Does this sound familiar?
It’s 8:05 am on a Monday, you’ve just sat down at your desk (and haven’t even had a sip of coffee yet), and there is already a line of your employees outside your door with a slew of problems.
Such-and-such part isn’t in, so a job can’t be completed.
Driver A is complaining because his vehicle isn’t ready yet.
There’s no way the current staff of technicians can complete the work orders for today.
Vehicle X is due for maintenance, but the driver hasn’t yet brought it in.
The questions – and problems – can be endless. Without a solution, you can feel like you are heading upstream without a paddle (and a team of executives watching your every move). You might also find yourself in this position.
You get a call from the C-suites asking for numbers on your operation.
• How close are you to being on budget?
• How many work orders have been completed?
• How much have you spent on in-house vs third-party maintenance?
• How much fuel is each vehicle using?
• How much longer can you go without replacing vehicles?
• When do you absolutely need new vehicles by?
Again, without the right technology behind you, finding the answers to these questions can take days – if you are even able to get the information at all.
Fortunately, there are ways to resolve your issues and get the answers you need. Fleet maintenance software can be the solution.
Keep Your Fleet Compliant
Fleet management software lets your operation keep all of its information in one place. This means no random spreadsheets scattered around with important information like when vehicle registrations are due, when driver’s licenses need to be renewed, and more. Storing this information in your FMIS lets you easily access the information and know that it’s stored in a safe location.
Get Data and Analytics
More and more you might be asked for specific information about your fleet’s productivity. This can be easily accessed through an FMIS. You can run reports on a variety of issues, from vehicle downtime to Total Cost of Ownership, to technician productivity, and much more. This helps you build the case you need to purchase new vehicles, hire more technicians, and other important data points. You can customize reports to grab the data you need.
Improve Safety
When is the last time a vehicle was serviced? Have the tires been checked? Were pre-trip inspections conducted? Storing this information in an FMIS can help shops quickly check a vehicle’s history to ensure it’s safe to be on the road. This can be crucial if the asset is in an accident so you can prove the tires were recently replaced, for example.
Decrease Maintenance Repair Times
Downtime is the enemy of a fleet operation. You can reduce this by making your maintenance process as efficient as possible. Through fleet management software you can track how long jobs take to complete (versus how long they should), schedule PM, ensure parts are on-hand to complete jobs, and more to ensure jobs can be completed as quickly as possible.
Are you over budget on fuel this year? Yeah, we all are, right? In times like this with rising fuel costs, it’s essential to reduce fuel spend and usage whenever possible. An FMIS will help you track how much fuel each vehicle is using so you can monitor if the driver is idling the asset too long, if he’s taking longer routes, using the vehicle for personal usage, and more. You can also look into where the drivers are filling up their tanks and try to find closer fueling stations or reroute vehicles to reduce miles.
Save Money
How much money do you recover from parts warranties each year? Our guess is you’re leaving money on the table. We get it – it can be difficult to keep track of warranties and spend time finding the paperwork and sending the part back. However, it can be easy in your FMIS. You can set up warranty reminders so that when a part needs to be replaced, you will be prompted if it’s under warranty so you can return it.
The right FMIS can make your fleet operation run more efficiently and more cost-effectively. With solutions now available on mobile devices (like RTA’s web solution), your employees can now work from anywhere and access the fleet maintenance solution via any internet-connect device. This type of flexibility can keep your vehicles on the roads longer and help make your shop more productive.
Want to learn more about RTA’s industry-leading fleet management software solution – including our new, convenient, and easy-to-use web application, RTA Web? Schedule a demo with our Sales team today.