Valuable Construction Insights from Jim French

Jim French is the type of guy who knows everyone and has lots of stories to tell. He’s got over 25 years of experience in the construction, mining and survey industries, with a particular focus on GPS fleet tracking, fleet and asset management systems, machine control and guidance. Jim joined Teletrac Navman in 2014 as a Heavy Construction Application specialist, and regularly works with customers to provide complete job site solutions based on their requirements. 

Besides working for Teletrac Navman as a Heavy Construction Specialist, he’s also heavily involved in CCNZ and volunteers with St John Ambulance.

Why cooperation in the industry is a win-win

His favourite part of the job is working closely with contractors and seeing first-hand how the technology and construction industries help each other develop and improve. Like any good tool – you need to be on the ground, constantly talking to those who will and are using it, to know if it’s working as intended and how it can be improved.

Teletrac Navman’s software has provided immense benefits to the construction industry, in the form of time and money saved and a refocus away from administrative jobs to the more important operational and directional side of the business.

“The industry has changed so much in the last 15 years, equipment too. Contractors have to be smart as they own millions of dollars of equipment. They have to constantly keep their eye on the bottom line and how they can future-proof their business”, says Jim.

In addition to using technology to keep their business up to date, being involved with organisations such as Civil Contractors New Zealand is incredibly valuable as the organisation shares relevant industry news and updates, arranges events and professional development, and advocates for the industry on behalf of contractors. Jim French has been involved with the development and success of CCNZ and Teletrac Navman’s annual Construction Industry Survey, and says to work with the people inside the organisation is rewarding in and of itself.  “I just love the construction industry”, adds Jim.

Bespoke solution for individual companies and projects

Going back to how technology helps contractors be more productive, Jim says that he recently worked with a customer where there was no existing software to cover what they needed. Through plenty of consultation with software engineers in Teletrac Navman, looking at what tweaks could be done to meet their requirements, they managed to create a new software solution tailored to their specific needs. The new solution made the job for the engineers much easier and much more productive. This proves the importance of getting an understanding of the business, what their current offering can provide, and how they can adjust their solution further to help a customer. “Every time I talk to contractors I learn more about the industry – and all these insights help us improve our offering,” says Jim.

That’s why at Teletrac Navman we always talk to our customers to find out where they need improvements and then find a solution which demonstrates results, improved utilisation of equipment and reduced costs. Our GPS fleet tracking solution provides managers with a virtual world where they don’t have to be on site to get a full overview of what’s going on. “I’ve had a customer who saved $20k in the first month in costs simply because they were now able to maximise the utilisation of their equipment. Our solution allows them to see what equipment is being used and the reason for it,” says Jim.

Health and Safety runs in the blood

Jim is also a qualified Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) and has worked on Teletrac Navman’s first aid company policy and is the designated first aid officer when he’s at work. When he’s not at work he spends most of his time as the officer in charge and clinical trainer in one of the St John divisions. He’s even completed a Diploma in Paramedical Science. His two daughters have also been involved with St John from an early age – which has resulted in them both wanting a career in paramedics and nursing.

Jim has always been interested in paramedics and sees his role at St Johns as a great way to give back to the community. And that’s the attitude he also brings with him at Teletrac Navman, always looking at ways the software solutions can help the construction industry – in both good and challenging times.

Final tips from Jim

The main Focus For Construction Management is:

• Increasing productivity
• Trimming fuel usage
• Avoiding excessive idling
• Ensuring optimal utilisation of expensive equipment

It all adds up to getting the best possible result for the lowest possible cost. Asset management is so important in managing costs in the heavy construction industry. You can use the data collected from assets to show exactly how much it costs to move a cubic metre of dirt, for example. The system can also help to keep track of moving dirt within the project, so it can be used elsewhere avoiding the hauling away and dumping loads of material off-site. To take another example, you can also use telematics to show when is the best time to switch from one load and haul fleet to another; scrapers are commonly used for moving material on large projects, at some stage however these may become uneconomical (cycle time is too long, grade too steep) and switching to articulated trucks may be a better option. The real time data from telematics helps in this process. 

Using the data

The key in heavy construction is bringing all the data from the different OEM (original equipment manufacturers) together in one easily accessible interface. Using the Teletrac Navman asset management software, you get one-stop fleet-wide visibility of all your machines without needing to install hardware on machines that already have factory-installed OEM telematics. This allows you to trend productivity across the whole site, and provide insights and controls to drive new fleet efficiencies and profitability. It’s a big step forward.

On Safety

Safety is absolutely crucial to running a big construction site. Contractors want visibility of everything and everyone that enters and exits a job site. At the end of the day, making sure everyone gets off the site safely has to be the top priority.

Jim French is grateful that in his role at Teletrac Navman, he gets to help an industry he loves to continuously improve the way they operate. Teletrac Navman’s software has provided immense benefits to the construction industry, and in return, the construction industry has provided valuable insights for further developments and improvements to the software solution. And that’s why cooperation in the industry is a win-win.