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FAQ:
1. What is cPAQ
cPAQ is a leading-edge Taxi Data Despatching System. It’s radically different from any other system you can buy on the market today. For performance, features and reliability - nothing else even comes close. cPAQ combines the best features of existing Data Despatch Systems and more, with:
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2. What do I get in the Control Centre
The heart of the cPAQ system is the control centre software. This includes our Operator software which allows each call-taker to book Jobs, to track Vehicles on a live map display, to view the activity in the system, and to resolve problems. The Operator software also has advanced features such as automatic pricing for Jobs, route mileage and time estimation based on street maps, and load calculation to warn about overbooking. In addition, we provide Administrator software for performing the housekeeping and data entry tasks. cPAQ also includes Billing software for handling Account and Credit Card Jobs and creating invoices and statements for your account customers and Drivers. Reporting software to generate management reports and statistics is also supplied. Behind the scenes, cPAQ contains a powerful despatching engine which handles communication with Vehicles and automatically allocates Jobs to Drivers. Underpinning this is an industrial strength database (Microsoft SQL Server). Hardware We supply only top-quality branded computers. All PCs come with the latest cutting edge specifications. Windows-XP Professional and Anti-Virus protection software as standard. cPAQ includes the complete nationwide address database. This contains full address information - including street names, house numbers and premise names - for 26 million UK addresses. We also supply Microsoft MapPoint (the professional version of Autoroute), which gives you mapping, tracking and route estimation. Depending on the size of your fleet, you may also require network cabling or other equipment. Cordic is genuinely a one-stop shop - whatever equipment you need, we can supply. Installation Installation of all control centre hardware and software is included in all our prices - we will not leave your site until your system is up and running. If required we can also install the in-vehicle equipment. |
3. What does the driver get in the vehicle
Hardware The unit in the vehicle is a Pocket PC with a built-in mobile phone. The Pocket PC has a large colour graphics screen which is touch sensitive - so you just have to tap it. It contains a powerful processor and lots of memory. It also has a built-in mobile phone, GPRS data radio, and an internal aerial and battery. Away from the car the built in battery powers the unit for at least 5 hours continuous use. You can hold your Queue/ Rank position and be available to receive job details, send or receive messages and monitor which Queues have taxis ranked and which areas have work coming in. Out of the car does not mean out of touch. We also supply a car-kit which holds the Pocket PC securely in a cradle and provides power for charging its battery. The cradle power lead can be either permanently connected to the car battery (recommended) or to the cigarette lighter, which is useful when a quick vehicle switch is required. The whole kit can be transferred to a substitute vehicle in minutes, with no drilling or cutting, and a totally non-invasive installation and removal. Software The Pocket PC runs the Cordic cPAQ vehicle software. This handles all the data communications with the Control Centre and allows the Driver to sign on, to accept Jobs which are offered to him, to progress the Jobs (Arrived, POB etc) and to enter payment details when he clears each Job. cPAQ software also includes voice-guided navigation, complete with electronic road maps of the whole country. It uses the GPS receiver to work out a route from where the Driver is now to his destination, and directs him to that destination using both voice guidance and a visible map. cPAQ even links into a traffic information service to help the Driver avoid jams. And it can also warn him about speed cameras. |
4. What does the driver's unit look like?
5. How does the vehicle connect to the control centre?
The connection between the Vehicle and the Control Centre uses the Mobile Phone network. Most people use this for voice calls or text messages; however, in the last 3 or 4 years the Mobile Phone companies have added a low cost two-way data system to their networks. They chose a confusing name for this data system - GPRS - but it has nothing to do with GPS, which is the satellite-based Global Positioning System used to locate and track vehicles. In fact cPAQ uses both systems: GPRS (to send data messages to and from Vehicles) and GPS (to know where those vehicles are). The Cordic cPAQ system runs on all UK Mobile Phone networks. We have partnership agreements with Orange and O 2 , but we are not tied to any one network. Great Benefits Using the GPRS data network has many great benefits - coverage, capacity, speed and reliability. Mobile Phone companies like Orange and O 2 have spent billions of pounds building a nationwide cellular phone network which covers virtually every community in the country. GPRS uses this network so you get the same nationwide coverage. This means that your Drivers will never be out of contact, even on airport runs or other long-distance trips. Along with the coverage comes the capacity to support millions of users - so the data requirements of even the largest taxi fleet can easily be covered. As for speed, if you send a message to a Driver, he will usually see it in under two seconds. And reliability is assured because these companies employ a small army of engineers on 24 hour call-out, to keep the network up and running. That's why many fleet users - including police forces, ambulances and breakdown assistance firms - are switching away from PMR radio towards GPRS. Low Costs GPRS is amazingly cheap, especially compared with the cost of a mobile phone call or sending a text message. You are charged for actual data usage, not for time. cPAQ uses advanced data compression techniques to reduce message sizes to a minimum. As a result, the usage charges will average out under 1p per Job - and that includes all the messages sent back and forth while the Driver does the Job. |
6. How are jobs booked into the office?
Our Call Booking software has been designed to let the Operator book a Job with the minimum of typing. Jobs can be booked using the computer keyboard only, without needing a mouse. Although many powerful features are available, the basic operation of the software is very simple and easy to use. To book a Job, all you need to enter is the passenger name and the pick-up address. There are many other fields you can fill in - such as pick-up date and time, destination address, account or credit card number, Driver notes and so on - but they are all optional. Address Lookup cPAQ contains the entire nationwide Postcode database. It uses a highly optimised address search method which brings up the results instantly. Normally it will search in your local area - but you can specify any town or city in the country. You can define "Address Shortcuts" for popular destinations like pubs and restaurants - such as PUB RED for The Red Lion public house, or T4 for Heathrow Terminal 4. By using the "Special Address" feature, the system automatically warns the Operator about black-listed addresses. Screen Popping cPAQ can provide "Screen Popping" based on the Caller Line Identification (CLI) - in other words, the customer's phone number. When the phone rings, the customer's details are automatically filled in. You can also bring up a list of the most common recent trips to choose from. This speeds up Call Booking and also lets you offer a more personalised service to your customers. Cordic can interface to most Telephone systems. Copy You can quickly copy an old Job, change any details you like and save it as a new Job. You can easily create a return trip by swapping the pick-up and destination addresses. Or you can send several cars to do the same trip - for an office party, say. Multiple Pick-ups You can create a Job with any number of pick-ups and drop-offs. You can also change the route order of the pick-ups, for example to shorten the journey. The system can even optimise the order of the pick-ups with a single press of a button. Regular Bookings You can create a Job which is a regular booking - you simply say which days of the week and what time of day it should run. You can add a start date and an end date, and define days - holidays, for example - on which the Job won't run. You can even predefine a calendar such as "School Holidays" and use that for all your school runs. Multiple Fleets If you are using "Screen Popping", cPAQ can also detect which incoming phone line is being used - so you can tell what number the customer dialled. This enables you to operate Multiple Fleets or a "Bureau Service." Not only can your Operators answer the phone differently ("Joe's Limo Service" rather than "Joe's Taxis") - but the software can automatically mark the Job as intended for one or other fleet of vehicles and kick-in the appropriate charging tariffs.You can find out more about Multiple Fleets here. |
7. How are jobs booked outside the office?
cPAQ has many ways of booking Jobs outside your office directly onto your system. Web Booker Many corporate and private customers have access to the Internet. cPAQ Web Booking system is an ideal way of letting your Customers book their Taxis remotely without tying-up your Operators. cPAQ Web Booking software lets your customers book Jobs directly into the system, specifying where and when they wish to be picked up, where they are going, and details such as the payment method or vehicle type. They can also query the Jobs they have already booked and even track their Taxis on a live map. For a demo go to www.cordic.com/webbooker Mobile Booker cPAQ Mobile Booker is unique to Cordic. It is the only Pocket PC based fully portable remote Booking system on the market. The Mobile Booker, together with its portable wireless printer, allows one of your employees located at a Station, for example, or an Airport, Nightclub or Exhibition Centre, to book Jobs directly onto your system. Your employee enters the Passenger's name and their destination. If required they can also choose the Vehicle type and give a quotation. After booking the Job the Mobile Booker automatically prints a ticket for the Passenger which details the particulars of the Job. The passenger hands this ticket to the Driver when they get into their Taxi. Jobs booked by the Mobile Booker can be either automatically or manually despatched. Auto Booker For customers who prefer a telephone based automated booking service, cPAQ Auto Booker is the ideal solution. Your account customers can be setup with their own username and PIN and a set of default pick-up addresses. When your customers call the special automated booking line, they are talked through a few simple steps for creating a booking directly onto your system. cPAQ Auto Booker can also be configured to work as an optional overflow Operator. At busy times, the customers that the system recognises as "repeat callers" can automatically be given the opportunity to use the Automated booking system rather than wait for an actual Operator. Return Bookings cPAQ allows the Driver to book a return trip for the customer using his Pocket PC. This can be done while the passenger is in the Taxi, or after the Job is completed. All the Driver has to do is to enter the pick-up time for the return trip - cPAQ takes care of the rest For a comprehensive list of booking methods and their benefits please click here. |
8. How are jobs despatched?
Normally, Jobs are despatched automatically using Queues (sometimes known as Zones or Plots). You divide your operating area into as many Queues as you like, each covering a certain geographical area - a queue can be as big or as small as necessary, even down to a single rank (such as a hotel). Drivers are automatically booked on to Queues depending on their location. When a Job is booked, it is assigned to a Queue according to its pick-up location and then offered to the first Driver in that Queue. The Job Offer immediately appears on the Driver's screen. If he accepts the Job - great. If not, cPAQ offers it to the next Driver in turn, and so on. You can also define back-up Queues, so that if a Job is not accepted by any Driver in a Queue, cPAQ tries Drivers in the backup Queues. This guarantees that the work is allocated fairly to your Drivers - first come, first served - and also makes sure that work is always offered first to nearby Drivers. Drivers can also request a "Follow-on-Job". cPAQ automatically reserves a Job for them for after they have cleared their current Job to make sure they don't drive back empty. Manual Despatch Alternatively, the Operator has the option of allocating a Job to a particular Driver or Vehicle. There may be several reasons for doing this - just to get the work covered, or for a school run where the same Driver does it every day. The Operator can also add backup Drivers or Vehicles, in case the first Driver is busy or rejects the Job. You can decide on the best Driver for the Job by dragging the Job onto the map which shows the location of all your cars and then dropping the Job onto the chosen Driver. Special Vehicles You can set up special vehicle properties called "Attributes" - these could be things like Wheelchair, 7-Seater or Executive Fleet, but you can define any number of attributes with any names you like. Each of your Vehicles can be marked with whatever attributes are suitable. When a Job is booked, if the Customer needs a 7-Seater, say, the Job is marked with that attribute. Then cPAQ automatically makes sure the Job is only offered to Drivers in the right Vehicles. Job Progress Once a Driver has accepted a Job, he drives to the pick-up address. There he presses the "Arrived" button on his Pocket PC. When the passenger gets in, he presses "POB". If he wants a "Follow-on-Job", he presses his "FOJ" button. Finally, he clears the Job, by filling in the payment details. Each of these steps sends a message to the Control Centre, so the status of the Job can be followed. |
9. What do my customers get out of it?
When your customers phone you, they will instantly gain from the extra efficiency cPAQ brings - your staff will answer calls and take customer details quicker and more accurately than ever before. And CLI (Screen Popping) will speed this still further as well as letting you give a more personalised service. When will my Taxi Arrive ? As the Operator is booking the Job, cPAQ uses its built-in route calculation to work out the distance of the trip and how long it will last. Then cPAQ performs an intelligent prediction using the current Drivers' availability and the actual Jobs in the system, and taking any special vehicle properties into account. It uses this information to calculate when a taxi will be available and whether there's a danger of over-booking . cPAQ gives the Operator an immediate display of the trip distance and taxi availability - bringing up a warning if the pick-up time can't be met. This means the Operator can tell your customers exactly when their taxi should arrive - based on facts not guesswork. Once the Driver has accepted the Job, cPAQ continually tracks the taxi's location and automatically updates and displays the actual Estimated Time of Arrival to the Operator - this will give you an even more accurate picture. What's more, with the advance warning of over-booking problems, cPAQ allows you to plan ahead - for example, to call in more Drivers. Ringback For customers who wish to be notified when their Taxi has arrived, cPAQ will automatically give them three rings on their phone or mobile when the Driver arrives outside the pick-up. cPAQ also tells the Driver that he is on a "Ring-Back" Job and tells him when the customer has been called. Where's my Taxi ? Of course, sometimes taxis are held up and can't get to the pick-up in time. That's when you get the worried phone call from the customer, asking the question "Where's my Taxi ?" Because cPAQ allows you to accurately track where vehicles are, your Operators can give an accurate answer to this question. Every call taking station is equipped with a map showing where the taxi is right now, and also showing the pick-up location and the current ETA. |
10. How do I control my fleet?
cPAQ has been designed to put you in total control of your business. You can control exactly what a Driver sees on a Job offer (to prevent cherry-picking), and you can penalise him for rejecting work by automatically throwing him off the Queue or placing him in a Sin-Bin so he can't get any work for a short period of time. You can also exclude a particular Driver from an Account - any Job booked on that Account will not be offered to that Driver. GPS Tracking It's easier to control your fleet when you know where they are. With GPS in the vehicles, you can track any number of your Drivers and see a live display of their position and speed on a map. And because cPAQ also stores these positions, and logs every detail of a Job's history, you can go back and see, for example, where the Driver was at a particular time, how fast he was driving, and the route he took for a particular Job. This makes it very easy to resolve any disputes and protects both you and your Drivers. Audit Trail cPAQ has the most comprehensive logging facilities of any system on the market. It logs the activities of the Drivers and Operators and also keeps a detailed log of its own activities. This means that you can always go back and see exactly what happened to a particular Job, Driver or Operator. Logs related to Drivers can be displayed on a map. The logged information is kept for as long as you like. The System also monitors and logs other undesirable situations automatically - for example, a Driver can't book on to a Queue if he's too far away, and the system raises an alert if he presses "Arrived" or clears a Job when his position is clearly wrong, or if he gets to the pick-up too late. Drivers' Roster For Taxi companies that have a rigid shift pattern, cPAQ can automatically make sure that Drivers cannot log-on to the System outside their working hours or when they are supposed to be on holiday. The System also automatically logs them off at the end of their shift. Document Tracking To help you manage your Drivers and Vehicles, you can enter all their information into the System. cPAQ then takes over and monitors these for you. For example you can enter their Insurance expiry date and time, and the System will make sure that the Driver is not allowed to log-on to the System if his insurance has expired - and if he's already logged on, the System automatically logs him off ! To persuade your Drivers to settle their account with you promptly, you can setup an overdraft limit and a grace period for each Driver. Drivers who exceed their limit are not allowed to log-on until their account is settled. Some Licensing authorities are now insisting that Taxi Companies hold photographs of Drivers on record. cPAQ allows you to keep electronic photos of Drivers on your system. You can view these photos alongside the Driver details. Handling Difficult Drivers Every Taxi company has its special Drivers. To help manage these, cPAQ allows you to have special configuration settings for these Drivers. You can for example set the Sin-Bin duration or the Job rejection limits differently for each Driver. You can also decide whether or not to allow individual Drivers to Bid for Jobs or request Follow On Jobs Spoon Feeding cPAQ gives you several ways to stop favouritism in the Control Centre. Everything in the Control Centre software is controlled by privileges - including the ability to give out work manually to Drivers. So you can give this privilege only to staff you trust. You can check up using the detailed Job history log. And you can generate a Report which tells you how many Jobs each Operator has given to Drivers manually, and how many Jobs each Driver has received. Voice Recording For maximum control, you can record all incoming and outgoing telephone calls at your office. The recordings are stored on a hard disk on your system, together with their date and time. You can bring up a list of all recordings related to a Job or an Operator or over a period of time and listen to them at a click of a button. To help you decide which recordings are relevant, the system displays voice recordings together with any other (non-voice) log entries. This means that you can very easily and quickly find the particular voice recording you are seeking. |
11. What do my drivers get out of it?
Drivers love a system which can be used with a minimum of training, which has a large easy-to-read screen, it gives them clear instructions for each Job and which shows them where the current work is to be found. They also love a system which is fair to everyone, gives them an easy way of requesting a "Follow-on-Job" and allows them to "Bid" for work. That's why they love cPAQ. Voice - Guided Navigator Drivers love cPAQ's built-in navigator, too, with its live maps and its turn-by-turn voice instructions. At any point, the Driver can simply press the "Nav" button to switch to the navigation screen and get directions to the exact pick-up location. And the navigator doesn't just direct the Driver to the right street or postcode - it will take the Driver straight to the front door. When the passenger is on board, the Driver can press "Nav" again and this time he will be directed straight to the drop-off location. cPAQ also warns the Driver when he's approaching a speed camera. Messages With a couple of taps on the screen, the Driver can send a message to the Office. The Operator is then alerted to read the message and take action. These messages could be to tell the control centre about a problem with the Job - for example "No Show" - or they could be general messages like "Vehicle broken down". You can set up whatever messages you like, and change them whenever you want. Operators can also send messages to Drivers. These can be simple "pop-up" information messages, or messages which ask the Driver a question - the Driver can just tap the answer which he wants to send back. Emergency Drivers feel more secure when they can call for help quickly if they are attacked or involved in an accident . When a Driver presses the Emergency button on his Pocket PC, a message is sent to the Control Centre that causes several things to happen. An Emergency Event is displayed, an audible alarm sounds at every Operator's PC, and the cPAQ software starts tracking the position of the vehicle on a map. Then the Operator can send a message to all the other Drivers telling them what's happening and where the Emergency is taking place. |
12. Does it handle accounts?
cPAQ handles Accounts better than any other system on the market. Account Charges cPAQ allows you to set up accounts specifying the Customer or Company name, address and contact details. You can set a VAT rule for each account - VAT exempt, VAT inclusive, VAT on service charge only, or VAT on entire bill. Each account can have any number of Job Types - such as Metered, Fixed Price, Airport and so on. And each Job Type can have its own set of charges, which can be as simple or as complicated as you like. You can charge for whatever you like - Fare, Booking Fee, Distance, Waiting time, etc. You can charge by the mile, by the minute, or anything else you can think of. Job prices can be calculated automatically by the system, entered by the Operator when the Job is booked, or entered by the Driver when the Job is cleared. You can charge different amounts at evenings and weekends - and Bank Holidays too. You can charge different amounts for different kinds of vehicles - charge more for a 7-seater than a saloon, say. And you can even set up a minimum fare, or a fare which goes up in steps like a Taximeter, or give the Customer the first 30 minutes waiting time free. For each charge you can say how much the Customer will pay, how much the Driver will get and how much you will keep. On top of this, you can set up a commission rate (or discount) for each account - and set up a per-Driver commission rate too. Automatic Price Calculation With its built-in map-based routing engine, cPAQ can automatically price Jobs based on the trip distance (from the pick-up, to the destination, including any vias). Alternatively, for out-of-area trips, pricing can be based on the round-trip distance (Base to pick-up, to the destination, including any vias, and back to Base). The price can also take into account the vehicle type, day of the week, time of the day or Bank Holidays. If you prefer, Jobs can be priced automatically according to a "price matrix". This is a table of distances or charges based on a starting and ending location. These locations are based on full or partial postcodes (like SG1 2EF or SG1 2 or SG1 or even SG). Depending on how you set up these tables you can have zone-to zone prices, fixed-price trips such as airport Jobs, or even pick-up fees for certain locations or for Congestion charging. Credit Cards There are two ways of handling Credit Cards in cPAQ. The most convenient way is to use on-line authorisation, which transfers data via a direct connection to the banks. Then Jobs can be authorised and paid directly from the cPAQ software. Better still, credit card Jobs can also be processed online from the Taxi - the Driver can even get the passenger to sign on the touch screen of the Pocket PC. The alternative method involves manual authorisation of Credit Cards. The first step is to set up some accounts such as "Visa", "Amex" etc which are like ordinary accounts but flagged as credit card accounts. During booking a Job, the Operator fills in card details - number, expiry date etc - and these are checked for validity and saved with the Job. When the Job has been cleared, one of your staff can generate the invoice printout and enter the price and the card details into a PDQ machine or similar. |
13. What sort of paperwork does it produce?
cPAQ allows you to print Account Invoices and Driver Statements whenever required or on a regular basis - daily, weekly, or monthly. At any time you can click one button and print all the Invoices which are due. You can also print credit notes, balance summaries, receipts and payment slips and see a complete history of transactions for any Account or Driver. You can export the data to Sage or Microsoft Excel. Account Invoices Invoices are clearly laid out in a professional configurable style. The first page of an invoice is a summary of the amount due (including the VAT, where relevant). The invoice layout can be customised to suit the account customer. Following the summary page you can have detailed pages listing the Jobs. Jobs can be grouped by reference number, department, cost centre or anything else required. In the most detailed case, each Job is listed with its pick-up and destination location and full charge information and vehicle type. Driver Statements A Driver Statement contains the list of Jobs a Driver has done over a particular time. This is followed by a breakdown of how charges are calculated, including any balance brought forward from the previous Statement. The last line shows how much the Driver is owed - or owes you - when the statement is generated. You can set up regular Driver deductions - such as rental or insurance - and these will also appear on Statements. |
14. How reliable is the system?
We designed cPAQ from the ground up to be 100% reliable. It is built on rock-solid foundations. In the Control Centre, we use Windows XP Professional - the most robust version of Windows ever - and Microsoft SQL Server - a byword in the IT industry for reliability and performance. In the Vehicle, we use a Pocket PC - a single unit with everything built in, manufactured in millions to rigorous quality standards. We have had many years of experience writing software for the Taxi trade. So we have made sure that our cPAQ software is the best in the business. Truly Non-Stop Performance Modern PCs are very reliable. We supply branded PCs with on-site support - so if one of your PCs goes wrong, an engineer will come and fix it at no cost to you. Furthermore, if required, we can provide a "Standby Server". This is another PC which keeps a copy of all your data. The Standby Server can just sit quietly in a corner, or you can use it as a normal PC for booking Jobs. cPAQ software on the Standby Server constantly monitors the main Server data and "shadows" any changes to it - so you always have an up-to-date copy. At any time, you can switch to the Standby Server in seconds- and carry on booking and despatching Jobs with no loss of service. cPAQ also has many advanced communication features so that you are always in contact with your Drivers. These features include an automatic backup connection to the Internet for your Broadband link, the most advanced GPRS connection management in the Pocket PC and System Health Monitoring software. Backup from Cordic We pride ourselves on the quality of our backup. It starts when we install your Control Centre ourselves, to make sure your system is running properly from day one - we don't leave your office until the system is fully configured and working the way you want it to. It continues with our 24 x 7 hotline for Cordic support. If you need us, then with your permission we can dial in to your system from our office to give you instant assistance. In addition to technical assistance, our support package also includes regular free cPAQ software upgrades. This means that you are always using the most up-to-date software with the latest features. We know time is money in the Taxi trade - so when you need us we will be there. |
15. What are the purchase options?
The cPAQ system is a complete solution - it includes absolutely everything you need, with no hidden extras. Hardware, software, installation, training, configuration - it's all included. And if you already have a data system we will even import your existing Accounts, Drivers and Vehicles data. At Cordic, we understand the Taxi trade, so we've come up with some different product options and various flexible ways to pay. Product Options For the Control Centre, there are many options - for example, the Interface to Sage Accounting package feature, the Text booking, the Web Booker, The iPhone booker and Mobile Booker with Credit card support facilities are all optional. In any case, you can easily upgrade your system by adding options later, if you choose. Hardware Let's look at the hardware next. In the Control Centre, this basically means the computers. In the Vehicles, this means the Pocket PC with Built-in GPS receiver, plus mounting kit, plus voice guided navigator software and maps. We are more than happy to provide these at very competitive prices. But if you want to supply the hardware yourself - that's fine by us as well. Software We charge for the Control Centre software depending on how many computers you have and which options you select. This charge includes installation and commissioning at your site by Cordic engineers. In addition we charge for the Pocket PC software on a per-vehicle basis. Rental If you don't want to pay for the software in one lump, we also offer a rental scheme - weekly payments for each Control Centre computer and each Vehicle unit. Leasing We have several helpful leasing companies we can put you in touch with. They typically offer leasing deals over 3 to 5 years with one month deposit, subject to the usual small print. |
