Renzenberger Equips Fleet with PeopleNet's Onboard Computing System

PeopleNet Technology Enhances Customer Service and Lowers Costs

MINNEAPOLIS - October 25, 2004 - PeopleNet, the leading provider of onboard computing and mobile communications systems to the nation's transportation industry, today announced that Renzenberger, Inc., a company based in Shawnee, Kan. that provides personnel transportation for the railroad industry, has equipped its fleet with PeopleNet's onboard computing and mobile communications system.

Founded in 1983, Renzenberger, Inc. operates a fleet of 950 vans. Of those, 600 are over-the-road passenger vans out of 150 locations in 25 states that transport crews to and from their trains. A fleet of 350 yard vans are used to help transport train crews around train yards throughout the country. Renzenberger's success is the result of an ongoing commitment to providing transportation services that exceed the expectations of its clients at a reasonable cost.

"For us, missing our pick-up or delivery appointments simply is not an option," says Steve Heinking, Controller of the company. "Just like in the trucking business, train crews run out of hours. The railroad companies rely on us to get the old crew off the train and put the new crew on in a manner that re-defines what just-in-time transportation is all about. Because our 'freight' is human, it is imperative that we operate in the safest, highest quality and reliable manner possible."

Those service standards are complicated because of the unpredictable nature of rail transportation. Heinking says that his 1,800 drivers stand on-call waiting for word on when and where they will be providing transport. Prior to equipping his fleet with PeopleNet, Heinking relied on terrestrial-based telephones and cell phones to communicate between the driver and the centralized dispatch system - a highly inefficient, inaccurate and costly system.

Heinking estimates that Renzenberger was spending $200,000 for dispatching each month, prior to installing PeopleNet. Those charges included a staff of 18, the development of the proprietary in-house system, cell phone and telephone charges, and drivers' time spent waiting for dispatch. "Drivers used to have to wait on hold for up to 15 minutes," said Heinking. "And they're not paid to wait. Now, we get the information flowing in and out of dispatch to the driver."

PeopleNet also provides Renzenberger the ability to react quicker to its customer. "There's no predictability in the calls we receive from the railroad," he says. "They often will call and want transportation right now. If all of our vans our out, we need to look and find out where a van is and send a message immediately and get the closest van rerouted almost immediately."

In addition, PeopleNet provides Heinking with the information his customers are starting to request. "With the roll out of Union Pacific's new Electronic Van Tracking System (EVMS), they want to see when the driver left for the pickup, when they picked up a crew, when they dropped it off, he says. "We wouldn't have had enough dispatchers to handle all of these customer demands," he says. "Without PeopleNet, we would have had to increase our dispatch staff threefold."

The PeopleNet system has become the standard for GPS-based location tracking, two-way voice and data communications, electronic driver logs, and Internet-based fleet business tools to provide consistent, reliable communication between business owners, dispatchers, drivers and shippers.

Headquartered in Minneapolis, PeopleNet is the fastest-growing provider of Internet-based onboard computing and mobile communications systems to the transportation industry, including truckload, LTL, private, and service fleets. The company serves several Fortune 500 companies in the U.S. and Canada and has signed more than 1,000 customers since its inception 10 years ago.