trailer world Issue Two 2013

22 Issue Two 2013 Technology Maintenance without delay Moreover, the telematics system is an ideal solution, according to the Hireco Managing Director. On the one hand, for quick action within the company’s own administration and for vehicle mainte- nance, while, on the other hand, it enables him to deliver a tool to his customers for the improvement of fleet management. “This solution matches our corporate phi- losophy. We see ourselves as a modern ser- vice provider, and our basis is vehicle hire”, emphasises Smith. Hireco has established appropriate flexibility. This can be seen in the wide range of vehicles offered by the compa- ny. Everything is available in the desired version, regardless of whether it is a re- frigerated semi-trailer, container chassis, hard box trailer, curtain sider or dou- ble-deck trailer. As the possible height of the semi-trailers in the UK could be up to 4.90 m, the double-deck semi-trailer is also very popular. Thus, Hireco now has about 250 of these vehicles in the fleet and a further 44 are on order. “All ‘dou- ble-decks’ have a sloping roof top and a wedge-shaped front. This is one example of how we think about design as a means of lowering the operating costs to our cus- tomers”, says Smith. The firm also adjusts the rental duration entirely according to the demands of the logistics companies. It begins with rental durations of up to one year and ends with hire purchase or leasing. “About half of our vehicles are on hire purchase. A further 30 per cent are long-term rentals”, explains Smith. This leaves only 20 per cent, which are only rented out for a maximum of one year. The Managing Director sees this as clear indication that the crisis of the year 2008 is over. Accordingly, the rental dura- tions are now again between five and seven years on average. During this time, the cus- tomer receives Hireco’s all-round service on request. “We already consult with the cus- tomer when looking for the ideal vehicle; we select all the components with him, ensure a good price with a matching finance mod- el, and cover with a European wide break- down service”, says Smith. If you want your fleet managed by Hireco, you can also sell it to the rental firm and lease it back. Pioneer in terms of technology A clear sign of just how innovative Hire- co is can be seen with the rollout of the dig- ital pen in the eight subsidiaries in England and Ireland. “Using this technology, we were able to speed up and simplify the reg- idem  The company idem GmbH develops telematics solutions for trailers. With TControl, the BPW Bergische Achsen KG subsidiary has developed a product range for a diverse range of requirements. TCon- trol includes functions, such as location, in- cluding speed and mileage. It also includes movement sensors. Depending on the product, further functions, such as door ac- tivity, coupling sensor, EBS data, diagnosis interface or interface to the cockpit system can be added. With the name “TControl Cool”, it is immediately obvious that this telematics solution is designed for refrig- erated vehicles. The previously mentioned features are supplemented by a tank sen- sor, internal and cooling aggregate battery and cooling on/off alarms. Additionally, an interface for the cooling aggregate or the temperature logger is available for these solutions. Easily understood software provides an attractive representation of the fleet on the computer, using which, any alarm can be defined. The company idem GmbH, based in Munich, has already been on the market since 2004. The company places great value on having developed a telematics solution that is compatible with every vehicle and every cooling aggregate.

trailer world Issue Two 2013

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