Why don’t numbered parking spaces guarantee reliable vehicle locations?

Visit any car park in the automotive industry and you’ll find numbered parking spaces in every bay. Think, for example, of PB0456, PB0457 – sometimes thousands of numbered parking spaces.

You might think that this numbering is essential. How else can we keep track of where each vehicle is?

The answer to that last question is surprisingly simple. Experience shows us that numbered parking spaces are of only limited help in managing vehicle locations. This is because vehicles are often not parked in the designated spot.

The limitations of numbered parking spaces

Imagine the following scenario (and unfortunately, this happens all too often): It is a rainy, cold, twilight day and you, as a tired driver, accidentally park a vehicle in PG0456 instead of PB0456. This ‘minor’ mistake has far-reaching consequences. The domino effect that will occur in most cases will result in countless hours of extra search time to find the correct vehicle(s) in this car park!

Another example: upon arriving at parking space PB0456, the driver sees that the space is occupied. He parks the vehicle five spaces further on and forgets to report this. The result? Vehicles go missing. More site checks are needed to find the cars. Numbered parking spaces are not reliable for vehicle locations.

Or what to do if snowfall has covered the car park with a layer of snow?

Overcrowded car parks have a negative impact

Overcrowded car parks often lead to parking outside the numbered spaces. Vehicles are parked everywhere: on grassy areas, internal roads and temporarily at neighbours’ premises. This makes it even harder to keep track of vehicles. When vehicles are parked haphazardly, they are bound to go missing. This leads to even more search time, delays and frustration, and worse still, a waste of a great deal of money.

The Need for Real-Time Vehicle Visibility

What is the solution if numbered parking spaces don’t work? The answer is simple: we need a method to determine a vehicle’s real-time location instantly with a single press of a button. And that is where blt.software comes in. Our advanced real-time vehicle visibility solution provides accurate vehicle locations, in all weather conditions, 24/7.

How does our BLT solution work?

We use Bluetooth tags that are attached, for example, to the rear-view mirror of the vehicles. These tags are constantly connected to Gateways and visible on our BLT platform. The Gateways can be installed both indoors and outdoors in strategic locations. Solar Gateways are now also available for outdoor use on site. Plug and Play.

If you’re looking for a car, you can enter the VIN number or registration number in the front dashboard. You’ll then see which zone the car is in. Is the zone too large, and do the cars in that zone happen to be the same colour, type and model? No problem! When you’re in the zone, grab your mobile device. Once you’re at the right car, your mobile device will vibrate and the light in the Bluetooth tag will flash. Wherever you park your car – on a lawn, an internal road or at a neighbour’s – we always know the exact location!

Optimisation of vehicle management and ROI

This solution offers numerous benefits. First and foremost, of course, in financial terms; our BLT solution saves an average of 75% in search time. Just work out how much money this saves you per day! Sites require fewer or no costly site inspections. The work of site staff becomes more pleasant, resulting in lower staff turnover.

A site’s vehicle capacity increases significantly. Numbered parking spaces are no longer needed. Every spot becomes a parking space, with perfect control and visibility. Finally, you also know where the vehicle in question has already been. Using a checklist on the dashboard, you can see whether a car is currently in, or has been to, the dent repair zone, polishing zone, car wash zone or photography zone, and how long that took, for example.

In short: the perfect solution to a major problem that almost the entire automotive industry has to deal with day in, day out.