Fleet management is not an easy task – there are many aspects involved, and deciding where to prioritise your efforts often requires a lot of data and can sometimes result in a lot of guesswork. It doesn’t have to be so, however. There are some simple implementations you can adopt in order to make the whole process smoother. Making sure that everyone is happy at their job is one thing; making sure that the fleet is organised in such a way for minimal expenses and optimum profit is another. So what is your role as a fleet manager? Here’s how to be the best fleet manager you can possibly be.
How GPS can help
Salaries and benefits are usually the greatest expense of an enterprise – fleet management is often the second largest cost. Being able to reduce this cost (or being able to make it more efficient) therefore has a great effect on the company and on the bottom line at the end of the month. GPS tracking, such as that from a company like VirtusFleet.co.uk, gives one great advantage: better and more accurate reporting – and this leads to amazing benefits.
Reducing costs
- Reducing time. Being able to track the vehicle allows you to plot the route and learn from mistakes in the past. It also allows you to monitor any possible misuse or abuse by drivers. Planning better routes and monitoring driver efficiency leads to big savings.
- Saving on fuel. Traffic situations are often costly in terms of fuel consumption; evaluating fuel consumption not only helps you save, but also aids in accurate reporting for tax purposes.
- Accident and crime avoidance. GPS tracking considerably reduces crime incidents – theft or loss of cargo are real threats which not only lead to loss of money, but have the potential of halting future operations.
Improving maintenance
Knowing when your vehicles need repair or preventive maintenance allows for better efficiency – and hence big savings in the long term. Since most GPS tracking systems are powered by the vehicle’s engine, it’s easy to have software warn you when maintenance should be scheduled.
A good fleet manager knows what their personnel go through every day, and tries to make it as easy for them as possible. However, a strategy of management based on that prerogative alone has a tendency of costing a lot of money. On the other hand, basing your programme on saving as much money as possible will have an adverse effect on staff morale, which could lead to a serious breakdown of the system. The key is balance, and that’s where GPS tracking – and the data learned from this – comes into play. A little bit of real-time data-mining can go a long way.
