The goals at GardaWorld Cash Services are straightforward. First and foremost is protecting the cash and other assets the company hauls with its 3,500 armored vehicles for customers across North America, but safety and the fleet’s efficiency are equally important.
“We strive to create the most innovative fleet in secured transportation,” CEO Stéphane Gonthier said. “With an advanced fleet, we can give our customers peace of mind, keep our employees safe, and achieve our goals.”
Currently, GardaWorld Cash Services is embarking on what Gonthier calls a “paradigm shift” in the equipment the company uses. “Historically, the belief was that we needed 26,000-lb-GVW trucks,” he related. “But we really didn’t need that much carrying capacity. It was about the perception that bigger vehicles provided more safety and security.
“Today, new technologies are enabling us to utilize the safest and smartest vehicles in the industry,” Gonthier continued. “For example, we’re making a significant investment to field a next-generation high-tech and high-security armored car fleet. Our objective is to eventually replace most of our fleet with this new vehicle platform.”
In 2020, GardaWorld Cash Services, in partnership with Roshel Smart Armored Vehicles, completed the first phase of a plan to deploy modified Ford Transit vehicles. Initially,150 of the vehicles manufactured in the U.S. and customized in Canada were placed in service. An additional 180 vehicles are expected to roll out by mid-2021.
The modified Ford Transits, rated at a GVW of 10,360 lb, are 15,000 lb lighter than the units they are replacing. “They can carry up to one ton of cargo, which is plenty of capacity for our needs,” Gonthier said. “The lower weight has an impact on maneuverability, which makes them safer for our crews, and it makes them at least 18% more fuel efficient. The newest generation of gas engines in the Transits also help lower emission levels, which minimizes our environmental footprint.”
Highly customized by Roshel, a provider of smart armored vehicles located in Canada, the new Ford Transits at GardaWorld Cash Services have the latest security innovations. In particular, the vehicles are armored with high-grade materials that are certified by independent laboratories to comply with North American regulations.
The new vehicles have numerous safety features that include collision and lane departure warning systems, clearer view windshields that also meet recognized ballistic standards, and other technologies that allow for geolocation and live feed monitoring.
The company is also equipping its new vehicles with Samsara dash cameras. The AI-enabled dual cameras provide HD video with wide-angle lenses and low-light recording and night vision capabilities. The system offers live scene analysis and object detection, and it automatically uploads event footage to the cloud, where on-demand video is available for review.
“This kind of technology detects issues that we can then manage to address safety,” Gonthier explained. “It provides information for coaching drivers so we can change unsafe behaviors. Most importantly, it helps us create a culture of safety across our operation.”
Equally important to GardaWorld Cash Services is effective fleet maintenance. To cover its extensive footprint, the company has in-house shops with as many as 100 vehicles at its largest hubs. Smaller locations, some with less than 10 trucks, use central company locations for service; across the operation, a network of dealers and other outside providers is in place.
“We handle service and repairs internally and through long-standing relationships with third parties, depending on what makes the most sense by region and market,” Gonthier stated. “In all cases, we’re very rigid about inspections and preventive maintenance for both safety and reliability.”
GardaWorld Cash Services is also addressing an issue that Gonthier noted is the same for any type of fleet. “As an industry, we need to find ways to deepen the pie, to increase the pool of drivers,” he said. “We believe we can do that with technologies and training that make the job easier and safer. That way, we wind up with experienced drivers who stay with us instead of leaving.
“We also believe that new vehicle technologies, especially electric trucks, will help attract a younger generation of drivers,” Gonthier added. “We’re already working with an electric vehicle manufacturer to launch their vehicles in our fleet in 2024. It’s important to us to get ahead of the curve and be less of a late adopter, and we’re proud to invest to make that happen.”
