Is Your Fleet Transport Provider Prepared for Hurricane Season?
By Terri Stiffler, Vice President of Transportation Services, ACERTUS (formerly AmeriFleet)
The powerful punch that Florence has delivered to the Carolinas punctuates that it’s hurricane season again and that fleets are no less vulnerable than any other business to painful and costly disruptions.
In their preparations for dealing with major storms, though, there’s one area that fleets might overlook: their transportation operations.
The problem with hurricanes, of course, is that they’re hard to predict. Fleet transportation projects are ongoing, and often planned long before anybody knows when and where the next hurricane will hit. And when it does, vehicles and drivers in transport are subject to delays, alternate emergency routing and, worst of all, potential damage and injury. Unless your transport company has an emergency procedure already in place and staffed, fleets with vehicles in transit may be swamped by chaos and bewildered by a frustrating lack of information.
Many Drivers are Unprepared for Current Vehicle Safety Technology
Many fleets today are spending more money on safety technology, but getting poorer results. One key part of the solution is appropriate driver training that teaches drivers to manage and coordinate with the safety technology that’s in the vehicle - so that they are prepared for what the vehicle is going to do.
Automakers Provide a Third Option – Car Subscription Services
Car subscription services fit the needs of a small demographic of U.S. buyers with whom automakers are testing a new ownership model. Ford, BMW, General Motors Co., Mercedes-Benz, Porsche AG, and Volvo Cars all have subscription options that essentially allow consumers to pick a vehicle, and swap it after a month, or two, or six for another.
Subscriptions are often more expensive than a lease, with monthly costs approaching $3,000 in some cases — though that includes insurance, maintenance and mileage fees.
"It's a different demographic in that they're younger, a little bit more affluent, and they have higher FICO scores," Leonard Ferguson, Ford Credit vice president of mobility and fintech said. "What we're seeing is flexibility attracts people to the service. They need a vehicle for one month or six months. If we weren't doing this, we wouldn't be learning at the rate we're learning today."
Read the article at The Detroit News.
CEOs Need to Take Charge of their Firms’ AI Strategy, Now!
By John Wysseier, President and Chief Executive Officer, The CEI Group, Inc.
Over the next two to three years, American businesses are expected to make a mad rush toward tapping the multi-trillion-dollar potential of artificial intelligence (AI), but they’re likely to stumble and misfire unless they take a strategic approach to its integration.
AI is the area of computer science that enables machines to work and react like humans, equipping them with the ability to communicate in common speech and even learn, plan, and analyze data to find creative solutions to problems. As such, AI initiatives are typically inspired and managed by companies’ Information Technology departments.
But AI has many potential applications that extend way beyond information technology management to all aspects of business.
The Mobility Revolution is Here! Are You Ready?
This is a busy week. The tired expression “doing more with less” is what we do. But, if you possibly can, please take the time on Thursday, September 27th, at 1:00 Eastern for a free webinar that, as NAFA says, “could change your entire perspective on the future of fleet.”
The webinar is sponsored by the NAFA Foundation, a charitable organization, and it is free for everyone. Plus, everyone who registers for the webinar will receive, again at no cost, the detailed white paper upon which the webinar is based. It is a must-read for every fleet professional.
The webinar will be led by futurist Lukas Neckermann. FMW has interviewed Neckermann several times and he is fascinating.
Janice Sutton
Editor in Chief
