Fatigue, NHVR, Opinion

Confusion When Buying Into an EWD

confusion when buying into an EWD

There’s a lot of development going on in the Electronic Work Diary space and with all the publications and advertising on EWD’s, it would be natural to experience some confusion when buying into an EWD platform. 

If you go out and do some deeper research on the different products available in the market today it will give you a better understanding of the market and the capabilities of each system.

The big boost of bringing in an EWD is the chance to offset the costs of using paper across the entire business. An EWD should be able to save time chasing paper, calculating breaches and measuring performance.

However it’s important to consider the end goal of having a fully compliant safety system. Investigations reveal a lot of industry players, including drivers, who are not adhering to the accreditation conditions on devices. Unless you are using a device that is listed on the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator website in their accreditation, the EWD application, even though approved, isn’t a compliant EWD and can leave you open to fines under the HVNL up to $6000 for not carrying a compliant work diary.

Let’s start off with who are the approved Technology Providers to sell an EWD:

– Bustle

– Hubfleet

– Kynection

– MTData

– Netstar Australia

– Step Global

– Teletrac Navman

Check the full NHVR EWD approval list here. 

The listed businesses above are currently the only approved EWD holders. So using the application provided by these businesses means you have a compliant EWD, correct? It isn’t that simple, unfortunately.

The NHVR have approved the ability for a technology provider to apply for ‘Device Agnostic Approval’, which is a fancy term for ‘It will run on any device that meets the technology providers minimum specification’. 

Unfortunately, none of the technology providers have been approved for device agnostic for an EWD, as of the writing of this article.

So what device can I use for the different approval holders?

Starting from the top, Bustle has two devices approved for use with their application:

– Samsung Galaxy Tab Active 3

– iPhone 6s

Hubfleet have two devices:

– iPhone XR

– Samsung SM-G960F

Kynection have 10 devices, but for the iOS devices if must be iOS version 12 or higher:

– Zebra TC56

– Zebra TC57

– Zebra TC75

– Zebra TC77

– Samsung Galaxy Tab A

– Samsung Galaxy Tab Active 2

– Samsung Galaxy Tab Active 3

– Samsung Galaxy Xcover Pro

– iPhone SE (1st Gen)

– iPad 5 (2017) (Wi-FI + Cellular model only)

MTData have three devices, with no apple compatibility:

– Samsung Galaxy Tab Active

– Samsung Galaxy Tab Active 2

– Samsung Galaxy Tab Active 3

Netstar is approved on a series of devices from Garmin, Fleet 7XX series, but it is our understanding that Garman has ended the life of the 7XX series in favour of the Dezl range.

Step Global have the most devices at the moment with 14, with no apple compatibility:

– Winmate M101M8

– Samsung A30

– Samsung Active Tab 2

– Samsung Active Tab 3

– Samsung Galaxy S9+

– Samsung Galaxy S10

– Samsung Galaxy S10+

– Samsung Galaxy Note 9

– Samsung Galaxy Note 10+

– Samsung Galaxy Tab A10.1

– Samsung Galaxy Tab S7

– Samsung Galaxy Tab S7+

– Google Pixel 3XL

– Oppo AX5S

Finishing up the list, with Teletrac Navman with a proprietary device within their Sentinel range as their only approved device.

EWD discussions with the industry, find a number of drivers using incorrect EWD device platforms, unknowingly leaving them and their employer at risk of infringement.

With the approval of Device Agnostic within the NHVR, there is a renewed focus on education with the enforcement officers on what is a compliant device, potentially bringing this issue to light.

So after all of that, where does this leave us in the space of approved EWD’s?

Don’t believe the marketing about device agnostic until it is reflected on the NHVR website, as you don’t want to inadvertently be sending drivers out without a compliant work diary. If they get intercepted by an enforcement officer and they find the device isn’t compliant, they may be fined for not carrying a compliant diary.

What should I do if my driver isn’t using a compliant device stated on the EWD approval list?

You should self report to the NHVR through an email to fatigue.management@nhvr.gov.au stating the EWD Technology Provider that you are using and the devices that have been used on the platform and for how long. It is best to provide any information given to you by the Technology Provider in regards to devices that can be used on their platform.

confusion when buying into an EWD

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