News Feature | July 23, 2015

Government IT Clients' Fleets Can Be Managed With Mobile Apps

Christine Kern

By Christine Kern, contributing writer

Government IT Clients’ Fleets Can Be Managed With Mobile Apps

With increasing pressure being placed on government agencies to increase efficiency and reduce costs, many are turning to smartphone-based apps to manage vehicle fleets.

As GCN reports, the State Department’s Integrated Logistics Management System (ILMS) Mobile Driver is being used to track a global fleet of 14,000 vehicles from more than 40 U.S. government agencies in more than 260 locations across 176 countries.

Amy Tener, Accenture senior executive explains, “Working closely with State for the past 12 years, [Accenture] have successfully implemented an integrated supply chai system supporting best practices across the globe. Together, our work has resulted in improved customer service and increased supply chain efficiency.”

The app, which works on both iOS and Android devices, allows drivers to record trip information, review trip assignments, and manage reassignments and transfers in real time, securely connected to the State Department’s Fleet Management Information System. And since the platform is integrated with ILMS, the data is also immediately accessible by State Department management, procurement, and property officials.

The app has replaced the cumbersome paper process with an automated and connected system, Karl Dedolph, managing director at Accenture, told GCN. Dedolph adds the app is user-friendly, stating “Once the driver opens up the application, they’ll know how to use it.”

According to GCN, General Services Administration also has adopted a new fleet management app, called FMS2GO (Fleet Management To Go), an Android-based app that provides real-time access to the department’s back-end Fleet Management System (FMS), the system that tracks more than 200,000 GSA vehicles. This app facilitates recording and management of inventory on site and at delivery locations, and improves distribution, data transfer, and batch processing, eliminating data transfer and batch processing procedures. Since it uses the built-in cameras on Android devices, it eliminates costs for the purchase of bar code scanners.

The FMS2GO app recently won the American Council for Technology-Industry Advisory Council (ACT-IAC) Advanced Mobility Working Group Leadership Award. “As federal government agencies adopt bring-your-own-device programs, they are using smartphones and tablets to make government more efficient, improve services to citizens as well as cut costs,” Casey Coleman, group vice president for civilian agencies at Unisys Federal, stated in the press release of the award announcement.