Dr. Wolfgang Bernhard, in the Daimler Board of Management responsible for Trucks and Buses, talks about the new era of digital services in transportation logistics – and about its opportunities and challenges.
Daimler Trucks already offers its customers a wide variety of services worldwide, ranging from classic rental and workshop services such as CharterWay and TruckWorks to telematics systems such as FleetBoard and Detroit Connect. Dr. Bernhard, how does Daimler Trucks currently measure up with regard to connectivity?
Dr. Bernhard: “Digital services are already an important business area for us. However, together with the rest of the sector we are still in the early stages of a major development. Although the big picture isn’t completely visible yet, we regard our vehicles as part of a comprehensive logistics network. It remains to be seen what exactly can be done with all the data that a truck generates. We want to find this out also in a dialogue with our customers. However, it’s for sure that the thirst for more data knows no limits. Connectivity and the resulting data can be used to create huge amounts of added value for everyone involved as well as for society as a whole.”
How is your business with telematics systems currently?
“These systems (FleetBoard in Europe, South Africa and Brazil and Detroit Connect in the U.S. and Canada) already give us a very good foundation for the upcoming developments. Fleetboard already has over 5,000 customers and is used in almost half of the new trucks. With these products we’ve already gained our customers’ trust when it comes to connectivity.”
Last year Daimler unveiled the Mercedes-Benz Future Truck 2025. What role does this truck play in these developments?
“This truck enabled us to overcome important technical hurdles in the area of connectivity. We demonstrated that all of the vehicle systems can be networked and that the truck can also be connected to its environment, including the dispatchers, the customers, and the traffic control centers. The Future Truck 2025 showed that we are thinking about much more than just the hardware and that we regard our products as parts of an overall system. Our mission is to remain the leader in connectivity. We want to be the first to offer our customers networked systems and the benefits associated with them.”
What exactly does that mean? What innovations can we expect from Daimler Trucks in the near future?
“Specifically, we want to launch a product offensive that will greatly expand our current portfolio. We will introduce in Europe some of the applications that we are already offering in the United States, and vice versa. However, we will also develop completely new services. We have a very precise road map for this product offensive, and we will announce new developments one after another.”
Will Daimler develop such systems on its own or with the help of partners?
“There’s no doubt that we will do so in cooperation with partners. Ultimately, all of the applications and systems will have to interact within a shared network. That’s why I’m convinced that this game can only be won by companies that jointly create such a network in cooperation with all of their partners from the very beginning.”
Will these investments pay off? What does Daimler Trucks hope to achieve?
“There is no alternative to such investments. Truck connectivity is absolutely essential for continued success in the logistics business. However, it’s also clear that the competition for the best system will be very intense, because all of the suppliers will be fighting hard to get a piece of the pie. Moreover, customers only pay for services that benefit them financially. We are well aware that there is no difference between this area and the regular vehicle sales business.”
