bMobile Route Software Named to Top Tech List
January 15, 2010
“bMobile Route Software, provider of Route Accounting Systems for Food and Beverage Distribution Industry, was named to High-Tech Company Top List by Idaho Business Review.”
Boise, Idaho – bMobile Route Software, of Eagle, Idaho, was named to the list of top high-tech firms by the regional business publication, Idaho Business Review. The route software development company gained industry recognition in 2009 with record setting sales despite the historic recession.
“Being included on the list with Micron Technology and other prestigious tech manufactures is a real honor,” cited bMobile’s President Chris Macaw. “Being able to grow our staff and our product line during such tough economic times was a real confidence builder.”
“We attribute a portion of our growth to the timely release of some very innovative products.” Macaw went on to add, “The other component of our success is our extremely devoted and customer-focused staff.”
The V.09 release of bMobile Route Software revealed the high anticipated RoutMizer route optimization software. That highly anticipated feature reduces route costs in fuel, labor and equipment.
As a developer of mobile distribution software, bMobile Route Software services food and beverage route sales and route delivery distributors. In 2009, bMobile enhanced many of their product lines with specialized features for beer distribution, bread and bakery product distribution, prepaid calling card distribution and propane wholesale distributors.
bMobile Route Software is branch of Software Outfitters Technology founded in 1996. The company is privately owned with over 650 customers throughout North America and Puerto Rico. bMobile is an authorized developer for the accounting software firms, Intuit®, SAP®, Mas 90®, Mas 200® and Cougar Mountain Software®.
bMobile also announced an upcoming release of V.10, and promises even more inovatin that has placed it among the top technology companies in the northwest.
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bMobile Route Software Names Jeremy Russell as National Channel Manager
Aug 18, 2009
“bMobile Technology, provider of Route Accounting Software, announced the addition of former Sage Software executive Jeremy Russell to their management team.
BOISE, Idaho, Aug 18 – Today bMobile Technology, of Eagle, Idaho, announced the selection of Jeremy Russell as their new National Channel Manager. In addition to his nine-years of sales and management experience with Sage, the former Idaho resident also served as an Authorized Sage Software Partner and most recently managed the Denver branch office for BCS ProSoft, also a business technology provider.
“We’re delighted to have Jeremy on our team,” said bMobile president Chris Macaw. “The importance we place on channel sales required someone of Jeremy’s caliber to lead our National Business Partner Channel division. Having been a Sage Partner, and having supported channel partners, gives him a unique understanding of Partner needs and challenges.”
“The opportunity to work with cutting edge mobile technology and the highly regarded bMobile organization was compelling,” said Russell. “Joining this awesome team and returning to Idaho is a double win, for me and my family.”
Mr. Russell is an Ohio native with a BA degree in business, from California State University of Chico. Married with two children, Jeremy is also a non-practicing CPA.
About bMobile Route Software
bMobile Technology, Inc. is located in the Boise, Idaho metro area, and is the sister company of the custom software development firm Software Outfitters, Inc. bMobile specializes in development of mobile software solutions and integrating those products with accounting software systems from Sage®, Intuit®, SAP®, DacEasy®, Cougar Mountain®, and others. Founded in 1996, the company is privately owned with over 650 customers throughout North America and Puerto Rico.
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Fuel Costs Weigh on Trucking Industry
October 24, 2008
While the past year’s record-breaking fuel prices have found millions of motorists moaning at the pump, they’ve had a much more dramatic effect on an industry that serves as the backbone of the U.S. economy: trucking.
According to Kathy Fowers, president of the Idaho Trucking Association, nearly 2,000 trucking firms went out of business nationwide in the first two quarters of 2008, and best estimates are
that another 1,000 went under in the third quarter. That doesn’t even take into account companies with five or fewer trucks or independent companies, both of which make up a good portion of Idaho’s trucking industry.
“I know one of our members had been struggling for months but he finally got bought out by a company in Oregon,” she said. “In order to pay his insurance premium for a month he sold his truck just to keep his company open.” Though diesel prices have fallen off in recent weeks – to between $3.60 and $3.90 around the state – Jason Andrus of Doug Andrus Distributing in Idaho Falls said fuel economy is a primary concern.And small things like tire pressure, speed limits and basic equipment choices mean a lot.
“One thing we’re doing is really analyzing closely which equipment configurations get the best fuel efficiency,” said Andrus, who serves as the 71-year-old company’s chief financial officer.
With 260 trucks, Doug Andrus Distributing is the largest trucking firm based in Idaho, so it needs to save every penny it can. Andrus said simply lowering the firm’s fleet speed limit from 68 to 64 miles per hour is expected to save about a half-gallon per mile. “That might not seem like a lot, but Doug Andrus Distributing does 30 million miles a year,” he said.
But aside from basics like tire pressure and speed limits, technology can also help trucking companies streamline their operations. Andrus said his company uses two pieces of software, PC*Miler and Expert Fuel, to determine the most efficient routes, track fuel prices and establish when and where drivers can fuel up for the least amount of money.
While Andrus said his company has been using the programs for years, they haven’t been enough to completely overcome the challenges posed by high diesel prices. Still, route optimization, as it’s called, provides a big enough benefit that freight giants like UPS have developed their own programs to plot routes – even down to the minutest factors.
“In order to not have any idle time and keep things moving smoothly they (UPS) have figured out their routes so they only have to make right turns,” Fowers said. According to Chris Macaw, president and CEO of Eagle-based software firm bMobile, the key to making route optimization really work for small- to medium-sized trucking companies is bundling everything together – taking into account speed limits, construction zones, fueling stations, prices, weight, distance and inventory, and making it all accessible from a handheld device that marries work in the field to back-office operations like bookkeeping and proof of delivery.
“We look at time as an incredible resource, so if we’re efficient in terms of loading or making sales in the field or not having someone key data in when they come in, we look at that as a tremendous return on investment,” Macaw said.
The company, which has been in operation since 2000, today counts about 1,000 users in the U.S., Canada and even Aruba. Macaw pointed to a Boston-area Pepsi distributing company as an example of what bMobile’s RouteMizer 2.0 software can do, saying the firm saves about $1,100 a day just by optimizing its 26 routes.
“We’re not really intended for May Trucking or a company like that,” said Macaw, who added that about 100 Idaho firms use RouteMizer. “We’re mainly intended for somebody that’s actually distributing products.”
With its own designers and developers, Macaw said bMobile is able to customize its product to fit client needs, and uses industry standard tools and hardware to keep costs down. Still, efficiency carries a price tag – software and training cost about $10,000 and each handheld device comes in at about $2,000. Macaw said that’s still less than many other route optimization systems, and RouteMizer features the added benefit of consolidation.
“To bring it all together and have it so one system talks to another is what we think is the key benefit of our program,” he said.
Reprinted by Permission of Idaho Business Review
© 2008 Idaho Business Review
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New Gas-Saving Software Released
June 9, 2008
“bMobile Technology, provider of Route Accounting Software, releases new route management software with gas-saving route optimization feature.”
BOISE, Idaho – Today bMobile Technology announced the new version release of its bMobileRoute Manager™, route accounting software, version 8.0. The route management software system is designed for small and midsize wholesale distribution companies, with focus on the consumer package goods industry (CPG).
bMobile also announced that its latest release includes a new gas-saving feature, RouteMizer™ route optimization package. The route optimization package, RouteMizer, utilizes sophisticated route mapping technology as well as the capability to distribute workload throughout the delivery fleet and labor force, using a variety of fleet, load and personnel criteria. While fuel the savings is the obvious benefit to any route delivery operation, vehicle and labor optimization functionality was also developed to reduce operating costs for midsize companies.
bMobile President Chris Macaw stated, “RouteMizer is by far the most requested of all the new features, and has the greatest potential of immediate payback for the wholesaler.” The RouteMizer addition has drawn increased interest due to the recent fuel cost surge.
In addition to route optimization, the route management package 8.0 added advanced asset tracking features and additional in-depth sales reports. The PC portion of the package is Windows® compatible and the real-time mobile application utilizes the industry leading Windows Mobile® platform, allowing installation on most handheld computing devices. The two systems communicate via WiFi, wireless broadband, or the ubiquitous digital cellular.
About bMobile Technology
bMobile Technology is located in the Boise, Idaho metro area, and is the sister company of the custom software development firm Software Outfitters, Inc. Founded in 1996, the company is privately owned with over 650 customers throughout North America and Puerto Rico. bMobile is an authorized developer for the accounting software firms, Intuit®, SAP® and Cougar Mountain Software®.
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