Hanover rings up municipal GPS system

Council and staff in the RM of Hanover say a new purchase for the works and operations department will help streamline maintenance for the municipality and improve services in the future.

The municipality recently approved the purchase of a ConX Wireless system, a GPS system which will be equipped on the RMs maintenance fleet to track operations.

Council voted to authorize the $15,350 purchase last Wednesday, to which some questions about the upfront cost were raised.

Coun. Roberto Hiebert told council the benefits outweigh the costs.

“It’s exciting when we can purchase technology that not only improves our services but will also improve our data collection and ability to really zero-in on maintenance needs,” Hiebert said.

The system, which will be installed in 12 pieces of equipment in the RM’s fleet, will use GPS to upload hazards hidden under overgrowth in culverts using electronic pin points, have progress reports on snow plowing, and streamline dust control in the area.

The ConX system will also be able to track how often roads are being maintained to help future decisions on road improvements.

Wes Fehr, manager of works and operations for the municipality, said the system will also aid in reducing staff time spent manually recording where equipment has been in the RM.

The purchase and first year of service is being funded from the municipality’s capital transportation reserve, Fehr said. After that, the service fees will be funded through the municipality’s annual operations budget.

Neighbouring municipalities including the RMs of Ste Anne, Tache and the Town of Niverville also use the ConX system in their equipment fleets.