Home / Power / Protecting field operatives and assets in electricity industry

Protecting field operatives and assets in electricity industry

With staff operating on site, sometimes alone and in remote locations, monitoring the location of vehicles and equipment helps ensure the safety of field staff and the security of assets

KDR Powerlines, contractors to the electricity industry, including network operator UK Power Networks, has implemented vehicle tracking from Kinesis.

With staff operating on site, sometimes alone and in remote locations, monitoring the location of vehicles and equipment helps ensure the safety of field staff and the security of assets.

KDR Powerlines provides a range of construction and maintenance services to the electricity industry across the UK and is a specialist in wood pole overhead powerlines. KDR operates a fleet of vans, cherry pickers and an HVG for site works, from its headquarters in York.



Kinesis updates every 30 seconds to help team members get visibility of each other when meeting onsite. The system can be used to monitor lone workers operating in isolated locations.

“We decided to install vehicle tracking for a number of reasons including driver safety, asset security and cost control,” commented Kevin Forth, Director at KDR Powerlines. “Using Kinesis we can accurately locate vehicles and therefore by deduction the driver. This helps site operatives find each other in remote locations and gives the company and staff peace of mind when working alone. Vehicles and other high value mobile assets can also be easily located if they are stolen.”

Kinesis can also be used in the case of theft, alerting managers if a vehicle or asset is not where it is supposed to be and helping locate and recover the missing item. Integrated with fuel cards from Kinesis’s sister company UK Fuel Cards, the telematics solution is also helping KDR monitor driver behaviour and performance.

“Kinesis was a natural choice for our business based on the price of the system, the quality of service and support, and the ease of integration with our existing fuel cards,” added Forth.

By recording instances of speeding, harsh braking, accelerating and idling, KDR is able to oversee driver safety while reducing risk. With the accurate MPG calculations, Kinesis also gives the ability to monitor planned versus actual journeys and improve driving habits, both of which help to reduce fuel costs one of the largest expenses for the business after wages.

Check Also

600V-rated intelligent power for brushless DC motor drive

Toshiba has extended its range of intelligent power devices (IPD) for brushless DC (BLDC) motor …

Ultra-compact, high efficiency power supplies for industrial applications

COSEL Co announces a new generation of highly compact power supplies for industrial applications, the …

Patent surge signals tech advancements in substation modernisation in power and utilities sector

The increase in patents for substation modernisation indicates a targeted integration of advanced technologies, showcasing …