Club Car reps didn't want to bore the golf industry's press corp with the same-old-same-old GIS presentation touting the benefits and advantages of is Visage fleet management technology.
Instead, they brought in as a special guest Mark Langner, GCGS, FarmLakes Golf Club, Sylacauga, Ala., to talk about his experience using the innovative technology.
The multi-function fleet management system allows superintendents, like Langner, to have total control over the its golf cars, whether they're in play on the course, in the shop for maintenance, or worst-case-scenario, they're missing.
"The technology helps us to be more efficient on the labor side and makes us better on the customer service side," Langner says. "It really answers the question of how do I manage the golf carts without being out there with them 24/7."
Langner explained the Visage system gives him a full-diagnostic report on everything from charge level and areas that need maintenance on individual carts. In addition, the system provides accountability by tracking and providing real-time locations of each car in his fleet.
Another impressive function was the ability to program "action zones" into the system that alerts golfers when they've strayed into areas they shouldn't be, and will even slow down, stop and reverse a car.
"Every superintendent wants to be able to contol their cart traffic," Langer says. "They want to feel confident that the golfers are doingt what they should be doing... that they're sticking to the cart path and staying out of restricted areas.
"The system takes the human-confrontation element out of scenarios that you can't control," he adds. "With this system, all the golfer can do is kick the golf cart."