MANAGE YOUR FLEET BY CONNECTING TO BETTER DATA WITH FORD COMMERCIAL SOLUTIONS
June 15th, 2018 Dearborn – Building upon Ford’s long-standing commitment to commercial and government fleets, as well as the company’s commitment to deliver 100 percent connectivity across its vehicle lineup, Ford Commercial Solutions is introducing two products designed to help fleets easily access useful data about their vehicles.
Ford is the overall leader in the fleet business* and has sold America’s best-selling line of commercial vehicles for 33 straight years**. The creation of Ford Commercial Solutions builds on that leadership by helping fleet operators make the most of increased automotive connectivity.
A business unit of Ford Smart Mobility, Ford Commercial Solutions has one goal – to help fleets improve their operational effectiveness by offering OEM-grade data verified by Ford engineers such as fuel use and vehicle health alerts. The Transportation Mobility Cloud (TMC), an open platform that securely manages information flow to and from Ford vehicles’ embedded modems, facilitates both new products.
œBusiness owners and operators want to serve their customers, not spend excessive time managing their fleets, said Lee Jelenic, CEO, Ford Commercial Solutions. œOur goal is to unlock the data from their vehicles to provide them with more effective ways to manage their fleets and improve operations.
œOur new products are tailored to serve fleets of all types, whether they’re run by law enforcement, composed predominantly of Ford vehicles, or are large multi-make fleets that want more insight from their Ford vehicles.
A seamless way to get better data
The Data Services product focuses primarily on serving large company fleets, telematics service providers and fleet management companies. The service takes advantage of Ford vehicles’ built-in modem to transfer vehicle data directly from the vehicle to the cloud, without the need for additional third-party hardware, management or installation downtime, as is required for a third-party plug-in device. The vehicle data is relayed to a fleet’s internal IT system or telematics service provider through an application program interface.
Utilizing Data Services, fleets can gain access to Ford vehicle information such as GPS location, mileage, fuel use data, vehicle health alerts, driver behavior and more. Because Ford designed the vehicle – including its electrical architecture, data systems and vehicle technology – the company is able to provide the newest updates and vehicle signals as soon as they become available, and deliver insights as quickly as businesses need them.
Additionally, Ford Commercial Solutions is committed to ensuring fleets have the power to choose which telematics service provider or fleet management company is the best fit for their business. While continuing its existing relationship with Verizon Connect, Ford Commercial Solutions has secured new service agreements with Geotab and Spireon to ensure fleet operators have choice in telematics service providers.
œFleets told us they want to be able to choose how to best manage their fleets, said Jelenic. œOur agreements with different service providers, coupled with the new products we are introducing, allow us to offer this.
Giving law enforcement better tools to serve
Ford Commercial Solutions’ second product is a new fleet information tool designed to support law enforcement fleets. The tool uses information collected through the Data Services product and distills it to provide police fleets with insights that can help improve fleet efficiency and driver behavior. The application translates information flowing from their Ford vehicles into insights on fuel usage, carbon dioxide emissions, vehicle health and driver seatbelt usage.
That data is shared through an intuitive website that provides law enforcement operators with an easy way to check how their fleet, or a particular vehicle, is operating.
Fleets with Ford vehicles that are not equipped with modems will be able to take advantage of both Ford Commercial Solutions products later this year, when a Ford-engineered plug-in device will enable fleets to connect Ford vehicles dating back to the 2012 model year.
*Based on IHS Markit Rolling 12-Month New Registration data as of March 2018 using Ford Motor Company Fleet category definition.
**Based on IHS Markit CY 1985-2017 US TIP Registrations excluding registrations to individuals. TIP Registrations prior to 2010 do not include all GVW 1 and 2 vehicles.
About Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company is a global company based in Dearborn, Michigan. The company designs, manufactures, markets and services a full line of Ford cars, trucks, SUVs, electrified vehicles and Lincoln luxury vehicles, provides financial services through Ford Motor Credit Company and is pursuing leadership positions in electrification, autonomous vehicles and mobility solutions. Ford employs approximately 202,000 people worldwide. For more information regarding Ford, its products and Ford Motor Credit Company, please visit www.corporate.ford.com.
About the Transportation Mobility Cloud
The Transportation Mobility Cloud (TMC) is a the first open, cloud-based platform that connects vehicles, drivers, passengers and cities with applications. Built and operated by Autonomic, LLC, a recently acquired subsidiary of Ford Smart Mobility, LLC, the TMC helps mobility providers build modern, digital transportation businesses with an industry standards approach. For more information regarding TMC and Autonomic, please visit www.autonomic.ai.
About Geotab
Geotab is advancing security, connecting commercial vehicles to the internet and providing web-based analytics to help customers better manage their fleets. Geotab’s open platform and Marketplace, offering hundreds of third-party solution options, allows both small and large businesses to automate operations by integrating vehicle data with their other data assets. As an IoT hub, the in-vehicle device provides additional functionality through IOX Add-Ons. Processing billions of data points a day, Geotab leverages data analytics and machine learning to help customers improve productivity, optimize fleets through the reduction of fuel consumption, enhance driver safety, and achieve strong compliance to regulatory changes. Geotab’s products are represented and sold worldwide through Authorized Geotab Resellers. To learn more, please visit www.geotab.com and follow us @GEOTAB and on LinkedIn.
About Spireon
Spireon, Inc. is North America’s leading connected vehicle intelligence company, providing businesses and consumers with powerful insights to track, manage and protect their most valuable mobile assets. The award-winning Spireon NSpire platform supports nearly 4 million active subscribers across the company’s growing suite of products for new and used car dealers, lenders and financial institutions, rental car agencies, commercial and local fleet operators, and consumers. Learn more a www.spireon.com.
About Verizon Connect
Verizon Connect is guiding a connected world on the go by automating, optimizing and revolutionizing the way people, vehicles and things move through the world. Our full suite of industry-defining solutions and services put innovation, automation and connected data to work for customers and help them be safer, more efficient and more productive. With more than 3,500 dedicated employees in 15 countries, we deliver leading mobile technology platforms and solutions. For more on Verizon Connect, visit www.verizonconnect.com
