The In-Vehicle Office: Fleet Optimization Starts in the Driver’s Seat
In today’s digitally-driven business environment, companies across all industries are leveraging new tools to stay connected and gain a competitive advantage. Professionals such as police officers, truck drivers and forklift operators have taken on additional roles that require constant use of technology and as a result, their vehicles must be equipped to function as true mobile offices. For 17 years, Mobile Mounting Solutions has worked closely with Panasonic ProServices, partnering with Toughbook customers to engineer custom installation and mounting solutions for a wide range of fleet optimization tools.
“Mobile Mounts is essentially part of the Panasonic ProServices team that delivers mobility engineering to develop Toughbook-based solutions for different verticals for operations across the business,” said Chris Humphrey, vice president of sales at Mobile Mounting Solutions. “Our partnership with Panasonic has grown as Toughbook customers look for new ways to use their devices in the workplace, no matter where that may be.”
Installing and Mounting Fleet Optimization Devices
Before a Toughbook is installed, customers must have the correct mounting solution to ensure that the device will be properly supported. However, many Toughbook customers lack the necessary time, expertise and hardware to do the installation themselves. To address this challenge, Panasonic ProServices and Mobile Mounts analyze the specific needs of a customer and engineer a custom mounting solution with the correct parts for a secure installation that optimizes utilization of their Toughbook. Leveraging the Panasonic team, Toughbook customers are able to deploy their devices in a variety of vehicles to improve efficiency, safety and communication.
“Many times, fleet operations have other priorities and initiatives, and installing the mounts or docks in the vehicles for a tablet or laptop refresh is just not something they can take on,” said Humphrey. “When they bring Panasonic ProServices and Mobile Mounts into the process, we’re able to offset their time constraints and make sure that the installation gets done correctly and on schedule.”
Equipping Your Vehicle for Work Wherever You Go
When a leading freight company deployed 1,600 Panasonic Toughbook FZ- B2 rugged tablets, its forklift operators needed both a tablet and a scanner. At the time, there was not an adequate off-the-shelf solution to accommodate both power supplies so the company worked with Panasonic ProServices and Mobile Mounting Solutions to fabricate a custom bracket for the power supplies, solving a critical issue for the customer. As a result, the customer was able to move forward with a large scale mobile technology refresh with the Toughbook solution.
For Toughbook users whose primary office is the front seat of a forklift, police car or other vehicle, their mobile device mount or dock must be within arm’s reach. When a truck driver is on the road for ten hours per day, they need access to a docking station in the vehicle that charges the battery and secures the device with a lock to perform their job safely and efficiently. While a crane operator’s job was once to drive a crane, now that operator is tasked with using a rugged mobile device to access work orders, document their work, scan barcodes, update shipping and logistics records and more.
To manage these demands, Toughbook customers are tapping Panasonic ProServices and Mobile Mounting Solutions to engineer custom mounting solutions that ensure their devices will be safely, securely and ergonomically mounted inside a vehicle. In turn, this greatly improves the end user experience, which makes workers more productive overall.
Streamlining Your Business Operations with Mobile Fleet Optimization Technology
“One of the biggest trends we’re seeing with Toughbook customers is a cross-pollination of devices throughout multiple parts of the organization,” said Humphrey. “Historically, a company would pick a device for a manager, and a different device for the forklift operator and the truck driver. Today, it is increasingly common for customers to deploy one device across an entire department, streamlining internal processes and eliminating the need for multiple devices.” But depending on the vehicle, a different mounting solution may be needed to support the device so workers can fully optimize the functionality of their Toughbook from the driver’s seat.
Mobile Mounts’ longstanding partnership with Panasonic ProServices continues to grow, working closely with its Public Safety and Enterprise Mobile Solution teams to meet the vehicle installation needs of Toughbook customers around the country. To remain competitive and empower workers, Toughbook customers are turning to Panasonic ProServices and partners like Mobile Mounting Solutions to improve the use of their devices by creating a more productive working environment.
To learn more about Panasonic ProServices, read our brochure.