European software developer Gurtam is targeting further expansion for its Wialon telematics and IoT platform, taking it into new sectors and markets to further its global growth trajectory.

Aliaksandr Kuushynau, head of Wialon at Gurtam

For many UK fleet operators, the two brands may not be familiar names – but the Wialon platform is now the largest fleet management platform in the world by number of connected vehicles and other assets. Earlier this spring, Wialon reached the landmark of having more than 3.5 million vehicles and other assets under control, spread across over 150 countries.

And the company has big plans to growth its presence further – in the UK and globally – supported by fast-paced developments in the commercial telematics market.

Speaking at a media roundtable – and at the recent Great British Fleet Event – Aliaksandr Kuushynau, head of Wialon at Gurtam, said there were two reasons why the company may be a relatively new name in the UK fleet sector.

This includes a refocusing of the business, which was previously very dominant in the post-Soviet states of Russia, Kazakhstan, Ukraine and Belarus. When the Ukraine invasion started, the company decided to terminate all business in Russia, which was one of its top-performing regions at the time, and where Wialon was the market leader, with almost 50% of total market share in the fleet telematics market. It’s now pushing into new industry segments and new products such as Lease Control (a GPS tracking solution tailored for the car leasing sector), and a more intensive and focused business development activity.

Another reason why some fleets may not know the Wialon name is due to its approach of working through a network of service providers and system integrators, most of which are SMEs.

“What we do is we provide our technology to those small- and medium-sized companies, to those start-ups, so that they can use really advanced technology in some small local markets. They can start their own business, they can provide technology and they can save hours and actually months and years of development from our investment,” Kuushynau explained.

Such suppliers typically also work with smaller fleets on their side – as larger fleets often stipulate working with large-scale suppliers. And this means that smaller fleet operators can access very sophisticated technology that normally would be reserved for larger businesses.

Kuushynau continued: “That is very important because nowadays we all see the spread of technologies and you might think that only some bigger companies are entitled to have AI, entitled to have Machine Learning, entitled to have all those things that you see on the on the news but you don’t actually have a chance to get.

“But due to our platform and due to our distribution scheme, we empower small to medium fleets; the company might have five cars, but with our platform and with our technology and with our partners, they can also have the same visibility, the same quality of software, the same quality of data that a bigger fleet such as DHL would have. We feel it’s really important that small fleets can go to our partners and can have the same data, same automation, same business intelligence that the bigger companies have these days.”

In total, Wialon provides its software solution to more than 2,400 telematics service providers, and tens of thousands of fleet managers worldwide.

Diverse usage cases

Current applications vary dramatically – and are fast developing as government-enforced regulations worldwide increasingly mandate telematics devices, and the surge in demand for usage-based insurance in developed markets fuels further industry growth. At the same time, API integrations open up new avenues for telematics and IoT applications.

Kuushynau explained that the technology is not just reserved for vehicles but in fact any assets that need monitoring.

“When we are talking about the technology, we mostly say it’s telematics and vehicle tracking. But in fact, there are many partners of ours who use the same platform to provide the same visibility to completely different assets, which might not be vehicles at all.

“They know the technology that we have, they understand there is a telematics box that can be installed anywhere to get sensor data out of. So, it can be really ATMs, it can be fuel tanks underground, it can be power stations, it can be diesel generators that are powering small villages in Africa and utilities.

“We have a lot of very unique cases where our partners, by knowing our technology very well, by knowing that they can get the data and then they can provide automation, work with very different projects across the globe.”

Other markets covered include transportation and logistics, mobility, delivery services, construction, agribusiness, water and waste management, public utilities, railway, mining and processing, and security.

Uninterrupted coverage is a core focus for customers’ devices, as Kuushynau continued: “We do understand how important it is for them to be online always and to have the platform working for them and not have any issues. We pay a lot of attention to the security, to the guaranteed uptime of our platform.”

Despite pulling out of Russia, Wialon still achieved commercial growth in 2022, including in South America, Africa and Asia, as well as the more mature European and North American markets. This means the end users of its platform vary wildly from country to country, and the adoption of technologies is very different, driven by local requirements and legislation.

In the UK, its partners include ACSS, which specialises in the design, supply, installation and maintenance of high-performance mobile CCTV and fleet tracking/telematics systems.

Founded in 2005, the business has continuously expanded its capabilities and coverage and in 2017 it launched its AdvancedFleet tracking & telematics suite for vehicle fleet management applications, powered by Wialon. The Wialon platform has enabled the business to integrate with third-party systems and helped it develop tailored solutions to meet bespoke fleet needs.

Asked about the benefits of using the Wialon platform, ACSS technical manager Alasdair Graham said: “It’s the adaptability, the ability to customise and adapt to customers that might have the smaller fleets, right up to the ones which have the larger fleets and everything in between.”

He added: “It’s the stability that Wialon gives us and the reliability for uptime that’s given our customers confidence to continue working with us because as they can see it for themselves. And bringing all the data that they might have together in one place and being able to integrate further systems and third-party hardware, something which I believe we would struggle with using any other supplier.”

Wialon’s future plans for 2023 including continued growth and technical expansion in line with its partners.

Kuushynau elaborated: “The popularity of our platform worldwide is due to its flexibility and ultimate reliability, and to the strength and professionalism of our team. Our growth is driven in sync with our ecosystem of Wialon partners, who rely on the Wialon platform to grow their own businesses – so we look forward to growing together.”

AI and automation are also core areas of growth. “The potential for applications in fleet management is hugely exciting!” Kuushynau summed up.