Fleet Management in winter road maintenance
Winter road maintenance operational data for state roads and highways in the canton of Valais available in real-time.
When was the last time salt was spread on the main road? Where is the snow removal vehicle? Has the snow already been cleared from the steep section of the road with the plow? Has the service provided by the concessionaire been compensated transparently and correctly by the canton? The KYBURZ FLEET system will answer all these questions in the canton of Valais from autumn 2019.
Kurt Hug, a former professor at the Bern University of Applied Sciences, Department of Automotive Engineering, is the ideal facilitator for Valais' project, thanks to his expertise and bilingualism. He faces all the challenges with commitment: "One or more FleetBoxes must be installed in each vehicle by KYBURZ, a demanding job. The variety of vehicles, snowplows, and blowers, and salt and brine sprinkler systems is huge."
Challenging equipment installation
KYBURZ won the contract for the publicly tendered project and gained initial positive experience in winter 2018/19 with 50 vehicles equipped with a FleetBox. "We do not transfer the vehicle data in this project. We take the data from the control units of individual devices such as salt spreaders or snowplows," explains Mario Fischer, who worked for an extended period of time in Valais for the installation in the summer of 2019. The easiest way to do this was with new trucks with standard equipment controls, such as those in use on highways. Private concessionaires in the valleys sometimes clear with older equipment. "On equipment without interfaces, we tried to tap sensor signals," Fischer explains. "On plows of an older design, we had to install pressure sensors ourselves."
"From the skepticism that was often present at the beginning, a cordial relationship characterized by helpfulness has developed between the working partners in Valais and us."
Kurt Hug
"The employees of the Canton of Valais remain in my best memory."
Mario Fischer
Asked about a highlight during the installation period, Mario Fischer spontaneously gushes: "The employees of the Canton of Valais remain in my best memory! The people at the cantonal work yards were beneficial." The installation team received support during the hot phase from multilingual students, including those from the University of Applied Sciences in Biel and the ZHAW. "They did a great job," recalls Mario Fischer.
Ready for action
In the winter of 2019/20, the system will be fully operational and include a fleet of around 400 vehicles equipped with snowplows, salt spreaders, brine spreaders, and snow blowers. The Fleet-Box enables the automatic recording of operating times and spreading quantities. They can be called up immediately in the cantonal data processing system and are available for further processing. With the digitalization project, Valais' canton wants to reduce the administrative effort and create an overview. With a better overview, the road masters optimize the winter service for more safety on the road. The installations must be carried out professionally to withstand the adverse environmental conditions of winter road maintenance. "The installation sometimes takes a lot of time, but we are on track with our roadmap," confirms Kurt Hug. Winter can come; the KYBURZ FLEET team is ready!