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According to an EU regulation (561/2006), if a 4x4 vehicle, used for commercial purposes exceeds the Maximum Permitted Weight of 3.5 tonnes including a trailer and is registered after 1st May 2006, a digital tachograph must be fitted. VDO has developed digital tachograph retrofit kits for a number of manufacturers' vehicles, including Land Rover Defender.
A digital tachograph is an electronic system which records the driving, work and rest times for drivers. In addition the vehicle's speed, distance travelled and other parameters will also be recorded. The driver is subject to driving limits, breaks from driving and rest periods. Failure to do so carries a maximum fine of £2,500 for the breach of the Drivers' Hours Law and a maximum fine of £5,000 for failing to install and use a tachograph.
Download
The VDO Downloadkey II & Mobile Card Reader bundle is a new flexible solution for fleet operators and drivers to download digital data from the digital tachograph and the Driver Card. The Downloadkey II downloads and archives mass memory data from the digital tachograph while the accompanying Mobile Card Reader allows the driver to download the Driver Card data without the requirement of a Company Card.
In the UK, there is a mandatory requirement to download data from digital tachographs at least every 56 days and for the Driver Card to be downloaded at least every 28 days. This downloaded data must be available for inspection by VOSA and the Police. Peter Needham, Product Manager comments "The VDO solution is simple, flexible and secure and allows drivers to download their Driver card whilst away from base and meet their legal requirements at the same time."
VDO has completed the retrofit of 160 Digital Tachographs to the vehicles of the largest independent direct door to door van sales operation in the UK; P&H Snacksdirect Ltd.
From its head office in Sheffield, their Logistics Manager, David Rowntree manages a 180 strong fleet of 7.5 tonne box vans based at forty locations, delivering sweet and savoury snack products to a range of outlets. P&H Snacksdirect Ltd had used the mobile shop exemption in the Drivers' Hours Rule to fit their vehicles with speedometers and record their drivers' activities in log books. However, new EC regulations which came into force on the 11th April 2007 removed this exemption and required their vehicles to be fitted with tachographs by the end of 2007.
Continental is celebrating a production milestone: On January 17, 2008, at the Villingen-Schwenningen plant, the one millionth VDO DTCO 1381 digital tachograph came off the production line. The device records driving and rest times electronically, in mass memory and on a chip card. In addition, a comprehensive portfolio of data management and training packages are available for all target groups to enable them to integrate this new tachograph technology into their business.
Just two and a half years after the start of series production, one million VDO DTCO 1381 digital tachographs have been assembled. This production milestone was celebrated on January 17, 2008 at the Villingen-Schwenningen location. The company has been producing devices that record driving and rest time on a diagram chart since as far back as 1923. From that time onwards, the company has produced 15 million analogue tachographs.
Please click here to enter the shop for digital tachograph training aids, accessories and data management solutions
