Reliable and universal coverage is far more important than bandwidth

In August 2006, the Mumbai government invited private
players under their Luxury Fleet Taxi Scheme to replace the 55,000 Black &
Yellow taxis with modern vehicles in order to provide Mumbai with high quality
transport. The decision has led to the birth of Meru Cab. Today, it has 4,800
cabs across Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, and Hyderabad. The company has pioneered
the concept of GPS/GPRS enabled taxis in India. Meru uses high-end technology in
its vehicles to determine the cabs' geographical location as well as
availability to ensure that passengers receive timely response and are picked up
and dropped at their desired destinations without any unnecessary delay. Nilesh
Sangoi, CTO, Meru Cab spoke to VOICE&DATA about the technology they are using to
provide the best quality of service. Excerpts

Tell us how Meru Cab
is using telecom infrastructure for the benefit of its customers?

At Meru, technology is optimally used for customers' advantage. Firstly, the
process of hiring a Meru Cab has been made very simple. With the use of
technology, customers can either dial, book online, or SMS to book a cab in
advance. The customer gets an automated SMS with the details of the cab as soon
as the booking is complete.

The digital tamper proof meter on board and the printed
receipt for all fares ensure that passengers pay strictly in line with the fare
structure. This makes it easy for those passengers who require a receipt for
claiming travel expenses and can also be used by a passenger to report excess
fare complaints, if any. Every fare that Meru takes is digitally transmitted
back to the control center and is recorded for reference.

Meru uses high-end, imported GPS and GPRS in their
vehicles to ensure real-time cab location and dispatch so that passengers
receive a timely response and are picked up and dropped at their destinations
without any unnecessary delay. Each cab is fitted with a GPS based tracking
device that helps to identify the nearest cab from a customer's pickup location
with the help of GIS. The customer's address and other details are communicated
back to the chauffeur on the display screen avoiding the use of outdated radio
trunking (walky-talky) technology or the use of a mobile phone.

Meru uses its technology for ensuring that there is a very
responsive 'Lost and Found' tracking system in place so that any item left
behind inadvertently in a Meru Cab can be traced to the vehicle that the
reporting customer has used with the help of trip information and travel path
used.

What are the latest technologies that you have added in
your vehicles to provide quality service to customers?

Meru has incorporated additional facilities like a card payment option that has
been launched in Bengaluru and Hyderabad, and will soon be launched in Delhi and
Mumbai, making it even more convenient for customers. To curb issues like rash
driving and withhold accidents from taking place, Meru has launched an automated
speed control alarm that gives audio and visual warning to the chauffeur if he
crosses the speed limit, thereby ensuring the safety of their customers and
chauffeurs.

What is the number of calls you get per day/week? What
kind of infrastructure and resources do you have for the same?

We get around 2.5-3 lakh calls per week across the four cities that we
operate in. Our data center hosts a set of communication servers, application
servers, and database servers which are connected with each taxi through GPRS.
The call center uses advanced interactive voice response (IVR) system. There is
a mobile data terminal (MDT) inside each taxi which has a built-in GPS receiver,
LCD display screen, and GPRS connectivity, which helps communicate with the
control room.

And the number of vehicles you have? What kind of
technology have you put in your cabs for the safety of passengers?

We have 4,800 cabs across Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, and Hyderabad. We have
installed various automated systems like a digital tamper proof meter on board,
high-end GPS and GPRS to ensure real-time cab location and dispatch, a mobile
communication terminal (MCT) inside each taxi which has a built-in GPS receiver,
LCD display screen and GPRS connectivity, which helps communicate with the
control room, a very responsive 'Lost and Found' tracking system. Currently, a
card payment option has been launched and also an automated speed control alarm,
that warns the chauffeur if he/she crosses the speed limit.

How excited are you for technologies like 3G and WiMax
in helping your business needs?

An efficient dispatch needs good telecom connectivity. Reliable and
universal coverage is far more important than bandwidth. The new technologies
like 3G and WiMax will help if they improve the reliability of communication.

How do you cope with connectivity challenges in your
cabs and offices across the country?

To overcome the unreliable connectivity between the cab and back-end
systems, we have built various features in the communications software like
buffer storage, signal acknowledgements, retransmissions in case of failed
communications, etc. Our offices are connected through multiple redundant leased
lines to ensure high uptime.

What technological upgradations are you considering?
And what are the investment plans for the same?

We are constantly upgrading and fine tuning our current systems, and
incorporating new facilities like the card payment option and the automated
speed control alarm, to make our services more efficient and give our customers
a truly comfortable travel experience. Also as our business grows, there comes a
need to build scalable and best-of-the-breed processes. To achieve this, we are
in the process of implementing the Oracle ERP and Siebel CRM systems covering
all functions within the organization.

What is the IT spending as a percentage of your
turnover? How was it affected during the downturn? How big is your team?

Technology is the backbone of our business, and we ensure that an adequate
amount of investment is made in the technology to give us a competitive edge.

During the economical slowdown last year, we continued to
invest in technology as it gave excellent value for money. Various initiatives
like ERP and CRM were started during this time.

Name five top technologies that you think are going to
make a mark in enterprise communications in the future?

I see that the current trend of embracing public networks like Internet for
enterprise communications will keep getting stronger. On the voice front, the
habit is changing to use mobile phones rather than office EPABX systems. Email
on-the-move is no longer restricted to the senior management and is becoming
all-pervasive. High-speed data cards combined with affordable VPN solutions are
ensuring that we are able to work from anywhere as seamlessly as office. More
people will prefer connecting to Wi-Fi rather than office LAN as Wi-Fi keeps
improving throughput and security.

Akhilesh Shukla

akhileshs@cybermedia.co.in