Mack, Volvo ink deal with Geotab, unlocking telematics for older trucks

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Updated Oct 5, 2016

Mack Trucks and Volvo Trucks North America announced Monday at the 2016 Management Conference and Exhibition of the American Trucking Associations (ATA) meeting in Las Vegas it has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Geotab, a provider of end-to-end telematics technology.

The agreement would enable connectivity for older Mack and Volvo trucks not currently equipped with the companies’ integrated telematics solutions.

Details regarding the new service offerings through connected vehicle services have not yet been finalized but David Pardue, Mack vice president of connected vehicles and uptime services, says Geotab will be available for older vehicles and will not replace GuardDog Connect on newer trucks.

“It was designed to bring vehicle uptime connectivity to vehicles that do not have that ability today,” Pardue says noting the company will target vehicles model years 2010 and older with the offering.

Geotab offers intuitive, full-featured solutions to help businesses better manage their drivers and vehicles by extracting accurate and actionable intelligence. Using this business intelligence and benchmarking data fleets can improve productivity, reduce fuel consumption, enhance driver safety and achieve stronger compliance to regulatory channels.

“The easy accessibility of this information will enable customers to make informed decisions to enhance uptime, productivity, fuel efficiency, compliance and safety,” says Conal Deedy, director of connected services for Volvo Trucks.

Jason Cannon has written about trucking and transportation for more than a decade and serves as Chief Editor of Commercial Carrier Journal. A Class A CDL holder, Jason is a graduate of the Porsche Sport Driving School, an honorary Duckmaster at The Peabody in Memphis, Tennessee, and a purple belt in Brazilian jiu jitsu. Reach him at [email protected].Â