Supplier News

Verizon launches telematics company

Verizon, Basking Ridge, New Jersey, has announced the launch of Verizon Connect, an Atlanta-based telematics company that the company says offers customers a one-stop approach to connected vehicle software and services designed to help drive safety, productivity and efficiency.

Verizon Connect is the culmination of more than $5 billion in investments and includes former brands Verizon Telematics, Atlanta; Fleetmatics, Rolling Meadows, Illinois; and Telogis, headquartered in Aliso Viejo, California.

The Verizon Connect portfolio includes fleet and mobile workforce management software, embedded original equipment manufacturers (OEM) hardware and Hum by Verizon, a connected vehicle device designed to create a safer driving experience for consumers.

“One of the things we’re most proud of at Verizon Connect is the potential our current and future technologies have for massive societal impact,” Andrés Irlando, CEO of Verizon Connect, says. “We’re working with customers to maintain cold chain integrity and keep perishable items safe during transport, routing customers’ vehicles more efficiently to reduce emissions, monitoring vehicle diagnostics to improve fuel efficiency and providing a gamification app that helps customers recognize and reward their safest drivers, just to name a few.”

To learn more, visit www.verizonconnect.com.

Van Dyk Recycling Solutions installs its first MRF in Mexico

Van Dyk Recycling Solutions (VDRS), Stamford, Connecticut, says it has recently installed a sorting system in Mexico that is recovering 72 percent of the incoming municipal solid waste (MSW) it is processing. The MRF is sorting 500 tons of MSW per day, recovering organics and recyclables and creating engineered fuel, according to the supplier.

The system was installed for integrated waste management company Grupo CIP, Mexico City, which operates sanitary landfills in 12 Mexican states, generates energy from waste and provides waste collection and transfer services.

In a video about the installation produced by VDRS, Alberto Salcedo of Grupo CIP says the company selected VDRS for the project because its solutions provided the best technology at the lowest cost with the most efficiency.

VDRS Mexico and Latin America Sales Manager Ricardo Orozco says because this equipment is the first of its kind in Mexico, the staff at Grupo CIP was unfamiliar with much of the technology, so it placed a lot of confidence in VDRS. He adds that VDRS invested considerable time answering the company’s questions and explaining critical information.

In the video, Juan Carlos Lopez, Grupo CIP plant manager, says VDRS has supported the company since the beginning. “Van Dyk has guided us through everything,” he says.

“We are convinced that the future is in facilities that repurpose solid waste,” Salcedo says in the video.

The video can be watched on Van Dyk’s YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/watch?v=2fkjMGj8ozs.

Vecoplan AG announces promotion

Germany-based Vecoplan AG has named Martina Schmidt the head of its business unit responsible for the areas of plastics recycling, alternative fuel processing, the recycling of domestic and industrial byproducts and file and data destruction.

Schmidt began her career with the company in 1990 as an industrial clerk. She assumed the lead of the internal sales department in 2010 and has held responsibility for the sales of the recycling/waste business unit since 2013.

With the promotion, Schmidt will join the company’s management team along with Dirk Müller, head of the wood/biomass business unit; Markus Claudy, head of the service/parts business unit; chief operating officer Thomas Sturm; and chief financial officer Michael Lambert.

“We are glad to have Martina Schmidt as an internationally experienced representative with profound product and market knowledge for the management of the recycling/waste business unit,” Werner Berens, CEO of Vecoplan AG, says.

Lytx celebrates 20th anniversary

February marked San Diego-based fleet management technology manufacturer Lytx’s 20th anniversary.

To date, the company says it has analyzed more than 80 billion miles of driving data on behalf of more than 3,000 commercial and government fleet clients globally with its DriveCam program. In addition, Lytx has sold 500,000 subscriptions used with 850,000 drivers worldwide. Lytx says it has helped its clients cut collision rates in half and the associated claims costs by up to 80 percent. In 2017, the company says it helped its clients save an estimated $494.4 million in total claims.

Lytx also offers its Lytx Video Services, which feature on-demand continual video, a live stream of the road view and ActiveVision service, a program that uses in-vehicle alerts and video coaching to mitigate drowsy and distracted driving.

“Artificial intelligence models will give our clients faster, deeper and more thorough visibility into their operations,” Brandon Nixon, the chairman and CEO of Lytx, says. “We’re committed to innovating on behalf of our clients to help them be more efficient, find ways to better serve their customers and keep their workers safe.”

Lytx says it has captured and analyzed more than 80 billion miles of driving data, while continuing to add approximately 1 billion miles every two weeks. These 80 billion miles have helped inform Lytx of human driving behaviors; road and weather conditions across urban, rural, highway and residential environments; vehicle stability; fuel efficiency and more, the company says.

The company says it has also sold half a million subscriptions since it was founded in 1998.

“Artificial intelligence algorithms are only as smart as the data that goes into them,” Nixon says. “Luckily, Lytx has more driving data of this kind than any other company on the planet. This milestone of reaching 80 billion miles shows just how far our platform has grown and how much better it gets every day.”

Lindner Recyclingtech GmbH invests in North American expansion

Lindner Recyclingtech GmbH, a provider of industrial stationary and mobile shredding equipment headquartered in Spittal, Austria, announced it has opened its new North American headquarters in Statesville, North Carolina.

In late 2017, the company completed the purchase and renovation of a 25,000-square-foot facility on a four-acre campus. The renovation coincided with the renaming of its U.S. subsidiary to Lindner Recyclingtech America. The new facility will help expand the Lindner parts inventory and service support team and will feature a fully operational customer demonstration and test lab facility.

“The investment we have made in our North American subsidiary is one to support our customer base as we continue to expand our market presence in the waste, plastics and paper recycling and mobile shredding businesses,” Michael Lackner, managing director of Lindner GmbH, says. “With our new operational facility and added staff, we now have increased our inventory levels along with giving customers the opportunity to visit and run production tests as well as receive service and operation training. This investment gives Lindner the foundation to continue its success in the United States and Canada.”

City Carting adds glass cleanup system

Stamford, Connecticut-based Van Dyk Recycling Solutions has installed a glass cleanup system at City Carting’s single-stream material recovery facility (MRF) in Stamford to help recover and recycle additional material from the existing waste stream.

The glass cleanup system is designed to produce a more marketable glass product and includes a double-deck screen and a zig-zag separator to screen out the glass and then separate it into lights and heavies. The zig-zag separator is flexible and can bring glass to a purity level of 95 percent, Van Dyk says.

“This machine was a considerable investment for us, but it looks like it will be well worth it,” Michael Ferro, general manager of City Carting, says of the Van Dyk system.

With the uncertainty in today’s fiber markets, City Carting knew it had to look elsewhere in its process to increase recovery and add value to negative revenue streams, Van Dyk says. The two companies worked together to arrive at the solution that was installed. The rest of City Carting’s sorting system remained operational during installation

For more information about Van Dyk, visit www.vdrs.com.

Genie names new head of product development

Mike Davis has been appointed to Genie vice president, product management and Terex Business Systems (TBS), for Terex Aerial Work Platforms (AWP). In this role, Davis will have responsibility for global product management for the Westport, Connecticut-based Genie brand and will also have global responsibility for the company’s TBS activities across operations and administrative functions. Davis will be transitioning to his new role and relocating to Redmond, Washington, in the coming months.

According to Davis, there are two distinct elements of this role. For product management, he will have responsibility for leading the Terex AWP product strategy process, working with all areas of the business to ensure that Genie has the right product at the right time to meet customers’ needs. He will also be leading the company’s TBS initiative, which is a long-term effort to develop team members and improve company processes to deliver more value for customers.

“The exciting part of this role for me is that it aligns our product and process efforts,” Davis says. “I look forward to continuing our company’s legacy of bringing innovative products to market and focusing on initiatives that proactively address our customers’ needs.”

“We are a customer-centric business, and our strategy continues to be to best serve our global customers’ needs,” Matt Fearon, Genie president, Terex AWP segment, says. “After six years serving in international assignments, bringing Mike back to Genie in this role is specifically intended to drive this strategy. His job is to increase our capacity to bring innovative, quality products to market, as well as to improve our ability to respond to customer needs by growing the capabilities of our team members.”

Davis has been with Terex for 21 years, starting as a design engineer for the Genie brand. From 2012 to 2015, he served as Genie vice president and managing director, Asia Pacific, Terex AWP. In late 2015, he moved from the Terex AWP segment to the Terex Cranes business. Prior to rejoining Genie, Davis served as the vice president of global strategic initiatives at Terex Cranes.

“I have spent most of my career at Genie,” Davis says. “It is an industry and a team I have literally grown up with and thoroughly enjoy being part of—this feels very much feels like coming home. The experiences I gained in the last six years have given me a more global perspective on many aspects of the business. I’m very excited to bring these experiences with me and once again be part of the company’s future.”