Mack Trucks is making it easier for customers to keep their equipment updated by expanding the flexibility and capabilities of its industry leading Over The Air (OTA) service.
During a press conference Monday touting a big year ahead for the 125-year-old truck maker, Mack announced the immediate launch of AutoSend, an automated software deployment strategy for equipment, as well as Self-Service parameter updates through Mack Connect.
Both improvements are designed to help fleet managers maximize vehicle performance while reducing administrative workload.
"These enhanced connected vehicle capabilities demonstrate Mack’s ongoing commitment to providing insights and support that help our customers perform at their best," says Mack President Jonathan Randall. "By automating and simplifying the software update process, we’re helping customers maximize their return on investment and better serve their own customers, while reducing the administrative burden of fleet management."
And Randall adds the new features are just the start of what is shaping up to be a "monster year" for Mack. He says Volvo Group is investing heavily in the Mack brand with "lots of great things coming" in the months ahead, including the launch of a new on-highway tractor in April. Randall says Monday's advancements represent the company's latest steps in streamlining fleet management, eliminating manual processes and helping customers extract maximum value from their vehicles with minimal effort.
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Both new resources will be available soon.
AutoSend will become standard later in the first quarter and will work like a phone update. When a new OTA download is available, it will be sent to trucks equipped with Driver-Display Activation, Mack’s in-cab digital interface. Drivers and fleets will then have ability to determine when they want their vehicle updated. And updates will remain available for 28 days so customers will not feel rushed or forced to make a change immediately.
Mack notes its Driver Display Activation capability comes standard on most Mack-powered trucks built after Nov. 30, 2020, and all customers running those units were given an option to opt-out of the technology last quarter. Once AutoSend launches, Mack says customers who accepted the new feature and all new subscribers will automatically be provided the service. Dealers also will have the ability to implement updates for customers during service events.
Additionally, Mack will introduce its Self-Service Parameter Updates through its Mack Connect customer portal in the second quarter. Mack says this new change is a result of customer demand and will enable fleet managers to create and deploy custom parameter profiles directly from Mack Connect. This feature enables customers to manage critical vehicle settings such as road speed limits and idle shutdown parameters without requiring assistance from Mack’s Uptime Center — the company’s state-of-the-art command center that provides around-the-clock vehicle monitoring and support services.
Mack Connect has more than 73,000 active subscribers, and the product offers customers an average 22% reduction in downtime over non-users, says Nicole Portello, senior vice president and chief digital officer.
“The future of fleet management lies in connected vehicle technology, and these new features represent a significant step forward in that evolution,” she says. “With AutoSend and Self-Service Parameter Updates, we’re giving customers unprecedented control over their vehicles’ performance while ensuring they have immediate access to critical software improvements. This is about delivering technology that works as hard as our customers do.”
