FMG hits the international road with its safer driving software

Yorkshire’s FMG Support is taking its pioneering driver behaviour management system to the international market.

The Huddersfield company developed the software to help its fleet customers reduce accidents and fuel bills.

Ingenium Dynamics analyses driver performance on the road and every evening sends an email alert with the results to the driver and his or her manager.

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FMG has granted licensing rights to a company in Ireland and is working on similar deals in Holland, South Africa and India.

In the UK, FMG is targeting the vast company car market where just 3 per cent of the 3.2 million company cars on the road have telematic devices.

John Catling, the chief executive, told the Yorkshire Post: “It’s not tracking people and it’s not tracking what they do and when they do it; it’s to help them improve their driving.

“It gives you all the measures when you have been speeding, or harsh cornering or harsh braking. Some of our fleet customers have seen accidents reduce by up to 80 per cent.”

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Mr Catling said the software improves driver behaviour and enables companies to take better care of employees. It helps companies protect their reputation if staff use branded vehicles, he added. And the software allows users to accurately gauge business and private mileage.

“I know it’s something that HMRC is considering looking at. This can make sure your company is reporting accurately,” said Mr Catling.

IT director Bob Holbury developed the software after spotting a gap in the market for technology to help improve driving.

Dr Lisa Dorn, a reader in driver behaviour at Cranfield University, helped the company develop the product with her insights into driver psychology, said Mr Catling.

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Dr Dorn has said: “Compared with other in-vehicle data recorders, Ingenium Dynamics has the best evidence-based solution I’ve seen for managing driver risk at work.

“It identifies the parameters that can lead to both excessive fuel consumption and crashes.”

FMG yesterday announced that it has sold exclusive licensing rights to Ingenium Dynamics to Crash, a Northern Ireland-based accident management and breakdown services company for its customers in Ireland. Michael McKeown, managing director of Crash, described the application as “industry changing”.

Mr Catling said he is in advanced talks with customers in South Africa and Holland. He is also in discussions with a company in India He added that FMG might expand into Europe.

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Last year, the company agreed a deal with insurer Marmalade to help young drivers lower their premiums through safer driving.

Mr Catling said the insurer has seen massive reduction in incidents and improvements in driver behaviour.

Nick Moger, CEO of The Marmalade Group, said: “The innovative new FMG Support technology will revolutionise the insurance industry.”

FMG has sold the software service to utility company Vital Energy and drinks firm Red Bull.

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Mr Catling took over as CEO in January. He joined the company in 2006 as operations director.

FMG was founded in 1986 as a fleet management services company providing incident management, roadside repair and recovery, and risk reduction.

Nick Brown joined the company in 1991 and four years later led a buyout.

Buyout firm Spirit Capital invested £7m in the company in 2008 and holds 40 per cent of the shares. Mr Brown owns 40 per cent and the company directors hold the rest.

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Today, the group is the UK’s largest independent fleet performance improvement company, with customers including DHL, SIG and Asda.

Turnover grew 10 per cent to £90m in the year ending September 2011.

Mr Catling said: “We are on track to grow a similar level again this year. We are growing in the recession.

“We are winning new business. We are also managing cost better than we were in the past.

“It’s about winning new business in the roadside repair and recovery markets and in the fleet and accident management markets.”

He added: “Ingenium Dynamics is helping.”