PeopleNet announced Tuesday, July 10, a development partnership with Magtec Products to make their products compatible and interoperable. Magtec is a manufacturer and distributor of truck and equipment security systems. PeopleNet is a provider of intelligent onboard solutions and mobile communications.
According to Ron Konezny, chief operating officer and chief financial officer of Minneapolis-based PeopleNet, the two companies will work together to integrate Magtec’s M5K system with PeopleNet’s g3 onboard computing and mobile communications system. Integration will allow PeopleNet customers to access Magtec M5K functions through the same Web page interface they use to access PeopleNet’s various location, business and vehicle monitoring capabilities, Konezny says.
“This partnership is a natural,” Konezny says. “Magtec’s highly effective, easy-to-use technology brings real value to its customers. Magtec security complements PeopleNet’s profit-driving operational applications and industry-leading mobile communications. PeopleNet and Magtec together create real trucking synergy, an unparalleled breadth of fleet control.”
Magtec authentication helps prevent truck theft, even when the driver leaves a truck running. Magtec says its M5K system requires drivers to enter a personal authentication code on a numerical keypad prior to moving the vehicle; the system knows when a truck is left idling and will require the driver to re-enter the code before it will move. M5K also enables managers to set idling time limits, something increasingly mandated by various local and regional governments; managers also can disable the system for set periods of time to accommodate vehicle maintenance and repairs.
Magtec says M5K provides the ultimate truck security tool: Acceleration Control System. Managers in an immediate crisis can remotely take control of the truck’s acceleration capability, reducing the truck’s speed in moderate, preset increments so the truck can be brought to a safe stop virtually anywhere, the company says.
Authentication codes, idling times, disablement and other system parameters can be changed remotely, over the air, without input from the driver, according to Magtec. After integration, PeopleNet customers who use Magtec will be able to make those changes from their Web-based PeopleNet screen on any Internet-connected computer.
“We are excited to work with PeopleNet,” says Mark Ochitwa, vice president of operations and product development for Calgary, Alberta-based Magtec. “Mutual customers will be able to access our security applications for ultimate control of drivers and loads through the convenient, intuitive PeopleNet interface they use every day. We are glad to be associated with a customer-oriented company like PeopleNet.”
According to Ochitwa, work is under way to integrate the two onboard systems and will go forward during the summer months. Final integration and availability will be announced during the last quarter of 2007.
