Knowing how vehicles and equipment in your fleet work is crucial for developing an effective and well-oiled fleet management system.
As a must-have component for fleet vehicles with unique or specific purposes, power take-off is important to understand if you want to get the most from your fleet’s day-to-day activities.
Read on to learn everything about power take-off, how it works, and how to use power take-off monitoring to transform your fleet operations.
The power take-off or PTO is a fundamental part of many fleet vehicles’ operations, especially those that have additional functions like raising truck beds, cranes, or any other function required without directly using energy from the vehicle’s engine.
Think of PTO as a portable power generator that transfers energy from your vehicle engine to an auxiliary component like a crane or hydraulic pump. Ultimately, it helps transfer energy to other essential parts of a vehicle without using the main power source. This has many benefits like ensuring an even and consistent power distribution that meets a vehicle's specific requirements.
With the potential to power a wide range of equipment, PTO is commonly used in fleet, construction, and other industrial vehicles with the following equipment types:
Looking at how many different types of equipment PTOs can power, it’s also important to establish whether there is more than one type of power take-off and identify their advantages and disadvantages.
Overall, hydraulic PTOs are more popular due to their increased efficiency.
Not only is power take-off a valuable device that provides additional power for a variety of fleet, construction, and agricultural vehicles, but keeping an eye on your fleet’s PTO also has some fantastic benefits for improving its performance.
The power take-off is monitored using a specialised sensor. By being able to keep tabs on the PTO’s activity, you can track your fleet vehicle’s productivity. Let’s take a closer look at how this sensor works and how it measures PTO activity.
The PTO sensor is a small device designed to pick up and monitor any auxiliary or supportive activities powered by the vehicle engine, making this sensor a game-changer for checking vehicle usage for working hours and productivity.
The main mechanism in the PTO sensor picks up when a vehicle’s on/off indicator is triggered, which creates an event that can be recorded on a linked telematics system. PTO sensors can pick up a variety of support activities, making them very versatile in a fleet environment across several work settings.
A PTO draws its power from the vehicle engine, and it needs to be engaged before it can start transferring power. As there is more than one type of PTO, there is more than one engagement method; so, for example, it can be via air pressure or hydraulic pressure. After the PTO has been engaged, its output shaft will transfer power to the auxiliary element, activating the function or component linked to the vehicle. A good example here would be moving the mechanical arm of a construction vehicle.
PTO sensors pick up specific activity depending on the vehicle type and function. For example, a crane’s PTO sensor will pick up the movement of the crane’s arm, while a dump truck’s PTO sensor will pick up the lifting of the truck bed.
Take a look at some of the most common types of data picked up by a PTO sensor.
These are all examples of crucial information fleet managers need to determine their fleet’s productivity levels and whether they’re over or underperforming.
Power take-off enables ordinary vehicles to do extraordinary things across industries, simplifying construction, agriculture, waste disposal, and more. PTO monitoring also has great benefits for fleet managers and can transform your fleet’s daily performance by supporting increased productivity during set working hours. Here are some top reasons you should consider PTO sensors for your fleet.
There are various ways to track your fleet activities with telematics, but external PTO monitoring adds relevant information with lots of potential value for fleet management. Consider the following pros linked to having PTO sensors in all of your fleet vehicles and how this extra tool can build on your fleet’s overall performance.
Concord Cranes provides crane hire solutions in South Africa. With over 180 cranes, their services range from transport to specialised lifting projects and the hiring of mobile cranes; however, they struggled to accurately record their equipment working hours, impacting timely deliveries and overall customer satisfaction.
This is just one of many examples of how Cartrack’s advanced SaaS products can help you gain full control of your fleet.
Apart from PTO being a crucial component in running many construction, agricultural, and other commercial vehicles, its monitoring potential can transform the way you manage your fleet. Understanding the power of monitoring your PTO is key to having full control and keeping your fleet’s performance on track.
Contract Cartrack Malaysia today and get the tools to help increase workplace productivity and advance your fleet operations.