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LeasePlan USA today launched a unique new platform further evolving its telematics value proposition into a new frontier in fleet management. OneConnect is a new Connected Vehicle cloud platform that merges real-time raw data from vehicles on the road with proprietary LeasePlan fleet management data providing the best 360-degree view of overall fleet performance and driver behavior. “OneConnect provides a window into never before-seen fleet insights,” said Felipe Smolka, executive vice president of transformation, who leads on strategy and innovation at LeasePlan USA. “The uniqueness of our new approach lands a fresh flavor on how to look at a fleet, as we now have the opportunity to marry all relevant data points into one single pane of glass.” Read more. |
Germany Trade & Invest (GTAI) Tesla founder Elon Musk reportedly plans to establish its fourth so-called Gigafactory in the Brandenburg town of Grünheide as well as a design and engineering center in Berlin itself. The project will create an estimated 10,000 jobs and is expected to be up and running by late 2021. The Brandenburg facility would produce batteries and both the Y Model and flagship Model 3. “We’ve been talking to Tesla for around three years,” says GTAI CEO Robert Hermann. “Tesla’s decision reflects how attractive Germany is as a place of investment and technology, and its central location will make it possible for the company to expand quickly into further European Union markets.” Read the article at Germany Trade & Invest. |
The Detroit Bureau When it comes to cars and how reliable they are, keep in mind that newer isn’t necessarily better, according to Consumer Reports’ latest “Auto Reliability Survey.” Updated models or entirely new replacements for outdated models often come with new technology or applications that can be prone to problems. “When you redesign a new vehicle, often you get better fuel economy, better safety, potentially better features,” said Jake Fisher, senior director of auto testing for Consumer Reports. “But if you want … reliability, your best bet is to wait a year or two until those initial growing pains have been worked out.” Read the article at The Detroit Bureau. |
City Lab “Mobility as a Service” (MaaS) boosters say that technology can nudge drivers to adopt transit and micromobility, but that isn’t enough to liberate cities from our reliance on automobility. Technology platforms that allow commuters to easily book and plan trips across an array of urban transportation services—including transit, bikeshare, ride hail, e-scooters, and more, could help wean them off privately owned automobiles, but not if the bus only runs once an hour, or you have to ride that scooter or bike on a street shared with cars and trucks zooming by at 45 miles per hour. Without supportive policies and investment decisions, such as new taxpayer funding, the smartest MaaS technology in the world won’t be able lower all the barriers to living a car-free lifestyle. Read the article at City Lab. |
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Electric Vehicles for California
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Inside EVs Effective immediately, the California state government has stopped buying gas-powered cars, with the exception being for public safety vehicles, most likely because electric versions may not be plentiful or even available for those specific needs. Furthermore, starting in January, the state will no longer buy vehicles from manufacturers that refused to voluntarily agree to follow California’s clean car rules. The new rules mean that electric vehicles like the Toyota Prius Prime and Chevy Bolt won’t even be considered for state purchase anymore, since Toyota & General Motors, as well as Fiat Chrysler, recently sided with the Trump administration with regards to tailpipe emission rules. Meanwhile, Ford, Honda, Volkswagen, and BMW may get a boost in sales, since they all agreed to continue to follow California’s strict emission rules, even though they may no longer be required to. Read the article at Inside EVs. |
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Parking, Fleets and SpotHero
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Becca Rabinowitz, Director of Strategic Business Lines at SpotHero For decades, personal cars have been mobility’s bread and butter. But with the rise of attractive alternatives to personal vehicles, car ownership is no longer a necessity for people living in urban areas. And with a new generation fully accustomed to finding services through their smartphones, dozens of shared car providers are looking to fill the new desire for cars-on-demand. But when you consider how much work goes into maintaining just one car, it makes you wonder how car share fleets are managing the logistics of car ownership—the responsibilities consumers have been quick, and thankful, to relinquish. Companies like ReachNow, Canvas, and LimePod have felt the weight of these challenges in recent months, making now an important moment to think critically about how fleets can continue to support this growing demand. Before assuming responsibility over thousands of cars at once, fleets will need to master the three core logistical challenges of managing shared cars at scale: storage, payments, and servicing. READ MORE |
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By John Wysseier, CEO and President, The CEI Group, Inc. Panic is never a preferred business mode, yet so much has been made of the dire threat of disruption over the last few years that it may seem that’s the emotion the business and trade press have been trying to instill. That hasn’t been my objective. Instead, what I and most of the keen-eyed observers I’ve been following have been trying to do is to persuade senior executives that they need to appreciate the dramatic ways in which digital technology is changing the face of business, and to deepen their understanding of the ever-expanding array of applications that may be used to undermine or strengthen their competitiveness. To be sure – and as I’ve cited in recent posts – the pace of change in the business world driven by new technology is accelerating and is being reflected in the speed by which the roster of industry leaders has been changing recently and is forecast to continue. READ MORE |
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