Trailer - Telematics in demand

Where is my vehicle? When will it reach the customer? And how is the temperature in the cargo hold doing? Logistics companies have to ask themselves these questions every day. Deutsche Telekom is here to help.

The trailer manufacturer Schmitz Cargobull has the answers. With TrailerConnect this mid-size company helps customers keep a watchful eye on their fleet. Volatile fuel prices, cargo theft, blowouts: logistics and transport companies have to calculate with precision. And they have to keep an eye on many parameters in their customers' interest and, thus, their own. Take a shipment of fruit and vegetables, for example. If it's rotten by the time it reaches its destination because of a faulty on board refrigeration system, the customer will be dissatisfied and both sides will take a significant financial hit.

Sensors on watch

Schmitz Cargobull's telematic TrailerConnect system is bringing transparency to the entire transport chain. Sensors on the vehicle measure everything from brake and tire wear to the temperature and humidity in the cargo hold. The dispatcher's screen lets him know when the door to the cargo hold is opened and can warn the driver if his tire pressure dips below the optimal level. And it's well worth it: optimal tire pressure can save up to five liters of fuel over a 1,000 kilometer journey. With a fleet of 100 trailers each doing 150,000 kilometers/per year it quickly adds up to a high five-digit amount.

Where is the trailer?

Thanks to electronics built into the vehicle, the dispatcher back at the logistics center can also see exactly where each trailer is and how fast it is traveling. This means trailers on the company's premises can be found more quickly and customers given a precise indication of when drivers will arrive. The Münsterland company has already fitted TrailerConnect to more than 40,000 vehicles.

M2M data from the cloud

Data measured by the sensors flows into a control unit fitted with a Deutsche Telekom machine-to-machine (M2M) SIM chip and a GPS receiver. The data are transmitted over the mobile network to an ISO-certified Deutsche Telekom data center in Germany. The shipping company can then access the service portal via a secure connection and, for example, view a map on their PC screen pinpointing where each individual trailer is located.

Getting to the bottom of fuel theft

Schmitz Cargobull is the European market leader in its sector and wants to keep it that way. That is why the trailer manufacturer is constantly working on innovations and ways to provide its customers with new cost benefits. Its experience from trailer telematics has given the company an insight into what additional services customers need. For example, a newly developed tank sensor measures the refrigeration system's level. By monitoring all refueling operations with specific time and location information, shipping and logistics companies can quickly get to the bottom of fuel theft.