By Ramdas S
Bengaluru-based solutions vendor Telematics4u has launched a SaaS platform with a channel focus to address the opportunity in the transportation industry. The vendor is hoping to sign on leading systems integrators (SIs) across all major markets in the next six months.
“Telematics essentially involves using telecommunications and informatics to gain information on any vehicle in motion,” explained S Raghu, Director, Network Development, Telematics4u Services. “Globally, using telematics, the transport industry is saving billions of dollars, while in India the market is in its infancy.
To address the opportunity we have created a SaaS platform which is 100 percent channel-centric.”
The business model of Telematics4u involves fitting a vehicle with a GSM-enabled GPS system, and through a portal providing details such as the exact location of the vehicle, the speed at which it is moving, tyre pressure, fuel indications and other details. The information delivery is done through a Web site, making it easy for fleet owners to track their vehicles on the road.
“There 7.5 million commercial vehicles plying on Indian roads. We are estimating that at least one million of these will become GPS-enabled in the next 2-3 years. On an average, a vehicle owner will need to spend around Rs 10,000 per vehicle for the hardware, and between Rs 400 and 600 for data services per month. This represents an opportunity of Rs 1,000 crore,” estimated Vinay K Prasad, Director, Strategy & Alliance, Telematics4u.
According to Prasad, telematics applications make sense across a wide range of transport businesses such as urban transportation, cold-chain logistics, vehicle security, vehicle insurance, retail distribution, roadside assistance services, mobile billboards and car rentals. Added Raghu: “Telematics also offers very fast ROIs, sometimes within a week or two. For example, it’s estimated that commercial truck owners lose almost 3-4 days of business a month because of bad planning. At average revenues of Rs 5,000 a day, this would mean that the initial investment of Rs 10,000 can easily be recovered in 15 days with better planning. Similarly, fuel pilferage can be stopped completely, and this can save many fleet owners lakhs of rupees every month.”
Telematics4u is presently trying to identify IT SIs in large metros as well as various transportation hubs such as Coimbatore and Chandigarh. “Typically, an SI can make upfront margins of 15 percent in selling the hardware, and on recurring revenues for telematics services, 15 percent upward using the SaaS model. We also offer a white label service, hence the SI can brand it as its own service if it chooses to,” said Prasad. |