Analysis
8 Nov 19

Connected transformation: from tyres to telematics to car sharing

Experts from the world of connectivity and mobility shared their wisdom and their visions during the Corporate Side Presentations at the 2019 Fleet Europe Summit in Estoril, revealing the profound impact that data from connected vehicles will have on the future of transport and mobility.

How telematics will revolutionise the tyre market

Vehicle connectivity will drive massive efficiencies through the supply chain of tyres. By monitoring tyre pressures and vehicle use (including speed, distance and driving behaviour), smart learning will be able to develop ever more precise predictive maintenance models.

“Just as in Formula 1, how you drive and where you drive has huge impact on how long your tyres last - it’s really valuable info for this industry,” said Taco van der Leij (pictured above), Vice President of Marketing at Webfleet Solutions (formerly known as TomTom Telematics).

This tyre wear information can then percolate through the tyre replacement chain, notifying the service centre and tyre warehouses so the correct tyres are ready and waiting when a driver arrives for pre-booked tyre replacements. This saves the driver time and cuts the inventory that tyre centres need to stock. The system can also automate invoices to vehicle owners, and measure customer satisfaction with the service and the tyres.

The developments explain why tyre companies have been developing and acquiring telematics businesses, such as Bridgestone’s acquisition of Tomtom Telematics.

“Digitisation is changing how we bring services to our customers,” said van der Leij. “Bridgestone wants to be your trusted partner in mobility.”
 

The rise of connected vehicles

“By 2025, 100% of all new cars sold will be connected,” forecasts Yaël Bennathan, Head of Arval Mobility Observatory (pictured above). She presented an 12-country initiative by the organisation, which highlighted that fleets have already started to appreciate the business benefits of connected information, with Arval Mobility Observatory Barometer 2019 recording an increase in telematics uptake in key countries.

Yaêl Bennathan said the top five telematics markets are the Czech Republic, UK, Netherlands, Poland and Spain. She links the success of telematics to the maturity of different markets (Czech is an example of a mature telematics country) and whether local legislation allows companies to collect private data.

She also explained why connectivity becomes essential when cars become more intelligent. The potential environmental, mobility and safety benefits are extensive as vehicles connect to pedestrians, to networks, to infrastructure, to other vehicles and to the grid.

 

Telematics support mobility convergence

The vast range of opportunities for connectivity to transform the fleet and automotive world were laid bare by Edwin Maria Colella, VP Sales & Marketing, Octo Telematics (pictured above), at the Fleet Europe Summit.

From improving loss ratios through insurance telematics to the remote and keyless unlocking of car share vehicles, he identified how data will revolutionise business services and efficiency.

However, Colella also warned fleet decision makers about the need to capture and create actionable data if they want to transform their working practices.

This data will vary from industry to industry and sector to sector - not all is useful to all fleet managers - but the smart aggregation of data will pave the way towards mobility convergence, said Colella.

Octo’s unique selling point is the transformation from unrefined to actionable data through data convergence, and the company is moving from its roots in the insurance industry into the wider mobility landscape. 

As an example, Colella presented Octo's keyless customer journey for the car sharing industry – a complete journey, facilited by Octo’s technology, that allows for the booking, keyless entry and tracking of car share vehicles.

 

Authored by: Jonathan Manning