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Many companies are aware of the benefits of telematics, but there is still an assumption that these types of solutions are only suited for large companies. But with the advent of the cloud, telematics solutions are now a viable option for businesses of all sizes, as cloud-based solutions can help save both money and hassles for even the smallest of fleets.

In an exclusive interview with TMC (News - Alert), Joyce Tam, product manager for field service solutions at Trimble, explained the benefits of cloud-based telematics solutions. While in-house systems are expensive to install and maintain, cloud solutions are far more palatable for small companies. They require no infrastructure and furthermore are accessible from almost anywhere and boast a high level of security.

In the case of small businesses, fleet managers or IT directors might have reservations. There are often security and compliance issues, but IT staffs are more and more accustomed to cloud solutions in other areas, so the comfort level is growing.

One major advantage, according to Tam, is accessibility. Cloud-based solutions are accessible from almost anywhere on almost any device – laptops, tablets, smartphones, etc. Tam points to the fact that many people turn to the cloud for their banking needs, so if they can trust it with their finances, they can trust it with their telematics needs.

The combination of accessibility and savings make these attractive deployments for companies.

As for the future, Tam sees the technology evolving. With the advent of HTML5, these solutions are becoming more and more robust and full-featured. As more and more fleet managers turn to smartphones to increase productivity, these cloud solutions will be more and more appealing.

These fleet managers can use Trimble (News - Alert) solutions to integrate fleet data into scheduling and payment applications, and cloud integration makes this easier than ever.