A technology company that provides connectivity and data analytics for industries such as transportation has been a long-time Aeris customer but recently added IoT Watchtower to improve its security posture, control costs and receive deeper insights into its cellular IoT solution.
The customer’s telematics gateway solution, installed in the cabs of trucks provides Internet connectivity and multiple in-cab devices via Bluetooth, to deliver vehicle diagnostics, route mapping, and cargo drop-off assistance.
This data is critically important because it provides invaluable insight into equipment efficiency, driver safety, and regulatory compliance with support for Electronic Logging Device (ELD), Hours of Service (HOS), and Driver Vehicle Inspection Report (DVIR) features. Fleet managers and dispatchers must have visibility on dwell times, allowing for proactive route planning and avoiding costly detentions. Vehicle-specific entry and exit gates enhance the final mile delivery for drivers, reduce empty miles to 4.3%, and improve on-time delivery rates to over 98%.
In 2022, the customer introduced a new platform-based product line. This Android-based tablet is designed to handle more data from the Internet and support more devices, offering drivers access to a broader range of applications beyond the company’s original suite. With anticipated data consumption expected to increase fivefold, the customer sought to control associated costs and gain deeper visibility into the data produced and consumed by these devices. The customer approached Aeris for assistance in understanding usage and obtaining deeper insights.
Aeris introduced Watchtower for enhanced visibility in device operation and data usage. The customer was particularly interested in Watchtower’s ability to provide in-depth insights into its fleet telemetry data. Previously, the customer could only monitor the functionality and data transmission of its devices. Watchtower now enabled the customer to see specific destinations of data, whether it is sent to one or multiple applications, including some not within its control For example, devices might send diagnostics to the manufacturer or use onboard Wi-Fi hot spots to transmit data to destinations chosen by the fleet operator, such as its own customers.
The company found these insights invaluable in understanding how fleet operators used fleet telemetry service and derived value from it. This data allowed the customer to identify potential upsell opportunities for its fleet operator customers. Aeris IoT Watchtower could provide deeper data visibility and control, as well as future security requirements related to enforcement. Watchtower enabled deep visibility to gather insights and could when needed block malicious or anomalous activity and allow the customer to build zero trust policies to prevent traffic from reaching unknown destinations.
Aeris won the contract by demonstrating the ability to control costs and flag anomalous behavior due to increased data consumption. Today, the customer’s focus is to gain insights, but it also recognizes security as an essential business risk mitigator. Aeris continues to collaborate with the customer’s corporate security team help improve its cellular IoT security posture. Additionally, compliance is top of mind at both the device and data levels, where Watchtower reports have provided the necessary framework.