Trinity Industries Implements PeopleNet's  Onboard Computing System

PeopleNet technology enhances private fleet's customer service

PITTSBURGH—NPTC ANNUAL EDUCATION MANAGEMENT CONFERENCE & EXHIBITION, April 25, 2005—PeopleNet, the leading provider of onboard computing and mobile communications systems to the nation's transportation industry, today announced that Trinity Industries has adopted PeopleNet's onboard computing and mobile communications technology in its private fleet.

Based in Dallas, Texas, Trinity Industries is one of the nation's leading diversified industrial companies providing a variety of high volume, repetitive products and services for the transportation, industrial and construction sectors of the marketplace. Trinity's rail group produces a full range of freight cars, tank cars and related parts while the leasing group provides a variety of leasing, financing and asset management options for Trinity's railcar customers.

Trinity's barge group remains the largest provider of inland barges in the United States, while the construction products group manufactures highway safety products, pipe fittings, concrete and aggregates. The company's industrial products group continues its legacy as one of the most respected manufacturers of pressure vessels and related components in the world.

All told, the company operates 200 power units and 500 trailers, providing inbound raw materials to plants as well as some outbound movements, particularly residential and industrial-sized LPG tanks. It is this latter business unit, consisting of 50 boom trucks—equipped with hydraulic knuckle cranes—in which Michael Locke, General Manager of Trinity Industries' Logistics Group, has begun the deployment of the PeopleNet system. He also has equipped 10 units in his highway safety products group with the system.

"PeopleNet gives us an advantage by telling our customer where their load of tanks or guardrails is at any given time," explains Locke. "Our customers really like the fact that we can tell them where our truck is. It also provides us the flexibility if our customer decides they want to reroute that load to a different location."

PerformX, the onboard performance tracking capability, is another of the features that Locke is taking advantage of. "Using the PerformX tool, we've already identified some drivers that weren't meeting our corporate goals for fuel economy and idling," says Locke. "Now we have been able to get them real-time information they can use to improve their overspeed, fuel economy, hard braking and idling."

Encouragingly, Locke has yet to hear any of his drivers complain that the technology had limited their "money making ability." In fact, he notes, they appreciate the feedback and like the user-friendly interaction.

"Its ease of adoption was one of the things that sold us on PeopleNet to begin with," says Locke. Already, he has set aside funds in next year's budget to acquire 100 more of the units.

The PeopleNet system has become the standard for GPS-based location tracking, two-way voice and data communications, electronic driver logs, and Internet-based fleet business tools to provide consistent, reliable communication between business owners, dispatchers, drivers and shippers.

Headquartered in Minneapolis, PeopleNet is the fastest-growing provider of Internet-based onboard computing and mobile communications systems to the transportation industry, including truckload, LTL, private, and service fleets. The company serves several Fortune 500 companies in the U.S. and Canada and has signed more than 1,000 customers since our inception more than 11 years ago.

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