For a business with a fleet of any size, ensuring those vehicles within your fleet are well-maintained and running efficiently is a key priority.
However, making sure your fleet is as productive as possible comes with many challenges, however, these can often be overcome by employing best practices and fleet software solutions to improve and streamline workflows.
Here, we explore ways in which you can help your business operate more efficiently by providing insights into maximising fleet productivity.
1. Invest in communication
Communication is crucial to every business and the same can be said when it comes to fleet management. Keeping every team member in the loop, from drivers, technicians, suppliers and office staff connected at all times, ensures the smooth running of the entire fleet operation.
A centralised fleet management platform can easily connect your fleet workforce in real-time, making it much easier to allocate jobs, track driver locations, report incidents, and maintain work records, allowing for a better informed and productive team.
2. Going paperless
Daily tasks such as completing driver walkaround checks, incident reports, safety checks amongst other paperwork can often be time-consuming and inefficient, not to mention having to keep track of a paper trail and storage.
By digitising forms through a fleet management system, you can easily capture and transfer data while on the move using tablets, smartphones or desktop computers so you can streamline processes and eliminate unnecessary paperwork.
This data can then be stored within a centralised system making it easily accessible to all team members, at any time.
3. Streamline maintenance
Vehicle maintenance is key to improving fleet productivity over time. Establishing a regular maintenance schedule for all vehicles within the fleet can help to determine which vehicles in your fleet need replacing or repair.
Replacing older vehicles and regularly maintaining existing ones, can reduce downtime as well as unnecessary maintenance costs. This, in turn, boosts fleet productivity and ensures vehicles are safe on the road.
4. Use fleet data
When it comes to increasing productivity, technology has shown over and over again to be a hugely beneficial asset in effective fleet management. Tracking driver and vehicle data can provide valuable insights into your overall fleet operations.
Investing in telematics allows you to not only monitor driver’s behaviour and live tracking but also gain complete visibility over a vehicle’s and driver's activity in real-time.
Get updates on vehicle locations, routes taken, geofencing parameters, idling and driver data to make more informed decisions about improving efficiencies and productivity within your fleet.
5. Factoring fuel consumption
One of the highest costs of running a fleet is fuel and even more so now with fuel costs in the UK hitting the highest records in over 30 years.
Implementing measures such as the introduction of fuel cards can be used to monitor fuel consumption to fully understand how much fuel is being used by each vehicle and trip, which can help identify ways in which to make savings while reducing paperwork at the same time.
The imminent compulsory transition to electric vehicles will also help to significantly reduce fuel costs as vehicles adapt to using electric charging points which are more cost effective and environmentally friendly. A fleet that is more fuel-efficient will always increase fleet productivity,
6. Increase driver safety
Safe driving is vital fleet to any fleet. Driving patterns and performance influence productivity more than almost any other factor. Helping your drivers establish safe driving habits not only protects your drivers and other road users, but it also ensures your vehicles last as long as possible - increasing productivity.
By identifying unsafe driving habits, you can support drivers by implementing training programs and workshops to help reduce poor driving techniques, determine the safest routes and understand how their driving can affect the overall performance and lifespan of a vehicle.
7. Invest in a fleet management system
Having an overview of each individual component of your fleet can be challenging. With a centralised fleet management system, you can streamline processes and communications quickly and efficiently from a single platform.
From tracking vehicles, assessing vehicle inspections, setting service and maintenance reminders to telematics and GPS tracking, reporting, asset management and workshops, you can customise processes to suit all your fleet requirements.
Managing everything from a single platform delivers valuable insights and reports surrounding your fleet operations without relying on paper or spreadsheet reports while at the same time, ensuring everyone remains informed and connected.
How Prolius can help
It's fair to say that the success of a fleet’s business largely depends on increasing a fleet’s efficiency.
By adopting a robust fleet management solution, you can instantly gain full visibility into your fleet operations; therefore enhancing processes and reducing costs.
Having access to vehicle and driver data allows you to keep your vehicles healthy, drivers productive and your operations streamlined to deliver a more productive fleet.
Find out how the Prolius Fleet management system can help you towards improving your fleet’s productivity.
Start your free trial or request a demo today.