CENTENNIAL, Colo., 5 Sept. 2007 – DH Pace, with assistance from Bob Hasslinger of Wireless Workforce Partners, has completed a seven-city implementation of CompassCom Software’s CompassLDE automatic vehicle location (AVL) solution. DH Pace Inc., an installer and service provider for commercial and residential overhead doors, says the AVL system will pay for itself in less than two years by enabling the company to dispatch its 375 service trucks more efficiently.

“For over a decade, the CompassLDE technology has proven its effectiveness at enhancing the safety and efficiency of Emergency Services and Utility fleets in dozens of implementations across the United States,” said CompassCom Software CEO W. Brant Howard. “More recently, operators of commercial services fleets have begun embracing vehicle tracking as a cost-effective means of improving customer service and efficiency.”

CompassLDE is a universal AVL and mobile resource management server that receives wireless GPS-based location and status information from vehicles in multiple fleets over different communications networks simultaneously. Compatible with CompassTrac and ESRI-based GIS software, CompassLDE serves location-based data in real time via the Internet or intranet for displaying on computer-aided dispatch, mobile data terminals or third party software.

DH Pace purchased the CompassCom AVL solution in the first phase of a nationwide workforce automation program. The deal includes CompassLDE server software, which has been installed at DH Pace dispatch centers in St. Louis, Denver, Kansas City, Atlanta, Phoenix, Wichita, and Springfield, Missouri. Company dispatchers in each center use CompassTrac client software on desktop computers to view the locations of vehicles on a digital GIS map.

“Our business is built on providing excellent customer service,” said Chris Mann, DH Pace Senior VP of Business Systems. “We implemented this technology so we could schedule and dispatch our vehicles more efficiently.”

Mann added that DH Pace selected the CompassCom Software AVL solution for its flexibility and interoperability. Most other AVL service providers require an expensive hosting package, but CompassCom offered DH Pace the option of licensing the software outright for hosting on its own corporate network, a more cost-effective alternative for a large fleet operator. In addition, the flexibility of CompassLDE will allow for future integration of AVL and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems.

In the coming year, DH Pace plans to link the CompassLDE with its BAAN ERP software so the GPS system can be automatically populated with customer location information. Other information, such as truck inventory levels and technician skill sets, will also be shared between the systems. This information, along with proximity between vehicle and service call location, will allow call takers and dispatchers to recommend which service truck can respond to a call most quickly and effectively.

DH Pace is also in the process of equipping its vehicles with handheld computers so its field crews have full access to the service ticket data. Future phases may include making map information and turn-by-turn directions available in the truck.

“The ability to integrate CompassLDE with back-end software systems gives AVL users the ability to access and share workforce information across the enterprise,” said CompassCom’s Howard.

In addition to implementing the CompassLDE server and CompassTrac client software packages, CompassCom provided TeleAtlas digital map data for each of the seven DH Pace service territories. The wireless provider in each of the service territories is Sprint.

About CompassCom Software
CompassCom Software Corporation, is the premier provider of AVL and mobile resource management solutions integrating GPS, Geographic Information System (GIS) and wireless technology. CompassCom offers the most flexible end-to-end solutions in the industry for commercial and public sector markets. Working with business partners such as ESRI Inc., Trimble Navigation, and CalAmp, CompassCom Software is managing more than 100,000 mobile assets, enabling customers to get the right resource to the right place at the right time.