“It is necessary to have traffic safety as a value and not a priority, because priorities change places”. This statement was made by João Pimentel, Mobility and Infrastructure manager at With gas, a natural gas distributor that operates throughout the metropolitan region of São Paulo. With that, he sums up Comgás' DNA well and clarifies the main reason that led the company to invest in GolSat's Velocity per Via (Vvia) module. The investment, for João, was much more than in the technology itself: it was in lives.
We know that speeding is one of the main problems faced by fleet managers, which has an impact on team safety and company costs. With the Vvia module, the speed of all positions and all vehicles in the fleet are validated in accordance with the Brazilian Traffic Code. The tool generates accurate information in real time whenever the driver exceeds the permitted speed on the road.
With a team of more than 150 gas operators and 700 vehicles circulating in greater São Paulo, the company needed to find a way to control the entire fleet efficiently and, above all, safely. Effective control of speeding occurred through Velocidade por Via, which avoided and minimized other management problems. “We shouldn’t wait for a problem to happen to look for solutions and guide the team. We have to look to the future, foresee possible problems and try to avoid them”, comments the manager.
According to him, in 2019 Comgás was at a pace of reducing fines and incidents. Then it stalled. It was precisely then that management woke up to the Vvia module. The main pillars they wanted to implement, according to João, were: preserving life, contributing to society and preserving assets, with efficiency and responsible action.
Speed per lane brings relevant information to the fleet manager
He points out that Velocidade por Via is interesting and provides very relevant information, but that the tool alone is not enough. It is necessary to translate the data, transforming it into results, which requires the implementation of a process.
Early on, João says that it was possible to verify that old drivers, without a history of fines and accidents, had a risky driving profile. With Vvia, the fleet manager understands what he cannot see. “It was necessary to bring the drivers close and listen to them. Our intention was to have results and not generate fear”, he points out, highlighting that the fact that other sectors and teams have engaged in the cause, contributed a lot in controlling speeding, resulting in a series of other achievements.
By bringing drivers closer, establishing a partnership, each one starts to feel responsible for their own actions. With that, a new way of driving, with safety and awareness, becomes natural and drivers take it for life.
For João, a maxim that became even more evident was that it is necessary to have knowledge for there to be evolution. “The drivers wanted to know where they were going wrong and when they had access to the information, there were changes. They started to engage, search their own data and had the opportunity to learn. Today, according to the module's classification, we only have reference and low exposure conductors”, he vibrates.
Watch the Ahead Webcast in full: How and Why to Control Overspeeding
Comgás has encouraging results with Velocity by way
The results achieved since hiring Vvia are encouraging. All indicators were reduced from the moment that there was an effective control of excess speed. Between 2019 and 2020, the percentage of fines in general fell by 39% and very serious fines by 90%. The reduction in collision repair costs was 34% and the number of incidents dropped by 22%, also reducing their severity. The Comgás fleet achieved these results, covering more than 9 million kilometers in 2020.
João says that every month they extract the data and that the speeding indicators generate a classification of the drivers. "Drivers who are not well classified, go through a recycling process, not repeating the same mistakes".
Are you experiencing problems with the speed of your fleet? Are you having excessive expenses and feel that security is not being a value in the company? Enter in contact us. Together, we will change this scenario.
