Nokia Siemens Networks has signed a contract with Yutong Bus Company to provide a machine to machine (M2M) service platform and develop various telematics applications.
For Yutong buses leading to transport services, telematics applications enable exclusive services such as emergency response, fleet management and remote diagnostics, according to company officials.
“While the automobile industry has a lot to gain from the adoption of telematics, the high investment in hardware infrastructure and software licenses have so far been a big deterrent,” said Wang Shengjun, chief information officer at Yutong Bus.
Shengjun said that the telematics applications via a service model are ideal for keeping initial investments and risks low while at the same time offering an opportunity to greatly improve customer experience.
“The applications that Nokia Siemens (News - Alert) Networks is developing for us will go a long way in helping us to increase our production and enter new segments such as trucking,” Shengjun said.
Through software as a service (SaaS (News - Alert)) business model, the telematics applications aim to provide a number of benefits. Giving an example, company officials said that with one of the applications, Yutong Bus monitoring center can analyze vehicles remotely and subsequently arrange for a mechanic to repair the vehicle, automatically providing the correct replacement parts.
Additionally, a further application will conduct remote analysis of vehicle data to proactively detect and fix issues before they impact bus efficiency or performance, said company officials.
Plus, telematics is also expected to enable automatic emergency response. Company officials said that this will allow the driver to call for help with the single push of a button inside the vehicle, in case of an emergency, and as a result, customer service center can be alerted with GPS coordinates and emergency services can automatically be dispatched.
For fleet management, telematics applications can allow service centers to track the routes taken by each bus and optimize them, said company officials.
In addition, Nokia (News - Alert) Siemens Networks’ telematics SaaS aims to improve Yutong’s navigation system. All the applications will be built on the company’s M2M service management platform, and the company also plans to offer its consulting and system integration services.
“This is a breakthrough deal since it marks our entry into a very promising market segment of M2M,” said Markus Borchert, head of customer operations of the Greater China region at Nokia Siemens Networks (News - Alert).
Nokia Siemens Networks is a global enabler of telecommunications services. Recently, the company made an investment in ClariPhy, a provider of advanced integrated circuits.