GPS tracking seen to boost use of emergency vehicles

Fire and Emergency Medical Services Commissioner Clyde Norita Clyde Norita, left, observes tracking software data during a presentation with TrackMe! Guam representatives. (Contributed Photo)

Fire and Emergency Medical Services Commissioner Clyde Norita met with representatives from TrackMe! Guam last Frday to discuss Global Positioning System tracking for emergency vehicles in the Commonwealth.

The move is touted as a means for DFEMS to reduce fuel cost, maintenance costs, and operational costs as well as increase efficiency and use of emergency vehicles.

According to Norita, this will allow DFEMS to track its vehicles while providing real-time information on driving patterns such as location, route, speed, fuel usage, sudden braking, and quick acceleration. 

The system also has the capability to report on driver information, such as when a vehicle is on idle or if there is any erratic driving behavior.

The technology used to track the vehicles “is supported by wireless technology and is web-based, producing fully-mapped, updated reports,” all of which can be monitored from any computer or mobile device with internet access, said TrackMe! Guam.

Norita says that the service will be purchased for all vehicles on Saipan, Tinian, and Rota and DFEMS aims to finalize the procurement process by mid-December, with full operation by end of January 2018.

The system will give DFEMS the ability to identify problem drivers so that corrective measures can be implemented, Norita said.

“It will closely monitor the vehicle for any mechanic issues with quick alerts to prompt needed servicing. In DFEMS-related accidents, the data collected can shed light on the drivers’ behavior and the vehicles’ operating conditions right before an accident. We see that this would be beneficial and would like to implement GPS for improved efficiency and response,” Norita said.

Acting governor Victor Hocog said that reducing operational costs and improving accountability in emergency response is needed.

“Real-time tracking and monitoring will definitely enable departments to reduce operational costs and improve employee accountability and fleet utilization. This falls in line with improving efficiency, such as the upcoming government conversion to the utility pre-pay program. Gov. [Ralph DLG] Torres and I fully support reducing operational costs in the most feasible way possible in all departments,” Hocog said.

In operation since 2006, TrackMe! Guam is a Guam-based GPS tracking business that has been the only company to provide necessary tools for businesses in Guam, the CNMI, and the Philippines to help successfully manage their fleets and monitor fuel usage. 

TrackMe! Guam boasts that GPS monitoring has helped cut operational costs for GTA TeleGuam LLC by 20 percent and improved the fleet and employee safety of Guam Power Authority, among other agencies. (PR)