In this insightful interview, Assured Telematics had the privilege of delving into government fleet management with Tim Fitzgerald. As a seasoned professional in the field, Tim brings a wealth of knowledge and hands-on expertise. Throughout the conversation, he sheds light on his journey with Assured Telematics and Geotab, showcasing an eight-year partnership that has yielded impressive results. Tim's candid discussion touches upon the challenges he and his team faced before implementing telematics technology, highlighting the need to comprehensively track vehicle utilization, cost, safety measures, and driver behavior. Tim also shares valuable insights into the collaborative and responsive relationship he has enjoyed with Assured Telematics, leading to successful projects in critical areas like winter maintenance and emergency responses.
Hi, Tim! Welcome!
We're so thrilled to have you here to share your story and invaluable experiences in managing a government fleet. Your unique insights and perspectives will help to inspire and enrich everyone's understanding of what it truly takes to succeed. So we've prepared a few questions and let's just dive in!
Absolutely.
All right, first, can you provide an overview of your experience working with Assured Telematics and Geotab? I'm curious to know how long have you been using their services and solutions?
Well, I've been using Assurance Telematics and Geotab for about, I'd say eight years now, plus, and they've been very professional, with a very good track record in terms of services, billing, and providing the technology as well. The technologies work great for us.
Before implementing Telematics in your government fleet, what were the main areas of improvement that you were looking to address and could you describe some challenges that you faced?
Some of the challenges that we faced were basically knowing when, where, and how much vehicles were costing us based on the utilization and the composition and makeup of vehicles. Who's driving, who's speeding, where are they routing, distribution, that sort of thing. So we looked at what could be a comprehensive way in a single thread technology that would take us there from seatbelt wearing to safety to the whole nine yards. We measured a few of these technologies and we decided to go with Assured Telematics and Geotab.
What types of vehicles do you have in your government fleet and are there any unique considerations or requirements related to these vehicles that influenced your decision to implement Telematics?
Absolutely, we have all kinds, and a lot of our vehicles are customized to fit the types of work that we do, anything from a water utility to a public work announcement. We've had to look at how these vehicles would tie in, where they are, can they collaborate, work together, and make sure that we got the right vehicles in the right hands the first time. So that was also a part of what we looked at and measuring what we're managing. If we are measuring the types of vehicles that we're using in terms of their operational prowess, how are they best performing on the road, what types of codes are they throwing, what types of mapping are they doing, the technology that are aboard them? We wanted to make sure that we could see with a clean eye in real time how we're doing in terms of providing services to our citizens and constituents.
Overall, how would you describe your experience working with the team at Assured Telematics?
It's been great. Frank and his team have been a positive impact. Barbara and the rest of those folks have made sure that they provided us with the best tools up to date. We always knew when things were coming. When we switched out from Geotab GO6’s to GO7’s, GO8’s, and GO9’s, what was going on with them? So it's been a great working relationship. They were very responsive, very service oriented.
Thanks for sharing that feedback. Could you elaborate on any notable projects or initiatives that you've undertaken in collaboration with Assured Telematics?
We've looked at some of our largest pieces of equipment in terms of wintertime water main breaks for DPW. We've looked at our snow seasons, our types of vehicles that we have, our leaf seasons, which are important. There are several things in this city that if you don't do well, you may not have a job. So we wanted to make sure that for the prioritization of the types of things that we needed to do, that we were on point and always in position turnkey, ready to make sure those projects are heavily inundated, particularly being in the nation's capital. And we wanted to make sure that we had the technology and the wherewithal to meet the challenge and the need for each and every event that we had.
Tim, thank you so much for sharing your incredible journey and expertise in managing a government fleet. And we can't tell you how much we appreciate your time and contribution.
Thank you so much for having me. I look forward to working with Geotab and ATI in the future. Thank you for your time!
Are you ready to revolutionize your government fleet management strategies? Contact Assured Telematics to help work with you to provide a roadmap for success through collaboration, innovation, and technology integration.
"So we wanted to make sure that for the prioritization of the types of things that we needed to do, that we were on point and always in position turnkey, ready to make sure those projects are heavily inundated, particularly being in the nation's capital. And we wanted to make sure that we had the technology and the wherewithal to meet the challenge and the need for each and every event that we had."
