What is the status of my operational fleet? Which vehicles are ready for operation? What condition are they in? Where are the vehicles now? What and how much operating and extinguishing agents (water, foam, etc.) do they have on board? RDS Connected Fleet provides this and all other information required to prepare for operations.

RDS Connected Fleet is the further development of the proven service4fire vehicle management system with new hardware, new user interface and new functions. It not only provides real-time information on the “state of health” of an operational fleet, but also logs all vehicle-related data including error messages for post-operational briefings. Fire departments, therefore, have a complete overview of their vehicle fleet at all times and can manage it digitally with Connected Fleet. Easy, quick and efficient.

Complete operational documentation
RDS Connected Fleet produces complete operational documentation for each vehicle. As soon as it leaves the station and until it returns after an operation, the data is recorded and evaluated. In addition to driving parameters such as speeds, brake actuations, engine speeds, distances traveled, and live positions, et cetera, this also includes information such as when the warning devices were switched on, when the vehicle arrived at the operational site, when it left the installation position or the defined area of operation (geofencing), when firefighting work began and how much water or foam and what pump pressure was used to extinguish the fire, to name but a few.

Securing the operational readiness
RDS Connected Fleet monitors the technical condition and operational readiness of the vehicle at the same time. Any malfunctions, faults or defects that occur are recorded in real time, described in detail and pro-actively reported to the vehicle operator. Service planning and management is also largely automated with RDS Connected Fleet providing information on upcoming service dates, for example, the next maintenance date for the built-in pump or portable pump, creating lists of defects and documenting maintenance work in the process. The various operating manuals will be stored in Connected Fleet.

New hardware and software
New, high-performance telematics modules form the interface in the vehicle that docks onto the CAN-Bus. They serve as Connected Hubs for GPS and internet and open up the possibility of setting up a secure WLAN and improving remote services (e.g., remote diagnosis). The Connected Hubs are already integrated in new Rosenbauer vehicles, and there will be a retrofit package for older models. A separate module is available for third-party vehicles and vehicles without CAN-Bus, as well as for vehicles that are to be retrofitted with a GPS connection (e.g., to display the live position).

The software and the user interface (UI) were also revised. RDS Connected Fleet can now be used with all common web browsers (Chrome, Safari, Firefox) and mobile operating systems (iOS, Android). It is consistently intuitive to use. The operating routines have been simplified, the interactive design (User Experience/UX) optimised for smartphones and the symbol language of the new Rosenbauer control system RFC LCS adopted. This ensures a uniform operating environment from vehicle control to fleet management. The software can also be used without hardware, for example, to keep a logbook.

More safety and speed
The latest encryption techniques ensure the greatest possible security in data traffic. In addition, the data is hosted on the cloud computing platform Microsoft Azure and, therefore, in Europe. This also ensures a higher speed. In addition, GPS and error messages are now sent with priority and are always available in real time.

Numerous fire departments have participated in the development of RDS Connected Fleet, tested the range of functions and, above all, contributed their feedback to the optimisation of the user interface. First and foremost the Vienna professional fire service, which has been using the Rosenbauer vehicle management system for many years now to manage a fleet of some 80 vehicles. Live operation of RDS Connected Fleet will start on December 15. All development partners will switch to the new system this year and all other existing customers from January 2021 onwards free of charge. Further digital solutions are in the works and will be available in the course of the coming year to continually simplify the daily work of fire departments.