Ernie Betancourt, former president of Innovative Computing Corp., today announced he has launched QuikQ LLC. The Franklin, TN-based privately held company specializes in fuel management and will bring DFConnect, which Betancourt called a “state of the art fuel management tool,” to the trucking industry.
DFConnect had been introduced by Innovative last month and sold to Epona LLC, another privately held LLC controlled and operated by Betancourt. Yesterday it was announced that Innovative had been acquired by TMW Systems.
According to Betancourt, DFConnect, which provides a card-less direct fuel connection between carrier enterprise systems and truckstop point of sale systems, will offer these features:
- Separate purchase policies. Maintains separate purchase policies for the truck, driver and trailer as opposed to current one-card-based policies.
- Database elimination. Product transaction engine interfaces with carrier’s own database vs. a separate database maintained by billing company.
- Purchase-order based. Automatically creates a purchase order when a request is received.
- Distinct sub-transactions. Each distinct event – tractor fuel, trailer fuel, cash advance-- is maintained separately.
- Mobile communications interface. Easily integrated with all mobile communications systems through basic macro.
- Limited driver data entry. Driver only needs to enter start code and PO at fuel dispenser vs. current multiple data entries.
- Virtual tank inventory. Keeps track of fuel consumption and limits purchase orders based upon consumption.
Prior to leading the purchase of Innovative in 2001, Betancourt had founded Trendar, a point –of-sale service provider to truckstops that was eventually sold to Comdata in 1995.
“I leave Innovative with mixed emotions,” said Betancourt. “It’s like seeing your child go off to college. But starting QuikQ brings back that entrepreneurial spirit that makes me tick. This is a product like nothing the industry has seen before and the potential behind it is very exciting and I look forward to bringing it to market and watching its success.”
