HINO-Connect, a full fleet management system, will be installed as a standard fitment on the full range of trucks offered by Hino South Africa from April 2021.
This includes the Dyna, 300, 500 and 700 models and is a joint venture with Cartrack.
“This comprehensive telematics solution includes a three-year subscription from date of fitment and will be an important, additional tool to ensure we continue to provide the highest levels of customer satisfaction,” said Ernie Trautmann, Vice President of Hino South Africa.
“Hino’s Total Support strategy, which builds strong relationships and trust with all stakeholders, and has been the backbone of our success here in South Africa for many years, will benefit hugely from the data this system will now be able to provide to our customers, Hino South Africa and Hino Japan.”
Hino-Connect will provide three sets of data: Positional data for tracking and recovery as well as distances travelled; vehicle performance data including fuel consumption, oil and water temperatures and speed; and Diagnostic Trouble Code (DTC) fault reporting direct to Hino SA and the dealer concerned, who will know what is wrong before getting to the vehicle, thereby enabling quicker reaction time to get the vehicle back on the road.
All data is stored for five years, with the last six months’ data available immediately.
“Over the years Hino has increased the number of value-added products offered to its customers, ranging from extended service intervals to competitive service and maintenance plans, warranties on replacement parts fitted by franchise dealers and now Hino-Connect will open the way to us considering a buyback and preowned truck programme,” said Trautmann.
He said the system would also allow them to monitor a truck’s operating life before preparing it for resale. “In view of the high resale value of a Hino truck we will be able to offer favourable buyback rates.”
Cartrack CEO Harry Louw said his company is the only mobility solutions provider in South Africa which has everything it offers inhouse, from installation and after sales service through over 600 mobile workshops, field training, specialist onboarding teams, its own exclusive stolen vehicle recovery infrastructure, and the engineering skills to access and deliver the data required by Hino.
“Our sophisticated in-vehicle technology has proven its robustness and reliability in over 1.3 million vehicles across 23 countries. Our Software-as-a-Service platform is developed inhouse and meets the requirements of tens of thousands of commercial customers around the world. It is highly scalable, and we are able to quickly respond to customer requirements for additional features,” Louw said.
