FieldLogix Blog

Items Stolen from Lil Wayne Video Set Found with GPS Tracking

A GPS tracking system was used by police to locate items stolen from a trailer used for a Lil Wayne music video. Time and time again, criminals forget that items such as laptops and cel phones are equipped with a GPS tracking system. Police can easily use the GPS tracking system to locate these stolen items and make the proper arrests.

According to police, on Friday February 18, the man pretended to be a back-up dancer and was able to gain access to the trailer. The trailer had just been moved to Citrus College in California from South Africa, where it had been used on the set of Lil Wayne’s latest video production. Lil Wayne is an international hip-hop superstar and he was filming a video with Porcelain Black.

5 Ways Fleet Management Can Cut Fuel Costs

In light of rising gas gas costs, it is important for fleet management to try and keep fuel costs as low as possible. Here are 5 ways fleet management can cut fuel costs:

1. It is important that truck drivers do not speed. It may seem like a good idea, after all you can reach your destination quicker. But overall speeding actually costs much more money, not to mention it is dangerous. Speeds over 60 mph drastically impact fuel efficiencies – cars traveling at 75 mph use 20% more fuel, while trucks traveling at 75 mph use 50% more fuel. They also emit 100% more carbon monoxide, 50% more hydrocarbons and 31% more nitrogen oxides. And don’t forget that a speeding ticket can increase your insurance costs.

2. Train your drivers to drive consistently and not be too aggressive. Jackrabbit starts save less than 3 minutes per hour of driving, but can result in 40% more fuel use. That’s not going to help your fuel savings or help your on time delivery.

Food, Gas and Transportation Costs Rising, Inflation on the Horizon

Fuel prices across the country are already well over $3/gallon. Many experts are predicting significant increases in the price of gas and food this year, plus other daily necessities (commodities) and consumer goods. Why? Because as the cost of fuel goes up, the cost of transporting and delivering these goods is going up. Profit margins in the transportation and trucking industry are already very thin, so companies are going to be forced to pass these costs onto the consumer.

According to the New York Times, prices for commodities such as corn, sugar, wheat, beef, pork and coffee are soaring.
The price of cotton is at its highest level in over 10 years; leather and polyester are increasing as well. The price of copper has shot through the roof and reached its highest level inover 40 years. Iron ore, which is used to produce steel, is also commanding very high prices.

2010 GPS Tracking Survey Shows Increase in Consumer GPS Navigation Use

According to a recent GPS tracking study conducted by Navteq, consumer experience with navigation systems in 2010 has increased from 2009 levels, but has slowed from double to single digit growth – in most countries studied. The Navteq Annual GPS Tracking Study assesses user interaction across all sectors of navigation, including in-vehicle systems, portable devices (PNDs) and mobile/smartphone applications. The online GPS tracking study was conducted in Australia, Brazil, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Mexico, Poland, Russia, the UK and the USA.
With the continued proliferation of in-vehicle navigation GPS systems, portable navigation devices (PNDs) and mobile phone navigational functionality, consumers are being offered ever more choice in the way they experience navigation and location-based information. In 2009, roughly half of all people in mature markets such as US, UK, France and Germany reported using a GPS navigation system – which is approximately double the number reported in 2006.

NYC Launches GPS App to Locate Free Condom Dispensers

GPS tracking system technology and safe sex – now there’s two things that I never thought would go together. But never say never. Because yesterday the NYC Health Department announced the launch of a new GPS app for cel phones called Condom Finder. The new GPS app is free and works with both the iPhone and Android. The new app uses GPS tracking to provide users with the location and directions to the closest free condom dispenser.

Rising Diesel Prices Could Hit $4 by May – How Truckers Can Survive

Diesel prices have gone up for 11 straight weeks for a cumulative 37.2 cent gain, a 70-cent increase from last year. Current diesel prices have already risen 2.1 cents this week to $3.534 per gallon, according to the Department of Energy’s Energy Information Administration (EIA). This week’s price is the 20th consecutive week prices have been at $3 per gallon or more. Current diesel prices are at their highest level since peaking at $3.659 during the week of October 13, 2008.

Even though oil prices have decreased slightly in recent weeks, some experts are saying that the price per gallon of diesel and regular gasoline could approach the $4 per gallon level, due to higher global demand for oil and the coldest winter in recorded history in many parts of the United States and Europe.

Fuel typically makes up about one-third of trucking companies’ budgets, said Kristen Monaco, an economics professor who specializes in trucking at California State University, Long Beach. However, when diesel prices get this high, the cost of fuel is the number one expense for trucking companies.

Rental Car Fleets Fining Drivers with GPS Tracking System

vehicle rental company in Australia has made a controversial decision to install a GPS vehicle tracking system in roughly 30% of the vehicles in its car rental fleet. Using the GPS vehicle tracking system signal, the car rental company will be able to know in real time the exact location of the vehicle. Plus they can be notified by text message if the car rental customer has breached any of the terms of their rental agreement, such as driving the rented car down a dirt road. Renters can be fined for their driving behavior, if it is a breach of the car rental contract.

Ambulances Still Not Equipped with Navigation Systems

Next time you or someone you love is about to be transported in an ambulance to the closest hospital, you might want to hop in the back of the vehicle and give the driver directions using your cel phone GPS navigation system. Why? Because many ambulances are not equipped with a GPS navigation system that gives drivers directions. Instead many ambulances are equipped with a GPS tracking system that is only used to keep track of the vehicle’s location, but this type of global positioning system (GPS) is not able to give driving directions.
It is important to recognize the differences in the capabilities of these two types of GPS tracking systems. What this means is that ambulance drivers are still forced to rely on paper maps to get to and from emergency destinations in a hurry. In emergency situations, every minute counts. This isn’t exactly confidence-inspiring and seems a bit archaic.

FieldLogix Launches IFTA Plan to Make Fuel Tax Reporting Easy

FieldLogix, an industry leading ‘Green” GPS fleet management system, announces the launch of an IFTA-only plan, designed to make IFTA fuel tax reporting simple and affordable. The FieldLogix IFTA fuel tax reporting plan makes calculating IFTA taxes a breeze because the FieldLogix GPS fleet tracking system automatically tracks everything your accountants will need to determine the amount of taxes your fleet owes in each state.

For fleet management, calculating IFTA taxes is a tedious but necessary part of the job. The good news is that with the FieldLogix IFTA-only plan, determining the mileage driven in each state and fuel expenses for each vehicle can be automatically uploaded into a fleet’s tax software. Therefore, the proper IFTA paperwork can quickly be produced.

GPS Tracking System Reduces Truancy, Improves Student Safety

Schools across the country are using GPS tracking systems in different ways and for different reasons.

GPS Tracking System Used to Help Reduce Truancy, Improve Student Safety

School districts are turning to GPS tracking technology to reduce the amount of students that repeatedly don’t show up for school. In some school districts, the level of students not showing up or leaving early for school is out of control. To solve the problem, repeat truancy offenders are being asked to keep a hand-held GPS tracking system with them at all times. The GPS tracking system keeps tabs on the students’ wherabouts during school hours to make sure the student is attending classes regularly.

4 Useful Things You May Not Know About The New Google Maps Interface

Most of us already know that Google Maps is an incredibly useful, free online tool. But what you may not be aware of, are some of the new Google Maps features that Google (GOOG) recently added to its interface. The new Google Maps interface is much more user-friendly, because it presents a lot of information and options in one easy-to-use interface display.

1) One new feature makes it easier to move between views in the program. Now you can hop from a satellite view to a map view to an earth view with the click of a button.

Fleet Tracking Improves Customer Service Via Better Response Times

Fleet tracking is the use of GPS and telematics technology to identify, locate and monitor one or more fleet vehicles in real-time. A modern fleet tracking system can help any business that requires the use of a vehicle to get the job done. This includes a wide variety of businesses – anything from a construction company, an HVAC company, and any type of a delivery service – from flowers to serving court papers. A vehicle fleet tracking system combines the installation of an electronic GPS tracking device in a vehicle, or fleet of vehicles, with web-based computer software. This enables a fleet manager to track a vehicle’s location in real-time, collecting all sorts of data in the process – from vehicle diagnostics to driver speeding alerts.

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