News
Issue #2002 - 14 (April 2002)
(Updated Apr. 10, 2002)

APPLICATIONS & DEVELOPMENT

LogistiCare/Dynamic Mobile Data Solution Brings Safety to Parents of Kids Riding School Buses

SOMERSET, N.J.--April 2, 2002-- Dynamic Mobile Data (DMD) announced today that its client, LogistiCare, the national leader in non-emergency medical transportation management, is now deploying DMD's MobileDispatch(TM) wireless dispatch and Automatic Vehicle Location (AVL) software in the school transportation market.

In August 2001, LogistiCare began providing transportation management services for school children in Hartford, Connecticut and surrounding areas. Using DMD's MobileDispatch and AVL technology, each student will swipe an ID card upon entering and exiting school vehicles, and the system will document student locations throughout their transport. Schools will be able to provide parents with live information on where their buses are, which routes are on time or delayed, and which student is on which bus. Parents will be able to view bus and student status information real-time, over a secure, Internet website. In addition, schools will have the ability to provide added convenience features, such as the automatic calling of parents alerting them when their child's bus is approaching.

"In our changing world, the safety of our children has to come first," said Chuck Feldman, CEO and president of Dynamic Mobile Data. "Clearly, LogistiCare has established itself as the trusted leader in on-time, secure transportation management. Armed with our software, we see our companies providing an invaluable service, which is the peace of mind of knowing where your kids are." A GPS receiver will be installed in 140 buses, with additional units planned for rollout throughout 2002. In addition, the two-way communications capabilities of MobileDispatch are used to provide live rider status updates in text format, via the Research In Motion  950 wireless handheld, over the Cingular wireless network. The system is managed by LogistiCare for the City of Hartford Board of Education, in Hartford, CT.  "With the transportation network and management systems already in place, entering the school transportation market is a natural fit for our company," said John Shermyen, president and CEO of LogistiCare. "After using Dynamic Mobile Data's dispatch and tracking technology in the non-emergency medical transportation market over the past two years, we gladly incorporate their software into our school solution. After all, we understand that when it's your child on the bus, it's different. The system has to work."

MobileDispatch is a wireless dispatch application that enables time sensitive, two-way communication and status tracking over the Internet for companies dependent on the efficiency of their mobile workers. The Web version of MobileDispatch allows transportation management companies, fleets, and customer service centers to move to wireless, computer-aided dispatch using a simple Web browser and Internet connection. The software resides on a server maintained on a 24/7 basis by Dynamic Mobile Data and is the same software used to power a variety of dispatch and vehicle location systems employed by companies such as Airborne Freight. As a transportation broker, LogistiCare contracts with a variety of different transportation providers to bring the most comprehensive set of vehicles and provider expertise to the needs of local school systems. By bringing together many different providers, LogistiCare ensures that there is always a surplus of vehicles and drivers to perform the required transportation services. This redundancy in resources prevents service or financial problems within any particular transportation provider from interrupting the critical service of transporting students to and from school.

About Dynamic Mobile Data
Dynamic Mobile Data Systems, Inc. (www.dmdsys.com) is a wireless application service provider and developer of wireless business solutions. 

About LogistiCare
Headquartered in Atlanta, LogistiCare is the country's largest transportation management firm providing comprehensive outsourcing solutions for government, human services, ADA Paratransit, Welfare-to-Work, special needs, senior mobility and commercial managed care organizations. 

Source: Business Wire 

Mobileinfo Comments & Advisory: Keeping real-time track of school children on the buses is an interesting application that many parents would find very useful. It is relatively simple implementation of DMD's MobileDispatch. Again, credit goes to the imagination of LogistiCare who conceived the use of wireless for student safety.

Note: This news release may contain forward-looking statements. Readers should take appropriate caution in developing plans utilizing these products, services and technology architectures.  All trademarks used in this summary are the property of their respective owners.