New App Hopes To Ease Pains of ELD-Compliance, Targets Owner-Operators

by Jake Tully - Published: 5/15/2017

As the ELD mandate looms over drivers, several companies and pieces of technology have offered solutions to make the obligatory shift easier for drivers.

Some solutions, however, are targeting the segment of drivers that may be reticent to embrace technology with 6 months until the compliance as they would rather wait until December.

Blue Ink Technology is offering a FMCSA-registered app that allows drivers to become ELD compliant without the numerous auxiliary features that other ELD devices and services may offer.

“We try to make it as user-friendly an experience as possible,” said Mike Riegel, Chief Operating Officer at Blue Ink Technology. “Research shows that the average age of drivers is somewhere between 50 – 60 years old and many of them are still using flip phones. We wanted to make everything in the Blue Ink Tech ELD app very easy to use.”

According to the Rigel, the BIT (Blue Ink Technology) ELD app is designed as an alternative to costly and otherwise unwieldy ELD-compliant technology that many drivers may find themselves inundated with.

As opposed to a separate piece of technology or a new device, the BIT ELD app is compatible with a driver’s smartphone or tablet.

“There are many more affordable bring-your-own device solutions, which is what we are,” said Riegel. “In the recent past, it was mostly just these large companies and players who provide solutions to names like Ryder – huge companies that have big budgets.”

With a one-time fee, Blue Ink Technology reports that it allows drivers to eliminate monthly charges or contracts that other systems may require.

Rigel said that he hopes that the BIT ELD app will be more accessible to owner-operators and small to medium-sized fleets as a way to ease themselves into compliance.

However, Riegel noted that the mindset for this group may be one that waits until late November in order to become compliant.

“We try to let people know that the last-minute compliance may be a dangerous way of thinking because 80% of the market is own-operators and if they all wait for December the demand for compliant technology is going to spike,” said Rigel. “I don’t think anybody is going to be able to meet the supply, no matter how big the company is.”

As of now, Blue Ink Technology is focused on growing their user base and ensuring that the user onboarding system is as efficient as possible.

“We hope our current user base invites their friends and inspires more owner-operators and fleet managers to use our technology,” said Riegel. “Once they use our app and they get a feel for it and see that it’s not as intrusive as they may be anticipating, I believe truckers will be more open to spreading the word.”

For more information on the app, visit Blue Ink Technology’s site.