Technology Briefs - June 6 - June 10
The Latest Headlines:
- Daimler, Deutsche Telekom to Build German Truck Toll System
- Qualcomm to Offer Maptuit's FleetNav Service
- New Security Department Would Handle Tech Defense
- Warning System Will Warn Motorists of Deer
- U.S. Xpress to Use TMI’s TripPak Online<
- BAX Using Instant Online Ocean Quoting Service
- Wireless Phone Users Value Cost Over Extras
- Qualcomm to Offer Maptuit's FleetNav Service
Daimler, Deutsche Telekom to Build German Truck Toll System
German corporate giants DaimlerChrysler AG and Deutsche Telekom AG have won a government contract to build the first satellite truck-toll system in Germany, Bloomberg reported Monday.Germany’s Transport Ministry said the two companies beat a rival bid from a consortium led by Vodaphone Group Olc. The project should be up and running by mid-2003, Bloomberg said.
European nations, faced with crumbling highways, are turning to tolls to offset some of the costs of construction and repair. The United States has long used tolls as a means of paying for infrastructure maintenance. Transport Topics
Qualcomm to Offer Maptuit's FleetNav Service
Qualcomm Inc., a leading provider of mobile communications systems for the transportation industry, said Monday that it will offer Maptuit Corp.'s FleetNav suite of services as part of its OmniTRACS system.FleetNav provides truckload carriers with street directions using the vehicle's current position to determine the most efficient route anywhere in the U.S.
The Maptuit program notifies customers with real-time alerts when trucks leave their assigned routes. Transport Topics
(Click here for the full press release.)
New Security Department Would Handle Tech Defense
The soon-to-be created Department of Homeland Security will assume some critical cybersecurity duties from other Cabinet-level agencies, technology news service CNET News reported Friday.Many trucking companies have substantial investments in computer technology and in maintaining security on their corporate networks.
The Homeland Security Department would take over the Critical Infrastructure Assurance Office from the Commerce Department and the National Infrastructure Protection Center from the FBI, CNET said
It would also use the General Services Administration’s Federal Computer Incident Response Center and take over the Defense Department’s National Communication System in case of emergency.
Like much of President Bush’s vision for the office, the exact details of how this will all work are still hazy, the news service reported. Transport Topics
Warning System Will Warn Motorists of Deer
Indiana officials are testing a new warning system to alert motorists that deer might be on the road on a 14-mile stretch of the Indiana Toll Road in northeastern Indiana, the Associated Press reported Thursday.The system sends radio frequency beams along the side of the road. When the beams are interrupted, flashing lights notify drivers to slow down.
More than 700 deer were killed by vehicles on this road last year, AP said. These high-speed crashes can also damage vehicles and injure drivers.
The program will likely be studied for several years before officials can determine whether it is a success, AP said. Transport Topics
U.S. Xpress to Use TMI’s TripPak Online
TMI has won a contract to provide TripPak Online service to truckload carrier U.S. Xpress Enterprises.The multi-year contract with undisclosed terms was announced June 5.
TMI transfers information between drivers and the home offices of the companies for which they drive. U.S. Xpress has used other services of TMI for nine years, but decided to switch to the online version, which moves information electronically through scanning.
Based in Chattanooga, Tenn., U.S. Xpress is ranked No. 22 on the Transport Topics 100 list of the nation’s largest trucking companies. Transport Topics
(Click here for the full press release.)
BAX Using Instant Online Ocean Quoting Service
Customers of BAXGlobal Inc. began this month to use what BAXglobal calls the ocean freight shipping industry’s first instant online rate quote service for less-than-containerload shipments from the U.S. to anywhere in the world.The feature, found at www.baxglobal.com/Ocean, was unveiled at the end of May. It offers customers overland transportation and ocean shipping pricing at the touch of a button, the Irvine, Calif.-based company said.
BAX said this feature is part of a suite of tools aimed at expanding its ocean shipping capabilities.
“The online rate quote tool for LCL shipping is the first of its kind in the industry,” BAX Vice President Peter Gruettner said in a release. Transport Topics
Wireless Phone Users Value Cost Over Extras
A Yankee Group survey of more than 2,000 wireless phone users found that 26% said decreasing the price of service was the best way to keep their business, tech newswire ZDNet reported Thursday.Wireless phones are increasingly becoming an asset around the trucking industry, as drivers use them to communicate with their homes and offices.
The second most important aspect was improved coverage, which 20% said would hold them to the provider, the story said.
The survey found that, despite recent advertising pushes and service packages, customers are not as impressed by new technologies like wireless Internet access and text messaging as they are with basic services that are reliable, ZDNet said. Transport Topics
