A new mobile computing platform developed by XRS Corp., formerly known as Xata Corp., is being offered in limited release for the trucking industry.
XRS said its new mobile platform runs on more than 50 types of devices and automatically transmits vehicle and operator data directly to a management dashboard, providing compliance with the new MAP-21 compliance mandate for recording hours-of-service (HOS) data.
“Expensive, hard-wired on-board displays are rapidly disappearing, while mobile technology is poised to help thousands of transportation innovators create customized, flexible fleet management systems with almost immediate return-on-investment,” noted Jay Coughlan, CEO of XRS, adding that nearly 90% of drivers already have mobile devices in use, meaning there are no additional hardware costs associated with adopting the new XRS platform.
Coughlan pointed out that XRS plans to start the subscription-based monthly service for its new platform at $39 per vehicle per month, with every XRS package including an XRS Relay in-cab device that communicates via Bluetooth with the driver’s existing smart phone or tablet.
“The beauty of a ‘bring your own device’ platform like XRS is the ability to share the benefits of tracking mobile compliance and performance data simply and efficiently, across any platform,” explained Christian Schenk, senior VP-strategy at XRS. “Whether you’re using fleet-purchased tablets or driver-owned devices, the most important thing is capturing the data in the most affordable and convenient way, and then sharing and analyzing information to stay safe, maintain compliance and slash costs.”
“The next-generation XRS cloud platform is built on a foundation of highly scalable, and highly available infrastructure unlike any other products in this market,” added Odell Tuttle, chief technology officer for XRS. “This cloud-based platform gives XRS the ability to scale and support a very large number of subscribers as the demand for EOBR [electronic onboard recorder] systems grows dramatically. It also provides the ability to adjust capacity based on customer needs, while doing so in an economic way.”
