Telematics has the potential to revolutionise the utility sector, and Dubbo Regional Council leveraged this enhanced visibility to boost sustainability outcomes and cost savings.
Fleet management is a critical element of utility operations, with vehicles playing a key role in delivering the essential services we rely on every single day.
The transport sector, however, is one of the largest contributors to Australia’s greenhouse emissions.
As we approach the 2050 net zero target and sustainability takes centre stage, tackling emissions is a key priority. But how can industry reduce emissions when vehicles are so vital to the provision of essential services?
If you ask the team at Dubbo Regional Council, they’d point to telematics.
With a large fleet of vehicles and equipment ranging from street sweepers to whipper snippers, the council felt it needed better visibility into the fleet’s operations to pinpoint where it could make improvements on sustainability and cost-effectiveness.
Dubbo Regional Council teamed up with Geotab to achieve these goals, trialling telematic devices across 40 of its vehicles, and the insights were immediate.
Dubbo Regional Council Manager Fleet and Depot Services, Daniel Peterson, said a lack of visibility into how the equipment was being used caused a lot of the challenges.
“During the trial, we found that we had a very high idle time. We ended up doing a calculation, and we found that we were spending around $180,000 a year on diesel in idle time alone,” he said.
Armed with this knowledge, the council promptly got to work on improving this, and the inexpensive installation was quickly offset by the savings made with the new ability to monitor fuel consumption.
This, of course, also has the benefit of reducing the emissions produced by the council’s vehicles and equipment.
However, that’s not all Geotab’s telematic solutions were able to do for Dubbo Regional Council.
The council also leveraged the technology to improve its road and waste management, using the devices to map out road maintenance and monitor contamination in rubbish and green waste collections.
Using telematics in these innovative new ways not only helped Dubbo Regional Council improve its services, but it also paved the way for innovation in other sectors, with Council winning the inaugural IPWEA Fleet Innovation Award in 2024.
Mr Peterson said since introducing the system, Council has been able to significantly increase its efficiencies.
“That has meant we’re able to offer a better service at a lower price for the community,” he said.
With the success of the trial under its belt, Dubbo Regional Council plans to roll out the devices to 280 vehicles in total to further boost its sustainability and cost-effectiveness.
Sustainable made easy
For essential service providers like Dubbo Regional Council, utilising telematics can have a profound impact on sustainability outcomes.
As one of the world’s leading providers of commercial telematics solutions, Geotab has been helping businesses slash costs and carbon emissions for more than 20 years with its connected transportation and fleet management solutions.
By providing detailed insights into fleet operations, Geotab empowers users to make informed decisions to drive the transition to sustainability.
For more information, visit geotab.com/au
