Fleet management is far from easy. As problems arise, it becomes difficult to find solutions to every issue. The larger the fleet, the more management tasks have a strain on your day-to-day efficiency. According to Government Fleet, there was an increase to 56% in the number of fleets that reported budget increases due to the costs of technology, parts, and fuel. To make your job easier, here are 10 of the most common problems within fleet management, and some solutions that couldn’t hurt as well.
Driver Safety and Distracted Driving
Keeping in touch with your employees while they’re out on the job is common in order to see how they’re progressing throughout the day. Many employees often feel the need to reply to their managers right away, even when driving. In a recent news release from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 40 percent of all workplace fatalities three years ago were due to transportation incidents. To keep driver safety as a priority, encourage your employees to keep phone use on the road to a minimum and implement a fleet safety policy.
Lack of Route Optimization
Getting to a job site as fast as possible is key when running a business efficiently. If you find that your company routes are not optimized, you’ll notice that you could find faster, easier routes for your employees to reach a job site. Taking the time to manually figure out the best routes tends to not be ideal when managing a fleet.
Inefficient Operations
Complicated routes and wasted fuel use can make operations within your business not run as smoothly. In addition to these issues, the increasing responsibilities of the fleet manager role is a major concern for 20 percent of those in the industry. Map out employee routes, idling time that’s using up fuel, and other practices that could be making your operations inefficient.
Driver Behavior
While your employees are out on the road between job sites, you’re trusting that they are doing everything they should be doing. That may not always be the case. Drivers may take extended breaks between jobs or during lunch that doesn’t allow for the most optimal use of time.
Unauthorized Use of Company Assets
Most company-owned vehicles or equipment have parameters on when employees can use them. Unauthorized use of company assets can be a common problem within fleet management. Setting up rules and regulations for company equipment may not guarantee that vehicles/equipment are used during the correct times or by those who have the authority to use them.
Handling Wear and Tear of Vehicles
Vehicles will naturally wear out over time with the use that fleet vehicles need on a daily basis. Being able to track each vehicle’s maintenance requirements and when the services are needed is crucial. Of the top concerns within fleet management that were expressed, 44 percent have had concerns with an aging fleet and the budget to replace those vehicles.
Varying Fuel Costs
Gas prices only increase over time, so it’s best to get the most out of your fuel as you can without wasting it. In reference to a survey by Government Fleet, 22 percent of fleets use Diesel fuel, which can be more expensive than regular gasoline. Reducing idling and integrating the most efficient routes will keep fuel waste low, allowing money to stay in your business.
Good Drivers v. Bad Drivers
When you’re not able to check the safety of your drivers when they’re out on the road, it’s hard to tell the good from the bad. It’s always a good idea to ensure your employees are being safe drivers when going to and from specific jobs. These safe driving habits can include following the speed limit, having no rapid accelerations, or preventing harsh braking.
Data Management
The larger the fleet, the harder it is to pinpoint certain issues or information, leading to frustrated employers and wasted time. In 2018, 23 percent of fleets had a range of 200 to 499 vehicles within their fleet with the following lead of 15 percent of fleets that contained 1,000 to 1,999 vehicles, according to a Government Fleet survey. With a great number of fleets being on the bigger end, there’s a need to incorporate technology to find exactly which vehicle or driver may be having an issue at any given time.
TMI (Too Much Information)
Besides having trouble finding out specific information about your fleet, there’s also a vast amount of information to filter through. As stated by Kevin Kelley, VP of Enterprise Fleet Management, in a Fleet Financials article, “as the amount of data available continues to grow, fleets need to work on organizing the data to help them plan and execute both in the short-term and the long-term.” The amount of information is overwhelming to sort through efficiently.
Fleet telematics can be a useful tool for you in 2019. It can integrate into multiple levels within managing your fleet, having a wide range of usefulness. Monitor where your employees are throughout a typical work day while knowing the maintenance details of each vehicle. Fleet managers reduced fuel costs by 20% by using digital solutions like GPS tracking. You can eliminate wasteful habits that could be costing you money and optimize every aspect of your business at the same time.
Learn more about the value of fleet telematics with Linxup GPS tracking devices. Feel free to get in touch with our friendly sales team; you can reach us by clicking here on your phone or dialing: 1-877-907-0801
