Tracker
To complete their wireless solution, Tracker Management, a dispatch solutions provider to the towing industry, needed a robust in-vehicle computer that could integrate smoothly with their mobile application and back-end software.
Solution
To meet their wireless solution needs, Tracker became a Mentor Engineering OEM Program Partner in 1997 with Mentor's legacy product, the MDT, and has deployed Mentor Ranger® in-vehicle computers since 2007. Ranger is a rugged WinCE mobile computer designed for simplified development and deployment. Ranger offers both integrated wireless data and voice communications. GPS and I/Os provide telematic capabilities and optional items such as a 3-track magnetic stripe reader are available.
Many features were important to Tracker in selecting an appropriate mobile computer, but the ability to withstand the harsh vehicle environment was at the top of the list. "I always say a driver can break an anvil with a toothpick, so having an industrial strength piece of hardware was one of the most important features I looked for in a mobile data terminal partner," says Jim Weaver, CEO of Tracker Management. Ranger's additional features, such as lock-down capability, also distinguished it from other mobile computers on the market.
Mentor's XMobile Manager® (XMM) over-the-air programming software handles software updates and troubleshooting.
Results
The mobile device management software, XMM, has saved Tracker countless hours and helped them provide better service to their end clients. "It definitely makes maintenance and support a lot easier. I appreciate it the most when I have to roll out a new software update because we can do it all remotely in an evening, as opposed to having to touch every single truck. The drivers leave their units on and in the morning they can just hop in their truck, log in and go," says Joe Mather, mobile applications consultant to Tracker Management.
Mentor's support for the OEM Partner Program has also helped this partnership flourish for the past thirteen years. Says Jim, "Mentor has been exceptionally responsive to our needs and as issues happen, which they will, they have really stepped up and spent the time to fix them. They have not given up on anything and I know at the end of the day issues will be worked out."
Unquestionably, Jim sees the benefits partnering with Mentor bring to Tracker. "For the past twenty-three years we've prided ourselves on being a serious piece of software, and even more, a total management system. Ranger is a core piece in that system and enables us to provide our end customers with a better solution."
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I found Mentor's industry experience very valuable in my decision. Knowing that Mentor works with companies that continually choose Ranger when they could afford to pick any product was a key factor in my decision. I always emphasize to my customers that this product is in 5,000 tow trucks and it works. 
