When GE needed help fulfilling its largest-ever VeriWise trailer-tracking order with Wal-Mart for 46,000 units, it turned to the mobile installation and deployment specialists at Velociti Inc. The two companies’ team approach resulted in the first 7,200 units being installed at 14 sites in 12 states – all in a record rate of 514 per day.
“Purchasers of trailer-tracking systems often neglect the fact that in order to quickly realize the productivity and security benefits of their investment, fast and proper installation is a must,” says Deryk Powell, chief operating officer of Kansas City, Mo.-based Velociti. “It can be a challenge when these assets are in constant motion, and far from their home base in various parts of the country.”
Although GE mechanics install VeriWise at the 100 branches of its Trailer Fleet Services business – and Wal-Mart had its own mechanics as well – the initial deployment had to be completed in a short period while the trailers were available. After a three-day training seminar, including one day at an actual Wal-Mart site, 80 Velociti technicians were staged at 14 Wal-Mart sites in 12 southeastern states. They worked with both GE and Wal-Mart to schedule trailers for installation.
The technicians installed transceivers, antennas and power management devices – as well as interior-mounted cargo sensors and solar trickle charging systems. Handheld association units were used to scan completed trailers and post critical installation data to a secure Web-based project management system. The timely reporting enabled GE and Wal-Mart to maintain complete visibility of the project’s progress.
“Velociti is flexible in how we can either do installations single-handedly or augment installers at a customer or distributor site,” Powell says. “We share the same commitment to perform these installs in a time-sensitive, safe and appropriate manner.”
During that critical first deployment, Velociti installed 5,800 units, and GE mechanics completed the remaining 1,400 in parallel. The team effort resulted in meeting the overall commitment without negatively impacting trailer utilization for Wal-Mart’s distribution network. For the remainder of the order, Velociti has been helping GE’s 30-member Wal-Mart installation team complete the job before the fall surge in trailer demand for holiday shipments.
“It’s terrific to know that when we have large and geographically complex installation challenges, we can count on both our GE mechanics and Velociti team to help us meet our customer commitments,” says Thomas Konditi, president and chief executive officer of the Schaumberg, Ill.-based Asset Intelligence business of GE Equipment Services. “We certainly expect more deals of this type, and our experience with the Wal-Mart installation demonstrates we have the resources available to help our customers use our technology sooner, and give them a much earlier return on investment.”
