Arsenault Associates, Atco, NJ, will offer Dossier32 maintenance management software as an ASP (Application Service Provider) beginning in April. Company president Charles Arsenault says his company will be the first to offer fleet maintenance software service direct to customers over the Internet.

Many more ASPs offering various software solutions are likely to follow. An ASP runs software -- in this case Dossier32 -- on his server. Customers access it over the Internet as if it were their own, but without buying or installing it. Instead, it will be pay-as-go only for actual use.
After entering necessary data, a customer can request anything from a quick answer to a detailed report, which can be printed or saved on a local hard disk. All customer information is protected by security firewalls and available only to authorized users.
You'll find an on-line demo of Dossier32 (and get the feel of using it on-line) at Arsenault's web site (www.truckfleet.com). A handsome, easy-to-navigate program, Dossier32 worked well on the web through this reporter's old 36.6 kbps modem.
The advantages? An ASP requires no initial cash vestment or costs for software updates. It can be paid for by credit card and easily expensed. All billing information is automatically documented. Arsenault points out that customers can access Dossier on virtually any computer that can run a web brower and access the Internet, an old 486 for example.
Arsenault joins ASPs like the one of InVantage Inc., Taylor, MI, whose eShip ASP offers EDI (Electronic Data Interchange) and other for-hire fleet functions through a customized web site. While running on InVantage's server, eShip shows only the trucking customer's logo and information.