How Telematics Protect Your Strawberries

When you move temperature‑sensitive freight—whether it’s fresh produce, dairy, pharmaceuticals or protein—every fraction of a degree matters. A lapse of just one or two degrees can subject your shipment to spoilage, regulatory scrutiny, insurance disputes and irreparable brand damage. Yet far too many refrigerated carriers still rely on infrequent manual checks and spot inspections, leaving shippers blind to developing problems until it’s too late.

No more blind spots

Telematics brings real‑time visibility to refrigerated trailers by combining precision sensors, GPS and cellular communications. Inside the trailer, temperature probes accurate to ±0.5 °C continuously record the compartment temperature and compare it to your set‑point. The moment a drift approaches your alarm threshold—often as narrow as ±1–2 °C—a pre‑alarm warning is triggered, and if the excursion persists beyond a defined window (for example, more than five minutes outside range), a full alert goes out.

But temperature is only one piece of the puzzle. Telematics also tracks compressor run time and cycle frequency, key indicators of mechanical wear or refrigerant loss. It monitors fuel level or battery voltage to guard against power‑related downtime—one of the top causes of reefers going offline. GPS location and geofencing tie all of these data points to precise times and places, so you know not just that an excursion happened, but exactly where it began.

The cost of operating without this level of insight can be staggering. A single spoiled pallet can represent $500 to $2,000 in lost commodity value. Food‑safety authorities can impose fines for much more, and without continuous digital logs, carriers and insurers often dispute claims, delaying your reimbursement and tying up your cash flow.

Real‑time alerts and exception management change the game. As soon as a sensor records a deviation—whether it’s a 0.5 °C drift sustained for two minutes, a compressor cycling abnormally, or a trailer stopped outside an approved zone—the operations team receives an SMS, email or API notification so they can immediately dispatch a technician or reroute the load to the nearest service hub, all before spoilage occurs.

Data is great, but how does that make my strawberries fresh?

Gathering data is only the first step. Advanced analytics turn raw telematics into continuous improvement. By analyzing temperature excursion patterns across lanes and terminals, you can identify “hot spots” in your network that require process changes or infrastructure upgrades. Compressor run‑time trends help carriers schedule maintenance before failures occur, reducing unplanned downtime. Carrier scorecards—measuring on‑time, in‑range delivery percentages—enable shippers to benchmark performance and hold carriers accountable. Predictive maintenance models driven by vibration signatures and operating cycles can further drive down cost per shipment and boost resilience.

Ask yourself: does your current carrier give you this level of detail? Can they pinpoint the exact moment and location a temperature excursion began? Demonstrate that your set‑point was maintained within ±1 °C throughout transit? If the answer is no, you have an unacceptable blind spot in your cold chain.

Reefer telematics isn’t a luxury—it’s the technical backbone of a dependable temperature‑controlled supply chain. Demand the data, educate your team on its value, and partner with experts who live and breathe refrigerated transport technology. Your brand reputation—and your bottom line—depend on it.

Make smart, informed shipping decisions

At Bison, we don’t just haul your freight. We protect it.If you’re moving goods that rely on precise temperature control, let’s talk about how our telematics-enabled reefer fleet can reduce your risk and increase your confidence.

Talk to one of our refrigerated experts today to learn more.