According to Chevin, suppliers of fleet software systems, one of the key tasks facing fleet software developers is to make the growing amount of data created about fleets more easily understandable.

The company says that fleet software systems of today are being asked to handle something like ten times as much data as those from a decade ago.

“This brings with it a whole series of challenges including how best to capture and store this data but, most importantly, how to identify the most relevant information, process it in a productive manner and then present it in a way that has genuine value,” said Ashley Sowerby, Managing Director. “If we can resolve these issues, then there are huge gains to be made in terms of efficiency and effectiveness.”

Ashley said that Chevin had been working on this issue for some time and had found

that a lot could be achieved simply through thoughtful design that brings clarity. “For example, we divide the CO₂ output of cars into colour bands. If you are seeing more green than red on the screen when you call up a report on your carbon footprint, you know immediately that you are doing well without needing to drill down into the data.  We are also creating ever more sophisticated but also simpler dashboards that allow you to see, at a glance, whether your fleet is meeting its key performance targets. Again, the aim is clarity. Older readers may remember that, once upon a time, if all the needles in the dials on a car dashboard pointed upwards, then you knew at a glance that the vehicle was running well. We want the same kind of intuitive feel and again are using colour extensively."

The company said that this is an ongoing challenge. Future developments such as greater use of telematics, mobile data and the connected car all mean that the data collected will continue to expand exponentially. “Making this mass of information easily digestible and just good, old fashioned useful will require more and more ingenuity.”

Photo:  Chevin aim to bring greater clarity and simplicity to fleet software.