the equipment, including the equipment’s current condition, fuel consumption, and exact location in real time.

Here are some of the benefits of implementing telematics into your operations:

Streamline Repairs and Servicing Needs

During uncertain times, businesses that can assess the downtime of their assets and evaluate the costs associated with these assets will thrive. If equipment breaks, with telematics, the technician will know it’s location and the current condition of the asset. This will help them obtain the damaged equipment and service it immediately. Quicker response and repair times may turn out to be the difference in whether or not a project is profitable.

Improve Project Coordination

Telematics can improve the coordinating efforts of a business as the technology allows them to monitor every piece of equipment in its exact location, along with data-driven reports that show exactly how often each piece of equipment is being utilized. This will help companies improve their strategies for deploying equipment. It will also help them determine when they should use their own equipment or rent. In some cases, a business may realize a piece of equipment is underutilized at one jobsite and they may then transfer it to another jobsite where it can be featured more often. All of these logistics decisions impact the efficiency and profitability of a business.

Create More Competitive Bids

The benefits of an effective telematics system can go beyond active projects. Companies that are performing data-driven research of their equipment, including the amount they are using each asset, can utilize this information and make more competitive bids on future projects. When you have data that highlights the performance of your assets, you can pinpoint the equipment budget needed to perform the job. This reduces project costs and creates more attractive bids to government agencies.

Track Stolen Equipment

As the theft of construction equipment is always a concern for construction business owners, businesses that invest in telematics dramatically increase their potential for recovering equipment that was stolen from a jobsite. An added benefit is that they can greatly reduce the time to track the stolen equipment and have it returned, as telematics will allow the owner of the equipment to quickly locate the asset and retrieve it. Through the use of telematics, an equipment owner can receive an instant alert when a piece of equipment is removed from its location.

Evaluate Your Assets in Real Time

Telematics allow business owners to evaluate the way their equipment and vehicles are being used when “unsupervised.” They can monitor the movement of the operator and even be provided with an alert when a vehicle enters the jobsite through geofencing technology. They can evaluate the route a driver took to provide materials, they can assess the driving behavior of the operator, and they can observe any abnormalities involving the use of the equipment.

The future of telematics is an exciting endeavor as the technology can reduce project costs, improve efficiency, and increase the bottom line of a construction business. For legal advice or assistance navigating the bid process, consult the Florida construction lawyers with Cotney Attorneys & Consultants.

If you would like to speak with a Florida construction lawyer, please contact us today.

Disclaimer: The information contained in this article is for general educational information only. This information does not constitute legal advice, is not intended to constitute legal advice, nor should it be relied upon as legal advice for your specific factual pattern or situation.