Fleet Integrations: Make Your FMIS Do Everything You Need It To

By Jacob Turley

The world is full of data now that the internet is commonplace and widely available.   Companies like Facebook and Google know an unnatural amount about most people. Hungry? Google probably knows your favorite food!

In a fleet operation, there is also plenty of data. Think about all the forms (whether on paper or on a computer) that your operation uses. Here is a shortlist of common forms that exist in a typical fleet operation:

• Work Orders
• Labor or Part Postings
• Warranty Claims
• Fuel Entries
• Vehicle Input Forms
• Purchase Orders
• Inspections

Shop Foremen, technicians, parts clerks, and drivers all can provide valuable data to a fleet in order to accomplish two major functions:

1. Inform decisions
2. Automate other workflows

We’re going to talk about the second option, automating workflows. One of the easiest, and most vital automations that a fleet can add to their operation is automating meter updates through telematics, or another source like fuel entries. For this example, we’ll use GPS Insight, an integrated telematics and camera solution that integrates nicely with RTA.  Once the GPS Insight device is installed in the vehicle, that device starts sucking data in from the sensors on the vehicle and sends that data to GPS Insight. One of those data points is the odometer of the vehicle!

Wouldn’t it be nice if we could get that data into RTA to accurately and promptly update our Preventative Maintenance schedule? Thankfully, GPS Insight is one of our out-of-the-box integration partners. One call to our Customer Success team and they’ll get everything set up for you – no fuss! From that point on, at an interval, you determine your meters will start updating in RTA, totally in sync with GPS Insight. But what if I have custom software or an in-house solution? How can we integrate?

Most software applications nowadays have open APIs that allow systems to communicate to one another. Previously, you would have had to hire a contracting company to write a custom script to sync the data between the two systems, but now with tools like https://www.make.com/en or Zapier, there are platforms available that enable business professionals to create no-code automation workflows.  If you can visualize and understand how you want the data to flow, all you need from that point on is to figure out how to use the tool!

There are plenty of other opportunities for integrations.  For example, automating the input of third-party outside vendor invoices.  As long as your third-party provider also has an API that you can take advantage of, theoretically, that process should be able to be automated!  Specific circumstances can change the feasibility of a project, so it’s always a good idea to run the idea through our Customer Success team who can help you identify any holes in your process.

Data is everywhere!  We can choose to be afraid of it, or we can choose to own it!  By taking ownership of your processes and mapping out ideal states in your shop, you might find opportunities to save time and money through automation!

To learn more about RTA’s solution, schedule a demo with our team.

About the Author: Jacob is a Software Engineer at RTA. When he’s not busy working in the RTA system, Jacob can be found spending time with his two beautiful daughters!