1

Using Artificial Intelligence

to Humanize Analytics for

Maximum Efficiency

2

Utilizing data correctly allows carriers to maximize profits when rates are high and helps keep their bottom lines intact when rates fall. The data that comes from safety monitoring tools—like Netradyne’s Driveri® product—can also help retain drivers and protect against nuclear verdicts.

None of those potential benefits matter, however, if a carrier’s back office staff does not have the time or ability to act on the data and analytics these new digital tools produce.

In order for tech-generated safety analytics to benefit drivers and carriers, those analytics must be humanized and turned into digestible information. Once that happens, the information paves the way for driver coaching, which can lower the risk of at-fault accidents. One of the biggest barriers to this kind of coaching is an understaffed back office.

Administrative employees often find themselves managing dozens of drivers, so while the analytics are available, the bandwidth isn’t there. If staffers are busy managing trucks, they probably are not taking much time to talk to drivers about their safety habits.

The Power of Numbers

Drivers Outnumber

Administrative Staff

Not too long ago, the transportation and logistics industry was known for its reluctance to adopt new technology. When the electronic logging device (ELD) mandate took effect in December 2017, drivers had to abandon paper logs. This ushered the industry into the digital era, and the sector’s technological revolution took off from there.

ELDs produce a constant stream of data, transportation management systems (TMS) have become more efficient than ever, and tools addressing everything from shipment tracking to detention time monitoring debut almost daily.

“Carriers can use the information that is a byproduct of technology to their advantage,” FreightWaves’ Chief Data Scientist, Daniel Pickett, said. “Both internal data and the pools of anonymized/summarized information like we study at FreightWaves have an unbelievable amount of useful information that can improve safety, operations and a carrier’s understanding of broader market trends.”

IN ORDER FOR

TECH-GENERATED

SAFETY ANALYTICS

TO BENEFIT DRIVERS

AND CARRIERS,

THOSE ANALYTICS

MUST BE HUMANIZED

AND TURNED

INTO DIGESTIBLE

INFORMATION.

3

When it comes to breaking down coaching barriers, Netradyne does not stop at providing customers with simple presentations. The company’s camera uses artificial intelligence (AI) to recognize when drivers violate traffic laws or behave in other unsafe ways—as well as when they do something worth rewarding. These events are not just uploaded to the Driveri portal, but they are also communicated to the drivers immediately via in-cab alerts.

This real-time feature can enhance and reinforce any person-to-person coaching the driver may be getting. Quick feedback also allows drivers to correct any risky behavior immediately, driving down the risk ofan accident.

Alerts are also communicated through the Driveri app, allowing drivers to review their records after the fact. Drivers tend to manage themselves effectively when presented with timely feedback about expectations and safe practices, according to a Netradyne spokesperson.

Bridging the Gap With

Artificial Intelligence

FreightWaves surveyed over 100 carriers about their driver to non-driver ratios. The vast majority of these companies (77%) were made up of at least 70% drivers. A full 26% of surveyed companies reported a 9-1 driver to non-driver ratio, 25% reported an 8-2 ratio, and 20% reported a 7-3 ratio.

About 6% of surveyed carriers said their companies consisted entirely of drivers, with no support staff whatsoever.

Approaching equilibrium, 5% of carriers reported a 6-4 driver to non-driver ratio, and 7% reported an even 5-5 ratio. Companies made up of more support staff than drivers were the outliers, with only 11% falling intothat category.

Coaching is the key to changing unsafe behaviors that tools like Driveri pick up on. The result can be fewer negative outcomes for carriers, drivers and everyday motorists. However, if carriers want to capitalize on their data, they must find a way to integrate coaching without stretching their already thin staffs even thinner.

Netradyne helps facilitate coaching for its customers by delivering easy-to-understand insights via the Driveri portal, meaning administrative staff do not have to spend time digging through piles of irrelevant data to identify any problems.

What percentage of employees in your companyare drivers vs how many are non-drivers?

Res

pons

es

100%drivers

(0% non-drivers)

10%drivers

0%drivers(100%non-

drivers)

20%drivers

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

30%drivers

40%drivers

50%drivers

60%drivers

70%drivers

80%drivers

90%drivers

4

“Road accidents contribute to significant economic, social and emotional loss on a global scale. As we develop technology to drive the evolution of autonomous vehicles, we recognize that our extensive capabilities can make a meaningful impact today,” Netradyne’s website reads. “With our Advanced Driving Monitoring and Driver Assistance System, Driveri, we bring increasingly intelligent, situationally aware cameras to connected devices around the world—enhancing human and vehicle performance—ultimately reducing road incidents and collisions.”

When accidents do occur, AI-enabled tools in the cab can help clarify the details of the incident and, in some cases, protect carriers from nuclear verdicts that could threaten the future of their companies.

GetGo Transportation owner Tony Tomase learned the power of tools like Driveri firsthand when an owner-operator working with his company was involved in an accident last year. Footage from a Netradyne camera clarified the details of what would have otherwise been a “he said, she said” situation.

AI in Action

“WITH OUR

ADVANCED DRIVING

MONITORING AND

DRIVER ASSISTANCE

SYSTEM, DRIVERI, WE

BRING INCREASINGLY

INTELLIGENT,

SITUATIONALLY

AWARE CAMERAS TO

CONNECTED DEVICES

AROUND THE WORLD.”

5

“We had an incident last February in Missouri. One of my owner-operators saw a car lose control and moved to avoid a crash. The car hit a guardrail, which acted like a slingshot. The [owner-operator] went off the road to avoid a potentially deadly collision with the vehicle,” Tomase said. “His maneuvers saved his life, but the [other party] was talking about suing us because he was going 74 mph in a 70 mph zone. The Netradyne camera picked up the whole incident, though.”

Tomase has integrated AI-enabled tools into his fleet for two main reasons: to avoid litigation and to promote a culture of safety among his 44 active drivers. He plans to opt for trucks with more modern collision avoidance systems as he turns over his fleet for the same reasons.

“Lawsuits are a big cause of stress,” Tomase said. “We want to be in this business, but it is in the top 10 most difficult businesses as far as injuries are concerned. For small carriers, that is the most concerning thing that any owner has on their mind.”

Tomase has started incentivizing his drivers to prioritize safety by offering bonuses for safe driving and gamifying the process, inspiring them to one-up themselves.

“It is psychological. Drivers have a GPS and an ETA setup. For some people, the psychology of trying to beat that ETA causes speeding,” Tomase said. “We’re trying to convert that same drive into beating your safety score instead of racing the clock. If you’re not on time because of traffic, we understand that.”

Many of the tech-based tools flooding the market have the potential to help carriers operate at a higher level. To capitalize on this potential, however, carriers need to humanize their data and generate actionable insights. AI solutions can be utilized for this kind of work, taking some of the pressure off overburdened back office staff.

Conclusion

TO CAPITALIZE ON

AI, CARRIERS NEED

TO HUMANIZE THEIR

DATA AND GENERATE

ACTIONABLE

INSIGHTS.

Exploring the frontiers of machine vision using deep learning; enabling deep contextual meaningful data.

This frees administrative staffers up to perform other tasks and step in when an even more human approach is needed.

AI-enabled tools and other software solutions are often developed with a more autonomous future in mind. While some developers and tech-savvy companies have their sights set on a fully autonomous future, that reality is still years away.

Creating solutions that can bridge the gap between analog and autonomous can make highways safer today while giving tech-focused manufacturers a tangible market for their products.