Carrier Transicold’s eSolutions telematics platform is a great tool for fleet operators for remote monitoring of refrigerated trucks and trailers. For businesses like Rangeview Transport, it is a valuable tool that allows it to operate more efficiently by improving visibility of its cold chain assets and offer a centralised data stream with comprehensive information about their transport refrigeration unit operation. Rangeview, a horticultural freight specialist business based in Silvan, Victoria, currently has four units fitted with Carrier’s eSolutions platform – the TRU IQ.
Aside from delivering critical data, such as temperatures, location and movement of refrigerated assets, the system can provide analytics and diagnostic information about the refrigeration units while maintaining compliance and accountability for the cold chain – an aspect that came in handy when one of Rangeview’s customers’ data loggers broke down and the plants being transported were affected as a result. The customer initially believed that it was something to do with Rangeview’s fridges but having the detailed information through TRU IQ helped in identifying the real issue behind the incident.
“We’ve been using the Carrier eSolutions platform for a while now and it is proving to be really good for our operations,” says Matt Borkowski, Managing Director of Rangeview Transport. “We can make sure our customers have full knowledge of how their goods are being transported by giving them access to reports to show what temperature the goods have been travelling in. It is a great system that can be particularly useful if things went wrong with a refrigerated load.”
Carrier Transicold’s telematics system is constantly undergoing further improvements with features for greater functionality, including a web-based dashboard that delivers critical fleet information. All Carrier truck and trailer refrigeration units can be fitted with Carrier eSolutions OEM integrated telematics systems from new to retrofit, and since earlier this year the company made telematics a standard feature on its most popular trailer refrigeration units – the X4 and Vector 8000 series units.
Operated by trained and experienced staff, Rangeview’s modern fleet features a selection of purpose-built vehicles in varying capacity and size including vans, rigids, semis, curtainsider B-doubles, refrigerated trailers and custom-built plant trolleys. The team currently uses Carrier Vector HE19, Carrier Vector 1550 and Carrier Supra Undermount refrigeration units, along with Carrier telematics platform Lynx Fleet to monitor location and temperature.
Transporting all horticultural needs – from trays, trees, pallets, pots, flowers and garden equipment, Matt’s team has to make sure the consignment arrives on time and in great condition.
“We carry anything from fresh flowers to plant tissue culture and flux so it’s crucial that they have a temperature-controlled environment to travel in so that they arrive in pristine condition,” Matt says. “For instance, if we’re carting the load to Queensland and it’s over 40 degrees outside, we know that our plants are sitting in at about 12-15 degrees inside the refrigerated trailers.”
Since establishing the business in 1999, Matt has grown his operations from its regional base in Victoria to offer freight services across New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, and the Australian Capital Territory. It currently has depots in Melbourne, Adelaide, Sydney and Brisbane.
“We have the right equipment to do last mile deliveries as well,” Matt says. “The plants and horticultural freight that we cart travels in B-doubles from one state to the other and is then transferred into the rigid to get to the last mile to the customer.”
Matt recently acquired two new fridges from Carrier – a Vector 1550, and a Vector HE 19. The Vector 1550 unit is equipped with patented E-Drive technology. It is a versatile unit that is a perfect fit for long haul deliveries and distribution jobs requiring frequent door openings. Meanwhile, the Vector HE 19 is the next generation temperature-controlled trailer system designed to significantly lower fuel consumption. It is up to 10 percent lighter than similar units and features a single, ultra-efficient evaporator fan that helps with operational efficiency.
Over the years, Matt and his team have rarely had a trouble with any of their Carrier units. “They are reliable and efficient products and we’re very happy with them,” he says. “We bought our first Carrier product 10 years ago. It was a used trailer fitted with a used Carrier fridge on it. After a few years we put a brand-new Carrier fridge in and it’s still going strong today. Since then, we’ve always chosen Carrier fridges for their performance.”
Matt is also pleased with the customer service he gets from the Carrier team, particularly from Carrier’s Victoria Sales Manager, Jim Reeves.
“We’ve worked closely with Jim and so far, it has been great,” Matt says. “We’ve had people attend to call outs outside the city to make sure that our fridges are working right because we can’t afford any downtime. We’ll continue to keep on using Carrier because of the great customer service and the great product.”
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