The cold chain management industry was valued at over $159 billion in 2018. It’s forecasted to be worth over $585 billion in 2026. Hence, it’s a very valuable part of the trucking industry. However, there are tremendous optimization challenges which come with the industry. These can only be solved by extracting important insights from data.
The best way to collect this data is through GPS tracking. Let’s look at the biggest cold chain management challenges which GPS tracking can solve.
Common Cold Chain Challenges for Trucking Businesses
Damaged Freezer Doors
Freezer and cooler doors are often damaged. This of course ruins the sterile and controlled environment needed to run a cold chain operation. Other than not holding the right temperature, this results in spoiled products and common safety issues.
Internal Condensation
Not maintaining the right temperature means the freezers attract condensation. This can lead to microbial build up in the long run. Slippery surfaces can also result and cause slipping hazards for workers. This danger is multiplied since workers must lift heavy loads.
Fungus Growth
With rising temperatures and condensation, the chances of fungus or microbial build up increases. This can spoil the product and be a health hazard for workers. If you don’t remedy the problem, you’ll require regular cleaning of freezer trucks.
Heat Exposure
Prolonged exposure to heat, even without any freezer door damage can spoil your product. Temperature reliant foods, medicinal products, etc. can be damaged. Also, spillage can occur through seals and cause slipping. This can be very damaging if it results in an accident on the road.
6 Benefits of GPS for Cold Chain Management
Installing GPS tracking devices in your trucks can allow for better cold chain management. You can seamlessly monitor and track trailers via your smartphone or laptop. Here are 6 benefits you gain from installing GPS for better cold chain management.
1. Greater Transparency
Cold chain management efficiency can only be optimized through better data and insights. First, you need to know at all times where your trailers and trucks are. This way, you can know which routes they’ve taken, and how long they took to reach their destination.
Real time visibility, including location, status, and usage history all work together to give you a full picture. Whether you have hundreds or thousands of assets of various types, you can track them with a single dashboard.
You can figure out outliers and problems within your fleet and deal with them on a case by case basis. You can easily locate the closest available trailer for the right job. You can also track trucks through last mile delivery, the most crucial portion of delivery.
2. Better Temperature Monitoring
Using automated alerts for things like excessive vibration, speeding, intrusion, and others, you can do better cold chain management. Fleet managers can monitor temperatures, reefer status, door closure, excessive speeding, and more.
This will give you a better idea of temperature management on board. This way, you can mitigate financial loss and prevent product damage. Also, better temperature monitoring and control can help improve fuel utilization and reduce the likelihood of an accident.
3. Improving Utilization of Resources
You can gain a better understanding of how your trailers and trucks are being used through GPS tracking. You can find out if they’re being abused, misused, or sitting idle across locations. You can identify equipment with low ROI which means that you can isolate assets that are underperforming.
You can then deploy those assets elsewhere and improve your overall resource utilization. This way, you can reduce any products from spoiling. You can reduce the time that a single payload is stored in a truck so that all products get to their destinations fresh.
4. Geofence Alerts
This is one of the best benefits of GPS for cold chain management. Aside from alerting you to theft or abuse of a vehicle, you can find out whether a truck is going to be late or early. Geofencing allows you to be alerted to any suspicious or unusual activity which can compromise a shipment.
When cargo is delivered, you can ensure that the next temperature-controlled location maintains safety and integrity. This virtual perimeter will also ensure that your cargo is secure at all times.
5. Better Communications with Your Drivers
GPS tracking allows better communication with your drivers. You can alert them to any problems or any issues with their shipment. You can also alert them to any change in plans so they can adjust their strategy or their route.
This way, you can plan contingencies for common issues which spring up. Again, you can identify these issues if you have the GPS tracking data that you need.
You can also monitor any suspicious driver behavior like over speeding or harsh braking. These can pose dangers to your cargo and actually damage it mid-shipping. All this will help optimize your delivery times and your cold chain management.
6. Proactive Inspections and Maintenance
Finally, through GPS tracking you can set metrics for how to inspect your vehicles and ensure better cold chain management. You can schedule inspections for your trucks each time they go over a certain traveled distance. You can also schedule diagnostic tests each year for vehicles a certain number of years old.
You can also isolate vehicles which have been underperforming or breaking down too much. This way, you can route resources to vehicles which need them the most.
This is a proactive maintenance and inspections-based approach. It will save you much more money in the long run. It will prevent delays and overtime for your drivers and improve customer satisfaction.
The Brickhouse Security Spark Nano 7 Allows Better Cold Chain Management with GPS
The Brickhouse Security Spark Nano 7 is a GPS tracker which is built for the road. Whether you have a business of trucks or rental cars, you can rest easy that this tracker will survive the elements. It obviously has all the features that a good GPS tracker has including real-time tracking, 4G, and speed tracking.
You won’t need to pay any activation or cancellation fees. All there is, is a monthly subscription. Furthermore, it’s the smallest GPS tracker that you can buy. The compact design really benefits vehicles of any size. You can stick this on any vehicle, and disguise it. Therefore, it’s also great for vehicle tracking and theft prevention.
Brickhouse’s 4G coverage can serve you all over North America. This is perfect for vehicles which are traveling across state and country lines. This way, you won’t miss any important data. The Spark Nano 7 works across the US, Canada, and Mexico.
Finally, coming to the resistance against the elements, this is the GPS tracker to get. Not only is the GPS tracker waterproof, but it is also magnetic. You can attach it to any car, truck, RV, etc. It will continue to record and transmit information through the harshest of conditions.
The tracker is also platform blind. You can access it through any web browser on any mobile or desktop platform. The data you have access to includes historical reports of distance, speed, real-time location, geofencing location, etc. You can also get detailed travel reports, and change the settings as you need to.
There are also specific subscriptions for your needs. You can choose an annual, quarterly, or monthly plan. You don’t need to sign any contracts or go through any hassle for cancellation. You can also choose premium updates features to get updates in either 60, 30, or 5 seconds.
One of the best features of the Brickhouse Security Spark Nano 7 is the lifetime customer support. No matter where you are, and what you need, you’ll get the right support.
So, if you want a great GPS tracker that can survive the elements, go for the Spark Nano 7.
