PORTLAND, OR — The parent company to truck makers Freightliner and Western Star has become a minority investor in Zonar Systems Inc., a provider of fleet inspection, tracking and operations systems for fleets.

The move by Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA) marks “a milestone in the company’s development of smarter connected vehicles and in Zonar’s continued role as a leader in telematics and connectivity services,” according to DTNA

Zonar will continue to operate independently of DTNA, with Martin Daum, CEO of DTNA, becoming a member of its board of directors.

Neither company has said how much of a stake DTNA now has in Zonar or how much it spent, however, Transport Topics newspaper was told by one DTNA official the amount is under 25 percent of Zonar.

“Telematics and connectivity are revolutionizing commercial vehicle operation with enormous opportunities for OEMs, especially for us as the leader of this business. That is exactly why we made connectivity a dedicated part of our strategy,” said Dr. Wolfgang Bernhard, member of the board of management of Daimler AG, responsible for Daimler Trucks and Buses.

Daimler AG is the Germany-based parent of DTNA.

“We consistently implement this strategy – and today we have reached an important milestone. Our investment in Zonar will help us to put connected services on the road with even greater speed and variety. We are partnering with a pioneer in this field,” said Bernhard.

The companies have partnered for more than five years, starting with the launch of the Virtual Technician remote diagnostic system. Today, Zonar’s products can be factory-installed in Freightliner Trucks and Western Star trucks.

DTNA and Zonar will continue to co-develop new products and expand Zonar’s product suite, both as an OEM and independently.

DTNA’s telematics system, branded Detroit Connect, was developed by and is powered by Zonar and is used in more than 150,000 vehicles.