Fuel serves as a major operating cost for any business with vehicles out in the field, including in-home delivery for HME equipment. What makes fuel one of the toughest expenses to manage is its constant fluctuation in price and usage. While no business owner can prevent fuel rates from rising, advances in fleet tracking technology have made complete fuel management possible. Features such as fuel card integration, driver behavior monitoring, route optimization and automated maintenance scheduling can help contractors manage virtually every aspect of fuel utilization and spend.
Fuel Card Integration
For businesses that use fuel cards, keeping track of transactions can be difficult and time-consuming. To simplify this process, company owners can integrate fuel and maintenance purchase information into a fleet tracking solution. This gives businesses a way to view all fuel card data and transaction details on one screen. Streamlining this process means less digging through piles of paperwork and allows for a more accurate view of fuel consumption. Fuel card integration also saves dispatcher and driver time. Because all merchants in a fuel card vendor's network are included in a fleet tracking solution, fuel station data is readily available. If drivers need help finding the closest fuel station, someone at the home office can easily direct them through a personal navigation device or mobile app designed for dispatch. This allows drivers to fuel up quickly so they can get back to work. Many in-network stations also provide discounts.
Fuel Reports
Because every business has different needs, fleet tracking solutions come equipped with a variety of automated fuel reports, each one serving a unique purpose. Reports provide an in-depth view of specific operational challenges or issues that may have otherwise gone unnoticed. If any unauthorized fuel transactions occur, business owners can simply pull up a report that identifies the offender and provides detailed information regarding purchase activity, including the purchase date and merchant location. Owners can also set up reports to pinpoint instances in which fuel purchased exceeds the amount of fuel the vehicle's tank can hold, helping to identify and eliminate fuel card abuse and fuel theft. In addition to preventing fraudulent purchases, the automated reports can be used to monitor and reduce wasteful practices. Businesses can quickly pull data showing vehicles that are not running at optimal efficiency and burning more fuel than they should. According to the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT), a vehicle may burn more than a half-gallon of fuel for every hour spent idling. Providers can set up reports that identify high idling drivers and show the amount of money wasted from idling. Along with reports, real-time alerts can help owners pinpoint and reduce wasteful practices. If workers exceed the user-defined idle limit, instant alerts can be sent to management via mobile device or computer, helping to stop idling immediately and save more fuel.
Efficient Routing
When workers must drive to unfamiliar locations, they should be provided with efficient routes to ensure less time on the road and less fuel consumed. If workers have multiple deliveries in one day, they can use fleet tracking solutions to order all stops to create the shortest route. Dispatching applications can also help optimize routes and reduce fuel costs. This enables a delivery driver to get to jobsites quicker, increasing productivity while lowering fuel consumption.
Vehicle Maintenance
Keeping vehicles properly maintained prolongs shelf life and keeps them running efficiently. According to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), monitoring and maintaining proper tire inflation can improve fuel economy by up to 3.3 percent. Ensuring vehicles are receiving proper routine maintenance can sometimes fall by the wayside when handling multiple tasks and setting priorities. You can use an automated maintenance module to simplify this process. Maintenance schedules can be tailored for the specific needs of the business and allow reminders to be set by days, miles or engine hours. Businesses can also use maintenance logs and reports to view details of all services performed, helping to ensure policies are being followed and met. Certain fleet tracking providers even offer mobile apps for smartphones and tablets designed to help prolong vehicle life. Drivers can use these mobile apps to record and send vehicle problems to management quickly and easily, ensuring that any issues are resolved in a timely manner.
Improved Driver Behavior
Aggressive driving behaviors such as speeding, rapid acceleration and sharp cornering can burn excessive amounts of fuel. In fact, aggressive driving can lower gas mileage by 33 percent at highway speeds and 5 percent within a city, according to the DOE. Fleet tracking solutions can identify and reduce poor driving behavior. Businesses can set up speed alerts to instantly notify management when workers exceed a posted roadway speed limit or user-defined threshold. Safety scorecards take driver behavior data and rank drivers based on their performance. This helps pinpoint drivers that are in need of coaching and improvement. While you can't control the price of fuel, you can use a variety of features to create a comprehensive fuel management solution. Being able to track all aspects of fuel usage and activity from one easy-to-use solution not only saves time, but also provides peace of mind. Companies that utilize fleet tracking technology typically save up to 20 percent in fuel costs and can achieve ROI in as little as one month. As technology continues to advance, fleet tracking providers will continue to develop more fuel-saving features to benefit business owners.
