Delivering advanced digitalisation

Terberg Connect is our telematics system which seamlessly communicates a wealth of data to and from the refuse body, bin lift, weighing and identification systems and vehicle chassis. It is at the heart of our digitalisation strategy to maximise vehicle uptime and sustainability.

Terberg Automotive is responsible for the hardware, and custom develops the software according to the product requirements of our manufacturing centres. Having the development fully in-house ensures that the system better meets the needs of both our customers and after-sales support.

Using data to reduce downtime, increase efficiency and cut emissions

Terberg Connect was initially developed for remote troubleshooting and support. It has evolved greatly since then, and now also provides our customers with detailed vehicle information such as position, speed, operational status, number of emptied bins, etc. This enables route optimisation, increased fleet utilisation, and minimises their environmental impact.

Terberg Connect enables route optimisation, increased fleet utilisation, and minimises their environmental impact.

NRG Riverside - UK

NRG Riverside is the largest municipal and specialist fleet hire and management company in the UK with more than 2000 vehicles.

Chris Snelson, Fleet and Asset Director for NRG says “Our hire fleet currently includes 182 vehicles that are Terberg Connect enabled. In 2023 this connected service helped us reduce the number of service visits by 26% compared to 2022, with a corresponding decrease in service van mileage and CO2 emissions.

Additionally, the real-time vehicle warning information enables us to proactively address issues before they lead to faults. By minimising vehicle downtime, reducing service calls and cutting carbon emissions, we can deliver costeffective and sustainable waste management services to our customers. Terberg Connect is a great tool to have at our disposal and we look forward to having more of our fleet connected in the future.”

We can remotely assist a customer’s fitter, reducing customer downtime and the environmental impact of our service van fleet.

Our after-sales team is now able to remotely assist with problem-solving, particularly with operator errors, thanks to Terberg Connect. Now when a service engineer travels to an RCV, in most cases, we already know the cause of the problem meaning that the engineer arrives equipped with the necessary parts to fix the fault on the first visit. Alternatively, we can remotely assist a customer’s fitter, reducing customer downtime and the environmental impact of our service van fleet.

Unlike most telematics systems, Terberg Connect is bidirectional and enables secure modifications to vehicle settings and software updates.

As we mentioned previously, Terberg Connect has undergone significant development since our last magazine. Product manager Robbert Verschuur, based in the Netherlands gave us an update. “We now have 13 in-house developers working on the software, and over 6000 Terberg Connect units have already been installed in vehicles worldwide.

We offer an API for integration with fleet management systems, toolbox pop-ups offering detailed information, and upgraded security features. With Terberg Connect’s user interface, you can keep track of important events such as low oil pressure, overweight bin, low tyre pressure, and excess vehicle weight. The system also triggers emails and SMS text messages to keep you updated and optimize your fleet’s operations, saving fuel. The Daily Drop report shows how many bins were emptied, when and where - that is particularly useful for operators without a fleet management system. Data communicated from the chassis, for example, the axle weights, allows you to see how much more refuse you can collect before the end of a round.

Connect is a perfect fit, particularly in rural areas with long travel distances.

tyre pressure, and excess vehicle weight. The system also triggers emails and SMS text messages to keep you updated and optimize your fleet’s operations, saving fuel. The Daily Drop report shows how many bins were emptied, when and where - that is particularly useful for operators without a fleet management system. Data communicated from the chassis, for example, the axle weights, allows you to see how much more refuse you can collect before the end of a round.

API

Our Application Program Interface (API) enables customers to link Terberg Connect to their fleet management system and import any of the 3000 signals. Customers with larger fleets tend to use the API with Business Intelligence tools for data visualisation and dashboards whilst smaller operators use the standard Terberg Connect online interface.

High refresh frequency

Terberg Connect updates signals every second – this sounds excessive but is essential for remote diagnosis - if you ask an operator to do something on the vehicle you need to see the effect instantly. Fine-grained data for throttle and brake actuation is valuable for driver behaviour analysis - some customers have achieved fuel savings of up to 20% as a result of that.

Security

Connectivity carries risks – such as a hacker setting a vehicle to low-speed mode on the motorway causing an accident. The UN regulations R155 & R156 address cybersecurity and software updates – to comply with these we perform a Threat Assessment Risk Analysis (TARA) and log our software development, testing and issues. The effort has been substantial, but we are now fully compliant, putting us ahead of other systems. We also meet GDPR requirements.

Testing

With Terberg Connect being rolled out worldwide, we need to ensure that the 3/4/5G communications system works everywhere, so we invested in special test equipment. We have also received FCC approval for the USA. Lastly, the Terberg Connect module has ingress protection to IP69K so it withstands pressure washing.

All in all, Terberg Connect fits in perfectly with our customer-support and sustainability strategies.”

Terberg Connect helps Munster Vehicle Sales provide efficient support - Ireland

MVS Cork is the agent for the Terberg/ Dennis Eagle products throughout Ireland.

Product manager Mark Cullen explained how Connect helps MVS and their customers “Terberg Connect makes troubleshooting much easier: remote diagnostics becomes easy, making firsttime fixes the norm. I can see what is happening in real-time, decide what parts are required and direct the engineer to the vehicle location, all from our main service centre in Cork. For us, Connect is a perfect fit, particularly in rural areas with long travel distances. I have used the system to fix a product on a collection round in Dublin whilst I was away visiting Dennis Eagle in the UK.

We recently arranged a presentation for our customers, together with the team from Terberg Machines. They were super positive about Connect, with several keen to have it on new orders. And personally, I think it’s simply brilliant.”