IS IT TIME TO UPDATE YOUR FLEET?
Every fleet reaches a point where you need to upgrade your vehicles and equipment. To know when to update your fleet is crucial and you may already be seeing indicators that time has come. Proper maintenance is crucial to ensuring your fleet runs smoothly for miles. Otherwise, the daily wear and tear will lead to massive problems for your fleet and your clients. Be proactive with your fleet maintenance and keep an eye for indicators it may be time for you to update your fleet.
Analyze the steps you’re actively taking to track your overall fleet cost, including maintenance, so you can upgrade your fleet at the tight time. The strategy in making this successful is ensuring both your financial and operational goals are aligned. Something to keep in mind when discussing updating your fleet is what steps you are actively taking to accurately track the cost and get out of the vehicles at the right time, and ask yourself if this strategy is lining up with both your financial and operational goals.
IT MAY BE TIME TO LET GO There’s a lot of pressure when managing your own fleet. The responsibility of keeping costs as low as possible while still being able to maintain safety for your crew can be a juggling act. There are many fleet operators who will keep their fleet vehicles much longer than they should. The result of this is spending way too much money on maintenance and delays for a fleet vehicle that should be let go. If the cost of repairs and maintenance outweighs an update to your fleet, you should be looking at upgrading your vehicles. Frequent breakdowns of your fleet vehicles will lead to costly downtime and delays in deliveries. Utilizing fleet maintenance software will help you determine when to upgrade your fleet. You can track maintenance logs to identify trends in your fleet vehicles. You can’t prepare for unplanned maintenance, however you can keep yourself prepared by staying up to date on your fleet maintenance data. This is crucial to getting the most out of your fleet vehicles. Maintenance costs are essential to your operating expenses to alleviate costs for unexpected breakdowns.
The older the vehicle, the higher the chance it’s going to break down. Fleet vehicles don’t last forever, despite how much maintenance you do. However, how your fleet vehicles are maintained and driven also factor into the wear and tear of your fleet. Utilizing fleet maintenance software will easily help you identify trends in your fleet. You can analyze by a certain make or model to see if there’s similar issues happening between them as well. Using this data, you prepare a plan that will upgrade your fleet and avoid costly repairs.
WATCH THOSE CLICKS Fleet vehicles can tally up the odometer and can take a toll on your fleet if you’re not properly maintaining them. The more distance that is put onto your fleet, the more often you will need to perform maintenance on your vehicles. With additional mileage, there are other factors that begin to add to your fleet operating costs. Fuel consumption will begin to increase as the engine loses efficiency and needs to consume more fuel in order to operate the vehicle.
Instead of skyrocketing your operational costs, it’s time to upgrade your fleet. Get rid of the vehicle that is draining your bottom line and get a new one. The initial cost of investing in a new vehicle may seem overwhelming and a high cost, however it’s going to save you money in the long run. When you factor in the costs of maintenance, vehicle downtime, and delays from breakdowns, you’ll be saving your bottom line.
UPDATE YOUR FLEET, AND CHECK YOUR CREW Your fleet is only as effective as the driver behind the wheel. How your vehicles are driven and operated has a huge impact overall on how much maintenance is going to be needed and increases the chance of breakdowns. When your vehicles are on the road for hours, you need to have a driver who is effective and takes care of your fleet vehicles. The comfort of your driver should be top priority. Ensuring they are comfortable above all else will in the end bring them much more efficiency when handling and dealing with your fleet vehicles. The decision to upgrade your fleet is not one to be taken lightly. It’s a big expense, however it’s a much needed expenditure when your fleet is hemorrhaging money for maintenance and breakdowns. Not to mention the amount of client delays resulting in your fleet not effectively working for you. When you upgrade your fleet, you will notice a drop in your maintenance expenses. Drivers will show to be more comfortable and happy, which in turns leads to increased productivity. Having this added piece of mind when it comes to your fleet is priceless. Knowing your fleet vehicles are less likely to breakdown because of your fleet upgrade is worth the price tag. With all decisions, timing is paramount. Ensuring you are upgrading your fleet when the time is right, not before and definitely not after.