Fleet management involves detailed management resources. Managers must maintain safety standards, ensure fuel management, vehicle acquisition, and vehicle maintenance, and keep drivers satisfied. This can be a bit of a balancing act, but many available automation solutions can help with this.
It can be easy to stumble into pitfalls of inefficiency, safety violations, or accidents if done wrong. Fleet management helps prevent all of these, but the management must understand how to make the correct decisions based on the data and information presented.
Most importantly, many modern software solutions can help automate and simplify these processes for managers. This provides information not just to them but potentially to higher management and to clients, enabling them to participate in decision-making and evaluate productivity. These applications won’t do every part of the job, though, so it’s important to understand exactly what to expect from these solutions.
1: What Does Fleet Management Software Do?
As stated, fleet management software helps gather information through connected vehicles and can report on things like maintenance needs, vehicle diagnostics, GPS data for vehicle location, fuel spending, and even things like a driver’s behavior. Teletrac Navman formulated a list of five Key Performance Indicators that this software can track and how they aid in fleet management. These are:
- Distracted Driving Events, which are the number one cause of road accidents
- Speeding Events, which not only cause road accidents but also impact fuel cost
- Engine Idle Time, which negatively impacts the environment and your bottom line
- Average Time On Site that helps to track how efficient carriers are in loading and unloading
- Unscheduled Maintenance, which constrains your output by causing vehicle downtime
Fleet tracking software solutions use electronic logging devices to help to collect this data and make it available to fleet managers so they can take action on it and work to improve performance continually.
2: What Does a Fleet Manager Do?
Fleet managers work to monitor the activity and health of a fleet through the described vehicle tracking systems and then implement improvements based on that data. They understand driver behavior, their fleet vehicles, and how their workflow helps to maximize fleet efficiency. This is by no means an easy job and requires expertise, intrapersonal skills, organizational habits, and a get-it-done attitude to stay ahead of emerging issues.
MixTelematics developed a great core list of responsibilities for Fleet Managers, and it encompasses the following:
- Working to uphold compliance with government regulations such as the IFTA fuel tax, HOS, and more.
- Driving safety initiatives fleet-wide
- Measuring success with self-set baseline metrics
- Driving asset acquisition, utilization, and maintenance
- Improving the bottom line by increasing efficiency in vehicle routing and dispatch
- Ensuring customer satisfaction with on-time deliveries
These functions are crucial for maintaining a delivery fleet and certainly for operating profitably. To this end, Fleet Managers require help and support along the way from companies like RPM. The remarketing side of fleet management is highly volatile. RPM provides speed of transport and has the best damage-claims services to alleviate both customer and carrier concerns.
3: What is Fleet Management?
Fleet Managers have a tough task of keeping an eye on fleet utilization. This includes, mileage management, vehicle maintenance, and run rate. Overseeing an entire fleet of trucks means fleet owners and/or fleet managers need total visibility and real-time tools. Tracking utilization is crucial to ensure success.
In an article posted by Wilmar , they site the 5 Key Metrics that can help track fleet utilization:
· Collect data for the trips and routes your fleet has undertaken, including the times and purposes for these trips
- Identify the vehicles dragging your fleet performance and recall them for maintenance or sell them.
- Consider selling some of the underused vehicles to cut operational costs and instead lease during your enterprises' peak season.
- If your business vehicles are always in and out of garages, then your fleet performance is greatly compromised, and you are likely to suffer budget constraints.
- You can never go wrong with a fleet management software tool in the hands of an excellent fleet management services provider.
Fleet Managers and fleet management systems both need supervision to ensure that the correct decisions are being made based on the data. In certain situations, it might be best for multiple people to evaluate the thought process behind courses of action, to ensure nothing is being overlooked.
4: How the Semiconductor Chip Shortage is Affecting Fleet Management?
While OEMs and dealerships have been feeling the pressures of lacking inventory, the fleet sector of the automotive industry has also felt immense pressure. Supply is scarce for commercial fleets and many fleet companies are exceeding their budgets to buy vehicles that may not be the best fit for the job. The inability to source new in-fleeting units from OEMs, combined with customers choosing not to re-up fleets, has led to less remarketing and value-added services revenue (license plate installation, vehicle ID stickers, diagnostic and vehicle telemetry, interior preparations, such as key tagging, clock programming, plastic removal, and branding placement) squeezing profits.
Unavailability of vehicles is leading to customers retaining aging fleets and, therefore, not driving the churn that fleet companies thrive on for revenue. When de-fleeting and new units are pressed into service, the speed and flexibility of RPM to help get units to the most profitable auctions or remarketing streams allow fleet customers to maximize ROI in this increasing hot used vehicle market.
5: How Tech Enabled Transportation Providers Can Help Fleet Managers?
It’s crucial that fleet managers maintain optimal fleet visibility. Leveraging a collaborative fleet management software will help, but also having a tech enabled vehicle transportation provider that understands the nuances of the fleet industry will help. RPM uses data and insights to provide real-time solutions. Communication, speed, and a reliable network gives us an advantage to respond to market fluctuations affecting the fleet market. We provide digitized solutions with full visibility and total transparency through our TMS.
Conclusion
Fleet Management is a complicated but by understanding how to make smart decisions with software-driven data, a fleet manager can truly bolster business performance. In searching for fleet management solutions, you should cross-examine their advertised listings with some of the features explained above to ensure they’re providing you with optimal value. Never be afraid to speak with a sales representative or even a fleet managerthemselves to inquire about their strategies for success and how they work to optimize the fleet they manage.
Sources:
Teletrac Navam - What is Fleet Management? | Teletracnavam.com
Mix Telematics - What Is Fleet Management? | Mixtelematics.com
Wilmar ,
