In 2015, UPS announced that it had rolled out telematics technology across its Singapore delivery fleet. The company said the proprietary system worked together with the Delivery Information Acquisition Device, the DIAD handheld that its drivers use on deliveries, to collect data on safety, service and performance.
UPS described Singapore as the first of its markets in Asia to adopt the technology. The announcement was made by Ingrid Sidiadinoto, then managing director of UPS Singapore.
What the system tracked
According to UPS, its vans and trucks were fitted with what it called energy informatics sensors. These tracked and sent more than 200 vehicle-related data points. They included the driver’s speed, the number of reverses, time spent idling or stopped, and how often the brakes were applied.
The data went to data warehouse computers and was analysed with software that UPS developed in-house. UPS’s operations management team reviewed the output to find safety breaches and inefficiencies, then used the findings to change how operations ran.
The people involved and their reasons
Sidiadinoto presented the system as a way to combine human factors with technology. She argued that better operational efficiency, achieved sustainably, would reduce UPS’s environmental footprint and help it serve Singapore customers. In her words, a diagnostic analytics tool would let UPS anticipate problems and act before they occurred.
Drivers were the first group to see the results. UPS said each driver received a daily report built from the telematics data. The reports were meant to help drivers practise safer driving, compare themselves against internal benchmarks and set personal efficiency goals.
Maintenance was the second target. UPS said it could analyse mechanical variables and repair each vehicle only when needed, rather than on a fixed preventive schedule. The company said this cut unnecessary cost while keeping vehicles roadworthy and avoiding breakdowns, delays and accidents.
UPS also pointed to its US results as evidence. It said that in 2014 telematics across its US express, freight forwarding and ground freight fleets avoided 281 million minutes of idling. UPS put that at the equivalent of 7.57 million litres of fuel and 19,000 metric tonnes of CO2.
The scale of the Singapore fleet
The Singapore operation was small compared with the US network. A separate UPS announcement about a partnership with 7-Eleven described a Singapore delivery fleet of about 100 vehicles. In that announcement Shell was named as the fuel supplier, with UPS citing lower emissions from its diesel and FuelSave products.
What happened next
Sidiadinoto’s role later widened. A conference biography credits her leadership of UPS Singapore with making it the first UPS market in Asia to pioneer telematics, and lists her later position as head of the Customer Solutions Group for UPS Asia Pacific. Fortune reported that UPS named her senior managing director for its Singapore and Malaysia operations in early 2024. Fortune also said UPS was investing in Johor, across the border from Singapore, to build more resilient supply chains.
FAQ
What is the DIAD in UPS’s telematics system?
It is the handheld device UPS drivers carry on deliveries. In 2015 UPS said the telematics system worked with it to gather safety and performance data.
Which UPS market in Asia adopted telematics first?
UPS said Singapore was the first of its Asian markets to pioneer the technology. A later conference biography of Sidiadinoto repeated that description.