Case Study
“FleetWatcher is a game changer. Visibility alone changes everything: how you move equipment, monitor fault codes, manage maintenance, and evaluate productivity. Instead of relying on paper that may or may not be accurate, teams can look at real-time data together and make informed decisions. FleetWatcher changes everything across the board.”
Daniel Cornell | Byard Construction
Keeping track of more than 250 pieces of equipment spread across the county isn’t easy—especially when the process relies on pen and paper. As Byard Construction looked for a better way to monitor its assets, the team turned to AlignOps FleetWatcher. We sat down with Daniel Cornell, a Construction Analyst at Byard Construction and self-described “jack of all trades,” to talk about the hands-on training behind installing FleetWatcher devices used to track and monitor equipment.
Founded in 1997 in Tennessee, Byard Construction has built its reputation on quality, integrity, and safety. What began as a local, family-run business has grown into a trusted construction company and a leading provider of asphalt, mass grading, and utility services.
As the company continued to grow over the years, so did the challenge of managing equipment across multiple job sites. Recently, Byard Construction implemented FleetWatcher to help monitor equipment locations and improve overall fleet visibility.
“FleetWatcher helps us track our equipment locations. The maintenance features will also be a big help. While we do a good job with maintenance, things still get missed—we’re human, and resources are limited. Even our lowboy drivers sometimes don’t know exactly where the equipment is after transport. It’s no one’s fault—it’s just very difficult to track that many assets at once. FleetWatcher helps solve that.”
Leading the effort to bring FleetWatcher to life at Byard Construction is Daniel Cornell. Daniel Cornell joined the team nearly two years ago as the FleetWatcher subject matter expert. In his role, he has supported a wide range of initiatives, from developing technology for asphalt plants to supporting accounting and HR software.
As part of the FleetWatcher rollout, Daniel was recently joined onsite by a member of the AlignOps team for “Train the Mechanic,” a hands-on training program focused on installing FleetWatcher tracking devices on equipment. He shared his experience with the training and what it meant for Byard Construction.
The FleetWatcher platform is powered by real-time fleet data. As part of the go-live process, customers install hardware in their vehicles to capture location, fuel usage, runtime, and other key analytics. For some, especially when it comes to complex equipment, that can sound intimidating. But the FleetWatcher team doesn’t simply hand over the hardware and expect you to figure it out on your own.
The AlignOps team is there every step of the way. Through a hands-on training program called Train the Mechanic, an AlignOps team member comes on-site to walk through device installation step by step—even on more complex machines.
That support is exactly why Byard Construction felt confident moving forward. Leading the device installation effort was Daniel Cornell, who had no formal background in heavy equipment.
“I am not a heavy equipment mechanic at my company, and I never have been.”
Knowing that the AlignOps team has his back, Daniel was confident that he could learn and successfully lead the device installation across Byard Construction’s equipment.
Before the AlignOps team arrived on-site, Daniel and his coworker, Brandon, spent a week installing devices to familiarize themselves with the equipment. Together, they installed five to six devices and compiled a list of questions to prepare for the on-site training.
Daniel and Brandon met Tony, AlignOps’ Senior Hardware and Logistics Manager, in the field.
“We were in the pouring rain installing devices on pavers, and Tony was completely okay with it, as was I, completely okay with being out in the pouring rain getting these machines done. And he was amped to do as much as he could while he was on the ground.
Like, there were no questions about, ‘oh, I don't have enough time.’ He was willing and able to make as much time as he could and put as much effort into helping us in any way possible while he was here. I really couldn't speak more highly of him and your guys' program that you're trying to bring to light.”
Tony stayed on-site with Byard Construction for two days. While the Byard Construction team found plug-and-play installations intuitive, they chose to focus the training on more complex devices. During that time, they installed four pavers and one hardwired dozer.
“It was invaluable. Without Tony on-site, I honestly might not have completed those installs—or at least not at the same quality level. Those machines are significantly more complex. Having a member of the FleetWatcher team there in person made a huge difference. I can’t really put a value on it—it was just invaluable.”
“Some things just can’t be fully addressed over a phone call. Being able to ask questions in real time and get hands-on guidance made a huge difference.”
Today, the team at Byard Construction is confident in its ability to install FleetWatcher devices on even the most complex machines and plans to have the majority of devices installed and fully operational in the coming months.
Looking ahead, Byard Construction is focused on building long-term efficiency and visibility across its fleet. With device installations well underway, the team is working toward fully integrating FleetWatcher to support productivity, monitor idle time, and streamline day-to-day operations.
In addition to tracking equipment locations, Byard Construction plans to integrate preventive maintenance systems into FleetWatcher. Having already integrated its asphalt plants, the team is also preparing to install FleetWatcher cameras in dump trucks to capture and review safety events through video and snapshots—accessible directly within the FleetWatcher platform.
With the right technology in place and the confidence to install and scale the system internally, Byard Construction is laying the groundwork for a more connected, data-driven approach to fleet management.
