GLOSSARY
Fuel tech, in plain English
Every acronym, every module name, every piece of hardware. The dictionary for the industry we work in.
AdBlue
A diesel exhaust fluid used in modern diesel vehicles to reduce emissions. Often dispensed as its own grade on the forecourt and tracked separately in Head Office.
ATG (Automatic Tank Gauge)
The hardware that measures fuel level, water and temperature inside an underground storage tank. Glassbox integrates with the major ATG brands, including Veeder-Root and Franklin Fueling.
DR (Disaster Recovery)
The infrastructure setup that keeps the platform running if a primary data centre fails. Glassbox is DR-replicated across two Auckland data centres.
ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning)
Business systems like Xero, SAP or NetSuite that handle finance and operations. Glassbox connects to ERPs through its REST API.
BOS (Back Office System)
The software layer that handles transactions, pricing, account management and reporting behind the forecourt. Head Office is Glassbox's back office system.
FCC (Forecourt Controller)
The hardware that coordinates the devices on a forecourt, talking to pumps and other equipment. One of the device types Head Office monitors live.
Forecourt
The outdoor part of a service station where customers pump fuel. Glassbox manages everything that happens here, from the pump to the price board overhead.
Grade
A specific fuel product, such as 91, 95, diesel or AdBlue. Head Office tracks pricing, sales and tank levels by grade.
Hardware-agnostic
Software that doesn't care which vendor's hardware you're running. Glassbox integrates with every major pump controller, ATG, payment terminal and price board in the market.
Head Office
Glassbox's core platform. The single dashboard that runs your entire fuel network.
HOS (Head Office System)
The same thing as Head Office, just the acronym you'll see in our technical material.
IPT (Indoor Payment Terminal)
A staffed, in-store payment terminal, the indoor counterpart to an OPT. Managed centrally in Head Office alongside the rest of your payment hardware.
Multi-tenant
An architecture where one platform serves many customer organisations at once, with each customer's data kept fully separate. It's how Glassbox scales from a single forecourt to a national network on the same infrastructure.
OPT (Outdoor Payment Terminal)
The card-reading pedestal that lets customers pay at unmanned sites. Glassbox makes its own OPT, currently in pilot across New Zealand.
PC (Controller PC)
The small, pre-configured computer Glassbox ships to a site. Plug it into the network and it connects to the forecourt hardware, bringing the site live in Head Office.
PCI (Payment Card Industry)
The set of standards that govern how card payment data is handled and secured. Payment hardware supported by Glassbox is held to these standards.
POS (Point of Sale)
The till and software a manned forecourt uses to take customer transactions. Glassbox makes its own fuel-first POS that integrates natively with Head Office.
Reconciliation
The process of matching fuel sales, deliveries and tank movements to confirm everything adds up. Glassbox reconciles automatically and flags variances.
Relay
An electrical switch that controls forecourt equipment. Head Office can switch relays remotely, so you can control physical devices from the dashboard.
REST API
A standard, token-authenticated way for other systems to connect to Head Office and exchange data. Used to pull data into Power BI, ERP systems and custom tools.
SIRA (Statistical Inventory Reconciliation Analysis)
A method of detecting leaks and losses by analysing tank inventory data over time. Supported by accurate, continuous reconciliation.
Tender
The method a customer pays by, such as card, account or whitecard. Head Office breaks sales down by tender so you understand the mix behind the revenue.
Ullage
The empty space remaining in a tank. Knowing the ullage means deliveries land cleanly without risk of an overfill.
UST (Underground Storage Tank)
The tank buried beneath a forecourt that holds the fuel. Monitored live in Head Office through the tank's ATG.
Pump controller
The hardware that talks to the fuel dispensers and tells them what to do. Examples include Gilbarco, Invenco and POSTEC controllers.
Pylon
The tall sign at the front of a service station that displays fuel prices. Head Office can push price changes to the pylon along with every other price sign across the network.
Whitecard
An account-based fuel card used by commercial and fleet customers to fuel up on account rather than paying retail. Issued, controlled and reconciled in Head Office.
Still came across a term we haven't covered?
Ask us. We're always happy to translate the jargon, and we'll add it to the list.
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