Member Article

Ernest Cooper set to reap £125k saving

Haulier Ernest Cooper Ltd is set to save more than £125,000 in fuel costs over the next 12 months by improving driver behaviour across its 25-strong vehicle fleet.

The bulk tipping specialist, which transports over 1.5 million tonnes of bulk materials nationwide each year, saw mpg improve by 14 per cent and negative driving events such as idling decrease by 63 per cent in the first two months of using TomTom Telematics’ WEBFLEET fleet management system.

Ernest Cooper uses the integral driver behaviour monitoring tool OptiDrive to deliver both on-the-road coaching to drivers and full post-trip evaluation reports to managers.

“Because our drivers now get real time visual alerts on their in-cab device when they are speeding or braking and cornering too harshly, they can respond instantly,” said Ernest Cooper Ltd Director Jason Cooper. “The dramatic effect on fuel efficiency means that we are now planning to introduce the technology across our growing sub contractor fleet.”

“The fact that OptiDrive incorporates such clear colour coding makes it really easy to see where there are problems, so we know which issues and drivers to address at a glance. We trialled various systems but decided to go with TomTom Telematics as it did exactly what the management required and was by far the superior option to its competitors.”

Ernest Cooper is now set to integrate WEBFLEET with LGV-specific routing and scheduling software from Stirling Solutions. This will allow integrated order management with the TomTom Telematics PRO 8275 TRUCK ruggedized driver terminal.

“The day’s schedule of jobs is sent to each driver, and as soon as they accept each job, the system automatically calculates ETAs and alerts office staff,” explained Vic Ball, Managing Director of Stirling Solutions. “Customers can either track their order online or opt to receive email or text updates. Drivers can also capture customer signatures on the TomTom driver terminal, giving proof and time of delivery.”

“The latest system will significantly improve our outstanding customer service standards by giving up-to-date ETAs for each job,” added Jason. “Being able to communicate job schedule details directly to drivers without having to text or phone them stops any ambiguity or details getting lost in translation. It will help us to run our fleet much more efficiently.”

Giles Margerison, director at TomTom Telematics, commented: “Continuous driver behaviour improvement is one of the key modern challenges for greener and safer driving. We’ve recently launched four new KPI’s in OptiDrive which allow fleet operators and drivers to learn, coach, compare and evaluate driver behaviour even more effectively. This fully integrated approach is why we are calling it OptiDrive 360 from now on.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by James Thornton .