LINKING TRACTORS AND TECHNOLOGY

CUSTOMER:

Mobile Track Solutions

PRODUCT:

Tractors

LOCATION:

Elkader, Iowa

SCOPE OF ENGINE USE:

Cat^® C18 U.S. EPA Tier 4 Final Engines with Cat Product Link™

LOG IN, LEAD ON

Mobile Track Solutions (MTS) has always been ahead of the curve. The company’s founders were one of the first in the Midwest to use articulated dump trucks and pioneered the ejector body used on Cat^® trucks in the early 2000s. Then, MTS developed construction-grade tractors specially designed to tow scrapers, disks and rollers in less-than-ideal underfoot conditions. And now, the company can add early adopter to its list of monikers, thanks to technology that makes those tractors easier to own, rent, operate and maintain.

MTS’s 3630T and 3630W tractors powered by Cat C18 industrial engines come standard with Cat Product Link™, a telematics solution that gathers engine and transmission data via a cellular connection. Tractor owners or renters can access that data — including location, hours, fuel use and diagnostic codes — by using VisionLink^®, a web-based system that provides full fleet management, automated reports and custom dashboards. Both tools are simple to use, making it easy to read and interpret data.

Since 2014, every MTS tractor manufactured with a Cat engine has featured this connectivity solution. “Our major contractors expect connectivity out of a premium machine,” says Caleb Shea, MTS’s product support manager. “With the Cat solution, they can log in and see where our tractors are working and track their uptime. As they grow their fleets, it will help them manage inventory more easily.”

CLOSE CONNECTIONS, SMART SOLUTIONS

MTS’s business model is to sell and rent its products through Cat dealers, helping fill any gaps in the dealer portfolio and take advantage of the network’s unmatched support system. When it came time to adopt telematics, keeping it in the family just made sense. “Other companies offer telematics, but they require separate subscriptions,” Shea says. “Our connectivity solution is exactly the same as what someone already has for their Cat dozer or excavator. They’re already comfortable with it.”

Reports on rentals. The Cat connectivity solution is proving especially beneficial for MTS rental customers. Cat dealers who rent the 3630T and 3630W can see exactly where any tractor is located at any given time, track usage for billing purposes and identify precisely when machines need to come in for maintenance and service. Managers receive an automated report on rental unit uptime through VisionLink each week, so they can move idle tractors to more in-demand locations, if necessary. 

A proactive partnership. 3630T and 3630W owners are seeing the benefits, too. In addition to tracking their own data, they can choose to share it with MTS — allowing the company to serve as a second set of eyes in case issues arise. “We’ve been able to alert customers to regeneration issues or transmission speed sensor codes that are usually a precursor to clutch slippage before they cause a failure or downtime,” Shea says. Some customers are even using the data to start conversations with dealers about uptime guarantees.

The inside track. Internally, MTS is using connectivity to improve its next generation of products. Through a joint project with Caterpillar, the company is gathering transmission data from about a dozen tractors in the field. “Before, we’d attach a box to the machine. The operator would know what we were doing and might change his behavior as result,” Shea says. “Now, we can just flash a software file to the machine and capture data from a real operating experience. That should help us improve the transmission lifespan on our tractors.”

“OUR MAJOR CONTRACTORS EXPECT CONNECTIVITY OUT OF A PREMIUM MACHINE. WITH THE CAT SOLUTION, THEY CAN LOG IN AND SEE WHERE OUR TRACTORS ARE WORKING AND TRACK THEIR UPTIME.”

• MTS’s 3630T and 3630W tractors are powered by the Cat^® C18 industrial engine and come standard with Cat Product Link™, a telematics solution that gathers engine and transmission data via a cellular connection.
• The data collected, including location, hours, fuel use and diagnostic codes, can be accessed by using VisionLink^®.  These tools are easy to use and make it easy to read and interpret data.
• 3630T and 3630W tractor owners are already seeing the benefits of this connectivity technology as it not only tracks their own data, but they can choose to share it with MTS — allowing the company to serve as a second set of eyes in case issues arise.
• MTS’s business model is to sell and rent its products through Cat dealers, thereby taking advantage of the network’s unmatched global support system.
• Cat dealers who rent the 3630T and 3630W can see exactly where any tractor is located at any given time, track usage for billing purposes and identify precisely when machines need to come in for maintenance and service.

CHECK THE SPECS

CONTACT MTS

CONTACT YOUR CAT DEALER

• The Cat^® C18 is a 6-cylinder, 18.1 liter industrial engine offered in power ratings up to 800 hp (597 kW), with peak torque of 3710 Nm (2736 lb-ft). It provides a compact, flexible and quiet engine system that's ideal for your equipment application.
• The Cat C18 is designed for optimal power and torque with a proven aftertreatment reducing the cost of installation and ownership while providing maximum uptime.
• Common core engine shared with other Cat industrial engine models offers common machine interfaces and controls architecture, allowing customers to develop commonality in products, parts and service among equipment in their fleets.
• Engine is designed for low parts and labor maintenance requirements reducing overall cost of ownership.
• The modular engine platform offered by the C18 engine complements a global customer base while providing factory solutions to reduce equipment manufacturers' design and installation costs.