By Fleet Management Weekly Staff
November 20, 2024
Over the last few years, the fleet world has seen a number of advanced and emerging technologies being integrated into day-to-day fleet operations. Telematics, battery electric vehicles (BEVs), and autonomous vehicles (AVs) have risen as technologies develop and become more reliable. However, while these technologies hold much promise, each one is developing at a different rate and subject to different, rapidly changing regulations.
As is usually the case, data is the number one tool to help us understand how these technologies work and what practical benefits they can offer fleets. Escalent, a top research, data analytics, and advisory firm, works with vehicle manufacturers and service providers to help them develop products and services that better serve fleet businesses and decision-makers.
Dania Rich-Spencer
They also release an annual Fleet Technology Index (FTI) report, a study of fleet decision-makers that gauges emerging technologies among commercial vehicle and fleet businesses. Published out of Escalent’s Fleet Advisory Hub™ insights program, this report highlights market readiness and adoption of various technologies, factoring in the attractions and obstacles to adoption.
We spoke with Dania Rich-Spencer, Vice President of Escalent’s Automotive and Mobility Team, to learn more about this year’s report.
What does Escalent’s Fleet Technology Index report tell us about the state of the fleet industry?
The report gives some valuable insights but let me start by giving you an overview. Escalent’s Fleet Technology Index report, now in its fifth year, surveys a dedicated group of fleet decision-makers whom we call our Fleet Advisory Hub. They’re making decisions for vehicle acquisition and operations each year, representing around 12,000 companies and over a million vehicles. It’s an audience that Escalent has invested a lot in.
As you can imagine, these are difficult folks to get ahold of for research purposes. Still, Fleet Advisory Hub allows us to reach and engage with these folks regularly in a much more efficient and cost-effective way.
The original vision for the FTI report was to understand advanced and emerging technology better and gauge the openness and readiness of the industry. We wanted to understand adoption, receptivity, and shopping behavior around electrification, for example. We wanted to gauge the pulse of the fleet industry not just in terms of attitudes and behaviors but also the business conditions that enable or detract from adoption. Our index is an analytically based measure that takes many different factors into account.
Our most recent report was divided into emerging technologies and core technologies, the latter of which consisted of data analytics, telematics, BEVs, and AVs. One notable thing we saw was a slight downturn in the receptivity to BEVs.
When we started this report five years ago, we anticipated that this openness to and readiness for BEVs would continue moving forward. We wanted to see how fast the curve would be, so we were surprised that some fleet decision-makers were pausing on adoption. Larger companies and those running heavier classes of vehicles are still moving forward, but overall, there has been a softening of the openness to electrification.
We saw that there was a reservation around autonomous vehicles as well. While fleet decision-makers see the value in AVs, there is too much risk associated with the technology today. So, they’re putting the brakes on AVs for now. Again, five years ago, autonomous vehicles were all the rage.
Today, it’s artificial intelligence. So, like any survey, our study isn’t immune to point-in-time dynamics. Our vision was that everything would tick upwards, with some technologies moving faster than others, but we’re seeing some backpedaling in BEVs and AVs. That was a little bit of a surprise to us.
Can you tell us more about what this year’s Fleet Technology Index says about emerging and core technologies?
This year, we were a bit surprised to see a dramatic increase in artificial intelligence. Of course, AI has been around for decades. It underpins telematics and all predictive vehicle aspects regarding predicting failures and diagnostic engine information. However, we believe the current buzz, with congressional hearings around AI and regulations, significantly contributes to the increase in the FTI score for AI. The year-over-year increase was around 40%, while there was a 75% increase from 2020-2024.
As a researcher, you have to take a step back and consider why there’s such a significant increase. We learned from our Fleet Advisory Hub that AI is on their radar—it not only underpins predictive analytics in their telematics but also increases efficiency and productivity in operating the fleet and in backend office procedures.
Thanks to generative AI, some fleets are using AI to develop marketing content and improve customer support/service. For example, using generative AI to create a training video for drivers, which frees up human personnel for more impactful or actionable tasks in their day-to-day working lives.
So again, that was a surprise. It’s also important to note that the Fleet Advisory Hub represents all fleet sizes, from micro fleets to large fleets running thousands of vehicles in all classes. We’re looking at fleet decision-makers running a class of passenger cars up to class eight long haul trucks. This technology affects everyone, although it affects each of them slightly differently. We’re seeing that these adoption rates are currently being driven by larger fleets for various reasons.
BEVs and AVs are part of the core technology analysis. What does the report say about the adoption of these types of vehicles? Why has it softened?
Just because we’re seeing a softening in BEVs doesn’t mean that fleets are abandoning or ignoring the benefits of alternative fuels. After all, they are pressured by their customers to pursue green initiatives and sustainability. It’s just that BEVs aren’t necessarily the only solution that can improve emissions.
We’re seeing that BEVs are part of the solution in addition to hybrid, CNG, and propane. Those last two have been around forever, but this is an opportunity to roll out multiple alternative fuels to create an alternative powertrain portfolio.
We know that geography, use cases, and regulations will drive the adoption of BEVs. But there’s so much happening in the courts around these current EPA regulations. Fleets can’t ignore regulations, but the regulations might be tied up in the legal system for a while. So, given that these companies are committed to sustainability and are interested in green initiatives, BEVs may be part of a more extensive portfolio of solutions.
We also saw openness to AVs decline in 2022. I call the COVID-19 year of 2021-2022 the year all these technologies declined. Truthfully, they didn’t decline as much as I expected, which suggests that fleets are committed to their visions of the future, leveraging technology to improve productivity and efficiency.
However, whereas the other technologies bounced back, autonomous vehicles didn’t. It was flat from 2022-2023 and still hasn’t rebounded. We hear from our fleet decision-makers that the technology is still immature. They recognize the future benefits, including:
- Filling in for a driver shortage
- Lowering the cost associated with labor
- Reducing the risk of accidents or malfunctions
But it’s a risky proposition for a company to absorb. Self-driving vehicle technology isn’t there yet, even as infrastructure technology is advancing. So even though AVs are still a thing, they’re looking at other technologies like electrification and alternative powertrains.
What actions can fleet technology and service providers take based on the findings of the FTI reports?
It’s crucial to leverage the experience of other fleets in the industry. Talk to others who have transitioned with these advanced and 
emerging technologies to learn from their experience so you don’t have to experiment alone. For example, we’ve learned from our Fleet Advisory Hub that the number one trigger for fleet decision-makers to purchase telematics is recommendations from their peers, colleagues, and telematics service providers.
You should also leverage the experience of your service providers, OEMs, and dealerships. They could have broader experience than you do if you’re only running vans or trucks or running delivery on a fixed route but occasionally have to do some long haul. Let them help you optimize that route—you don’t have to go it alone.
Similarly, lean on associations. So many associations are committed to following the technology, understanding where it excels and fails, and being a support system. It reminds me of dealerships, with which we work much at Escalent. Dealers are starting to understand and become a support system for their customers both on the retail and commercial sides when it comes to electrification. They provide a safety net for their commercial customers throughout the EV purchase journey and associated EV ecosystem related to charging and infrastructure. It’s not in their wheelhouse, but dealers are embracing it.
If you are an OEM or a service provider, then there’s never been a better opportunity to be a hero. As a service provider and manufacturer, your experience can make you the trusted advisor for your customers. This is a time to get out of the product development mindset and offer professional services. We’re seeing companies like International Motors (formerly known as Navistar) offering consultations around electric vehicles. This is the time for that because there are undoubtedly many leadership positions in electrification. Seize the opportunity to be a leader and a hero for your customers.
What does the Fleet Technology Index report say about the future of technology integration?
The report certainly indicates that the future is bright for these advanced and emerging technologies. Fleets are very resilient. They’re committed to sustainability and success in the future. While technology openness, readiness, and adoption vary by the eight technologies that we survey each year, there is an overall sense of optimism, acceptance, and expectation that the future is data driven. We hear over and over again that it’s a data-driven industry in a data-driven world.
But there’s also a challenge associated with all data. Unless you can figure out how to leverage the data and apply it to your specific business, it’s just information that won’t help you excel in the future. The data have to be leveraged to your advantage. The learning curve is steep, but that’s where others in the industry can help.
I’m thinking about telematics, the platforms, and the information provided. They’re improving, becoming more user-friendly, reliable, and better at predicting. The beauty of data is in its ability to prevent bad things from happening. While it’s getting better and better, you need to take the time to learn how to leverage the data to optimize it for your business.
