City of Glendale, AZ

Located in Arizona, Glendale has a population of over 220,000 and operates a fleet of 68 vehicles for refuse collection and recycling. They collect approximately 140,000 tons of waste annually that is transported to the Glendale city-owned and operated municipal landfill. Zonar’s electronic fleet management system is used on their entire fleet of collection vehicles.

Savings result from efficiencies realized with Zonar.

It was at a WASTECON event that the City of Glendale learned about Zonar's electronic fleet management solution. Zonar's unique EVIR® solution for pre- and post-trip inspections was a big part of the decision to select Zonar for implementation. Today, the entire fleet of collection vehicles uses Zonar’s EVIR, V2J™ HD-GPS and Ground Traffic Control®.

Miles driven go down 4% and fuel used drops 7% in first year.

"Zonar's Electronic Fleet Management Solution has given us unprecedented capability to manage our fleet, any minute of the day," said Frank Lomeli, Deputy Director of Field Operations for the City of Glendale. Identifying new operational efficiencies has contributed to a 4% decrease in the miles driven and 7% less fuel being used. Those savings add up when you are driving almost a million miles a year and using more than 300,000 gallons of fuel.”

Benefits span the organization.

In addition to the significant economic gains already cited, Zonar has helped the City of Glendale Sanitation Division make other very visible and lasting improvements.

• Quality Pre- and Post-Trip Inspections
• Improved Customer Service
• Less Idling and Stop Time
• Driver Support

Zonar implemented on refuse collection and recycling vehicles.

The City of Glendale owns and operates a landfill and its refuse department transports approximately 140,000 tons of waste, drives about 900,000 miles and uses more than 320,000 gallons of fuel a year. Ensuring pre- and post-trip trip inspection compliance, providing customer service and increasing efficiencies are at the top of the department’s to-do list. When they discovered Zonar at a WASTCON event, they knew it was exactly the type of innovative technology needed to take their operations to the next level.

EVIR® is the only one of its kind.

The City of Glendale took the time to research other companies with fleet management products before moving forward with Zonar. "Zonar was the only company with EVIR, for pre- and post trip inspections, which was very important to us. We took small steps and tried a couple of units. Then we ran a six-month pilot before outfitting the entire fleet. It has been a beneficial experience," said Lomeli.

Quality trip inspections now automatic with EVIR.

A typical complaint received with any residential waste collection program is reports of speeding. With Zonar, exact speeds for each vehicle is collected and reported in Ground Traffic Control. It turns out that in the majority of cases no speeding has occurred. The City of Glendale is able to send a follow-up e-mail to a resident with a speeding concern and include Zonar data, providing a perfect opportunity to inform residents on actual speeds and educate them that what sounds like speeding is the normal operating noise of large sanitation vehicles. Zonar data has also been used for accident investigations.

Geofencing a great feature used within teams.

It is not just customers who have concerns about speeding. The landfill team for the City of Glendale has reported speeding by the drivers of the collection vehicles. The drivers claimed they were not speeding, while disposal staff felt differently. "With Zonar, we were able to geofence the area around the landfill and monitor exact speeds. The landfill speed report has allowed these issues to be addressed and communicated between our collection and disposal operations," Lomeli remarked.

Monitoring idle time pays off.

Zonar gives transportation managers the ability to monitor idle time, in real-time. This enables them to understand service patterns and work towards establishing idle time goals and best practices. For example, a curb driver vs. a roll-off driver will have different idle behaviors so goals vary. With Zonar data, drivers have been able to self-regulate their idle time patterns.

A new kind of driver support.

Drivers no longer need to be delayed with missed collections and speeding disputes. The facts about location, speed and service completion are all available electronically. With Zonar, the City of Glendale can see where and when the lift arm on the refuse truck was raised to determine if claims of missed service are accurate.

Crew leaders and supervisors receive a major assist.

Before Zonar, when management needed to investigate route activity, they had to drive the areas in question throughout the city to investigate. In this service-intensive industry, the City of Glendale now has an edge. At anytime, a truck can be located on the computer and the route activity can be viewed in real-time. The amount of time spent driving around the city has been significantly reduced among the crew leaders. A comparative analysis performed before and after Zonar, showed that crew leaders drive 1,000 fewer miles per year to manage the exact same fleet.

Products backed with exceptional service.

"Zonar's customer service is among the best I have ever experienced and I work with many vendors throughout the country. I think it is important for others to know they won't regret going with Zonar," said Lomeli.

Outcome: think about what you no longer have to do.

In many ways it is what you no longer have to do that makes Zonar so valuable.

• Inspection Quality: Single automated process replaces multiple manual ones
• Dispute Resolution: Performed by one person instead of many
• Idle Time: Actual data replaces manual estimating
• Vehicle Location: Via computer, eliminating expensive drive-about approach

In closing: it pays to have Zonar as your fleet management partner.

Zonar provides electronic inspection, tracking and operations solutions for public and private fleets. Its products are effective, affordable and provided by people who will treat you right. You can have it all with Zonar.