Six years ago, Triple D Software was founded out of a compelling need to assist bus and coach operators in dealing with the growing complexity of their operations. David Cook, the business development manager at Triple D Software, says the company’s early days were spent consulting with local operators to address the challenges they faced when running their bus operations.
“We began as consultants, collaborating closely with operators to resolve the operational challenges they encountered,” Cook told ABC.
“We found that the majority of operators we spoke to faced similar challenges when it came to using disconnected and antiquated systems to run complex transport operations and keep all aspects of the business, informed and connected.”
Cook and the team at Triple D Software have been intent on modernising the landscape for operators. Their ‘Central-Ops’ platform is a testament to this dedication, aiming to replace Excel sheets, paper-based routines and other outdated systems with cutting-edge web and cloud technologies for driver and fleet management.
In the initial phase of its journey, Triple D Software spent years co-locating with operators to gain a deep understanding of their unique business operations. Through this hands-on approach, they learned how each team interacted with other parts of the business, allowing Triple D to create an integrated solution to holistically solve challenges.
“All of these operators encountered a multitude of issues, particularly related to the complexity of managing change and ensuring that everyone remained well-informed about day-to-day modifications,” Cook says.
“We discovered that many teams became reliant on one or two individuals being up to date with everything that was going on. In one case, a team was so reliant on one person being the source of all knowledge that even when they were on leave, they needed to come into the depot each morning to keep things running.”
The Triple D Software solution is designed to address these inefficiencies at every stage of an operator’s business, from the initial quote through to a charter booking, ensuring the right driver and vehicle are allocated and making sure the driver will remain compliant with National Heavy Vehicle Regulator (NHVR) fatigue regulations.
The essence of this system lies in managing change and ensuring transparent communication throughout an operator’s network. Wet weather cancellations and last-minute updates to pick-up or drop-off times may require a lot of juggling allocations, but the Triple D Software solution provides a centralised hub to promptly notify everyone within the business.
“This platform addresses every aspect of the daily management of operating buses and coaches,” Cook says.
“It prioritises conflict management, offers a single system for information storage and prevents drivers and vehicles being double-booked, ensuring that both operations and workshop teams are well-informed.”
While Triple D Software initially provided consultancy services to operators six years ago, it was apparent that the problems they were experiencing were not unique to them.
“This solution came about through operators sharing these common problems, so we saw this as a chance to turn this into a product that other operators could use,” Cook says.
“We’re a small team of highly skilled software engineers, user experience designers and domain experts who saw the opportunity to leverage the latest in web and cloud technologies to develop a modern, user-friendly and intuitive platform to address customer problems and modernise bus and coach operations.”
In an industry known for clinging to traditional organisational tools, this new technology offers a way to break free from the disorder caused by spreadsheet-based processes. Instead, it harnesses the latest innovations to establish a unified system that caters to bus and coach operators.
A significant advantage of Triple D Software technology is that it’s cloud-hosted, meaning it doesn’t require any software or hardware installation and can be accessed from any location with a laptop and internet connection.
Triple D Software’s established solution has had success with operators like Kangaroo Bus Lines, Port Stephens Coaches, Cooma Coaches and Wide Bay Transit.
With a proven track record, it’s setting its sights on helping other operators modernise their bus and coach operations and tackle the similar struggles they are facing.
Following the implementation of Triple D’s Central-Ops platform, these operators have realised a multitude of benefits. Foremost among these is the platform’s ability to streamline compliance and reporting processes, significantly reducing the workload of key staff manually compiling and interpreting data from multiple sources. Reports that required days of preparation are now effortlessly generated within minutes, allowing these staff members to redirect their efforts to more high-value tasks.
“This solution is all about capturing and reporting compliance requirements and ensuring contractual obligations are being fulfilled,” Cook says.
One of the pivotal components within the solution, particularly concerning compliance, is the incorporation of a fatigue management module, which plays a critical role in preventing drivers from being allocated into a fatigue breach. It accomplishes this by monitoring and cross-referencing the hours drivers have already worked with the hours they are scheduled for in upcoming jobs to guarantee drivers adhere to the NHVR standard rules.
When it comes to contractual requirements, there is a need to provide kilometre accounting to account for every kilometre driven by a vehicle. Instead of maintaining these detailed records manually, Triple D’s solution automates this process through its Central Ops Fleet tablet application, which is mounted onto the dash of each vehicle.
By capturing driver interactions, combined with integration with telemetry services, a detailed analysis can be generated with the push of a button. When performing passenger services, the analysis can segment trips into ‘dead’ kms against ‘live’ kms.
“This not only provides accountability for contractual requirements but also offers insights into fleet utilisation efficiency,” Cook says.
“Adding tablets to the vehicles not only allowed us to keep drivers up to date with route and schedule changes, but it also provided an opportunity to share important information with drivers to assist them with their daily runs. At the tap of a finger, drivers can access in-depth vehicle specifications, shift bat left and rights or charter relevant documents.”
The Triple D team has also developed a driver’s app available on the Apple and Google app stores, providing a communication tool between drivers and operators.
“The Driver’s App has been incredibly helpful for me in managing my time,” one driver has told Triple D.
“Whether I’m at home or on the road, I can easily access my schedule and receive notifications of any changes on my phone. Submitting requests for leave or unavailability is also a breeze.
“Even as an older individual, I find the application easy to use and it has greatly improved my experience.”
For years, Australian operators have had to rely on outdated organisational technology. Now, with the widespread introduction of Triple D Software’s platform, this might be set to change.
“A key outcome of this solution is improved information management and decision-making, but it can also offer significant cost advantages for operators over time,” Cook says. “We are confident that this solution effectively addresses the challenges we learned about from operators, making their roles significantly more manageable.”