NHA SMS LOG
NHA’s SMS Based Fleet Mileage and Fuel Management System Why?
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Centralized visibility of vehicle usage & logs at one location not available;
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Lack of transparency in POL claims visa vis vehicle usage;
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Monitoring of fuel consumption performance of vehicles.
How?
To address this problem, NHA developed an SMS Based Fleet Mileage and Fuel Management System keeping in mind three considerations: • Low Cost: The system should be cost effective. • Widely Deployed: The technology should be in wide use. • Easy to use: the process should be simple to comprehend and execute by the target user i.e. Drivers / Users.
Key Features: The system has the following key features: • Mileage readings to be reported by the drivers/ users through SMS at the start of every month; • Collection of data at a centralized database; • Confirmation SMS for correct or incorrect entry sent to the drivers/ users on sending the reading; • Reminder SMS sent on the first working day of every month to the driver / user.
• System integrated with POL consumption information received from fuel suppliers; • Usage and consumption trends calculated automatically; • Fuel consumption can be compared with the distance travelled for each vehicle; and • Fuel liters limit allowed can also be cross checked with actual usage.
• Dashboard reporting of the key statistics of fleet under individual vehicles i.e. kilometers travelled, Fuel in liters consumed, Fuel cost, Fuel Average Km per Liter and, Cost per Km. • Data reported for; Current Month, Last Month, Total Spent All Months from Current FY (Financial Year), Best Reported (Financial Year) and, Monthly Average FY (Financial Year).
Process Diagram
One of a fleet manager’s major challenges is getting consistent, accurate reporting from company drivers. This expense and mileage data a critical to make knowledgeable business decisions based on the cost of running your fleet.
How it Works •
A predefined number is circulated to the drivers/ users i.e. 0300-8505634;
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The drivers/ users send a formatted SMS to this number e.g. “Vehicle No. [Space] Meter Reading”, e.g. LAW-1234 98765;
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The SMS is received at the central server;
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The entry is saved if the format is correct and entry is deflected if the format is incorrect, sending back an SMS i.e. “Format Incorrect”.
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The SMS is to be sent on the number at the beginning of each month;
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The server containing database of all vehicles and their POL usage integrated with the system;
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The system is accessible through internet cloud;
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Trends and analysis reported in the form of Dashboard.
Dashboard
Did You Know? Fuel cards have proven a boon to some fleet managers. The fact that drivers can use one card for most or all of their needs, coupled with simplified statements and rapid reporting, makes their use attractive.
Implementation • • • • • • • • • • • •
Guideline material on SMS LOG circulated within NHA
Impact
SMS LOG software developed in “.Net framwork 4.0 and MS SQL Server 2008” and installed on windows based server. GSM Modem TP-Link was connected to the server. UPS Backup is also provided. Vehicle database compiled along with the details of Drivers / Users. Training Manual was developed along with a user guide. Training Sessions for Drivers / Users. User guide provided to each Driver / User. Instructions displayed at all visible locations (Notice Boards). Fuel Suppliers instructed to provide POL information along with their bills in a standardized format. POL information provided by the concerned section every month and entered into the database. The system generates the reports on the dashboard. POL bills submitted for payments are required to have the SMS-LOG attached for approval. No LOG No Approval and POL Account of the vehicle to be suspended.
SMS LOG will enhance the organization’s capability to effectively monitor its fleet usage including; • Vehicle usage; • Fuel consumption;
• Operational costs; • Fuel economy.
Analysis with Comparison
Friendly Highways National Highway Authority NHA HQ, 27, Mauve Area, G-9/1, Islamabad
20140530 Draft Version