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All vehicles experience wear and tear over time, which is why it is essential to follow a service plan to reduce damage and maintain their value. This responsibility becomes more complex when there is more than one vehicle that needs maintenance; better yet, an entire fleet of trucks. For this reason, a fleet maintenance plan is essential for all fleet businesses.
That said, a fleet maintenance plan without the correct technology leaves room for numerous mishaps and inconsistencies. It is therefore crucial that commercial trucking companies invest in fleet maintenance software.
Fleet maintenance software refers to a digital tool that helps fleet businesses in various industries manage the servicing and repairs of company vehicles and equipment, thereby reducing costs, minimising downtime, and ensuring compliance. This technology integrates with telematics systems and other data sources to provide a comprehensive view of fleet health and performance.
The amount of work that goes into running a fleet can cause one to overlook other essential tasks, such as ensuring that all vehicles are roadworthy and won’t disrupt the workflow. As a fleet manager, you need technology that assists with this, ensuring your fleet remains compliant and your workflow remains uninterrupted.
The different types of fleet maintenance solutions
There are various approaches to maintaining fleet health, with some proving more effective than others. Let us have a look at three of the most common approaches for fleet maintenance:
Preventative maintenance: A proactive approach to vehicle maintenance that entails performing regular inspections and scheduling regular maintenance tasks such as tire rotations, oil changes, and filter replacements in order to prevent equipment failure. This approach enables the timely replacement of damaged or worn-out parts, avoiding issues before they arise.
Corrective maintenance: This is an approach that involves fixing things only when they are broken. No tools or technology are utilised, which makes many fleet managers believe they are saving costs. However, corrective maintenance brings about many unforeseen expenses that, in reality, end up costing more in the long run. It also fails to address the root cause of the issue, which will likely lead to repeat failures.
Why trucking companies need maintenance software
Commercial trucks are often on the road for long hours, encountering diverse road conditions and covering extensive mileage. This makes them prone to vehicle wear and tear, as well as breakdowns, which can cause delays.
Keeping up with the health and performance of every single truck is often overlooked due to tight schedules, heavy workloads, and the need to meet client expectations. For this reason, fleet maintenance software is crucial for trucking companies to stay up-to-date and remain productive.
What are the true benefits of maintenance software
Reduced downtime: Utilising advanced technology helps you stay on top of fleet maintenance, ensuring you are always aware of any faults or when vehicles require servicing. Through this, you will know which vehicles are unavailable on which day, helping you plan ahead.
Lower repair and operating costs: The early detection of issues allows them to be resolved more quickly, before they worsen and become more expensive. This improves overall fleet operational costs, as there will be fewer unexpected repairs.
Improved safety and compliance: The most important aspect of fleet maintenance is safety. Faulty vehicle parts can lead to accidents, which could be fatal, result in costly lawsuits, and damage the company’s reputation. By implementing fleet maintenance technology, you ensure that drivers are safe and that your fleet remains compliant.
Extended vehicle lifespan: As previously mentioned, addressing minor issues before they escalate can significantly extend vehicle lifespan. This ultimately improves vehicle health and leads to a longer-lasting fleet.
Easier audits and regulatory reporting: The digitalisation of everything makes it easier to get detailed information for conducting audits and creating reports.
Improved fuel efficiency: Vehicle maintenance issues, such as worn-out spark plugs or incorrect tyre pressure, cause the vehicle to work harder than necessary, which results in more fuel being used to maintain performance. Since fleet maintenance software helps reduce wear and tear, it in turn also reduces fuel consumption.
How to manage fleet maintenance
An effective fleet maintenance plan involves implementing various strategies. Here are some best practices for managing fleet maintenance:
Conduct a fleet audit: Regular fleet audits help uncover hidden issues. Conduct monthly audits to check vehicle performance and schedule pre- and post-trip inspections, ensuring vehicles are safe and roadworthy.
Involve mechanics and drivers early: Do not wait until the last minute to inform the mechanic about repairs or replacements. They also have other clients that they need to attend to. Not informing them on time puts your fleet vehicles at risk of being attended to last, which may extend beyond your expected time period.
Set up realistic timelines: The amount of time you expect a repair or replacement to be done should be realistic, so you avoid disappointments.
Train staff thoroughly: It is important that you monitor driver behaviour, as driving habits such as speeding can lead to accidents, which may result in costly repairs or increase vehicle wear and tear. Training your drivers on such behaviours helps improve their overall driving skills and therefore improves vehicle lifespan.
Concord Cranes specialises in crane hire solutions. They have over 180 cranes and provide mobile cranes for hire, professional rigging, transport, and specialised lifting projects across their 15 branches. They often found it difficult to accurately record the hours each crane worked, making it difficult to maintain and deliver them to their clients on time.
How we helped them:
Our IoT device and specialised power take-off sensors make it possible for Concord Cranes to monitor their cranes' on-site working hours accurately and mileage travelled, and see exactly what equipment a crane used. This data enables them to track the condition and usage of their cranes, allowing them to establish preventive maintenance measures for their clients and increase the longevity of their fleet.
With Cartrack’s actionable preventative maintenance insights from the fleet management system, Concord can lower maintenance costs by reducing the number of cranes sent for expensive, fault-related repairs and minimise premature downtime for general services.
Concord Cranes also utilises our fleet management and maintenance system to enhance overall brand reliability for their customers, ensuring their cranes are always in safe and working order. The detailed maintenance schedules have reduced the number of unexpected breakdowns, allowing for proactive planning and the timely availability and delivery of cranes to customers.
“Using Cartrack’s advanced fleet management, we have been able to increase our operational efficiency to deliver a better service to our customers, as well as effortlessly establish a maintenance cycle that reduces our costs and increases our fleet longevity.” - Gareth Langley, Concord Cranes operations manager
Stay ahead of costly repairs with Cartrack’s fleet software
At Cartrack, we continually strive to deliver innovative solutions that are current with the latest industry needs. Our maintenance solutions provide you with predictive analytics as well as preventative maintenance measures. With us, you can rest assured that your trucks will always be in good working order. Here’s what we offer:
Real-time fault alerts Our automated preventive maintenance system provides real-time alerts when it detects issues such as engine faults, fluctuations in water and oil levels, worn-out brake pads, and other diagnostics. This ensures that you are aware of such problems before they worsen and can attend to them promptly toavoid unexpected breakdowns.
Scheduled service reminders Our platform allows you to set reminders for service dates, ensuring you know which vehicles are available on specific dates and creating a schedule around them to meet delivery deadlines.
Driver monitoring As already mentioned, aggressive driving habits such as speeding, harsh braking, and rapid acceleration can cause early damage to various vehicle parts, which then increases the number of repairs and replacements that need to be made. Through telematics technology, our platform provides alerts for such events, allowing you to address them and train drivers on more effective habits.
Smarter fleet maintenance starts here
In our many years of experience in the fleet management industry, we have seen how big a difference maintenance software makes. By investing in our solution, your business will improve on efficiency, safety, and overall operational costs. Contact us today to speak to a fleet consultant and let us handle all your fleet maintenance needs.
Frequently Asked Questions about fleet maintenance software
Q: What is a fleet maintenance planner?
A: A fleet maintenance planner is someone who develops, organises, and implements schedules for maintenance-related activities, such as repairs and inspections. Being a fleet planner involves creating detailed schedules for maintenance tasks. allocating resources and anticipating potential issues.
Q:What is a full maintenance plan
A: A full maintenance plan typically involves the use of telematics systems to track vehicle usage and get insight on vehicle health, as well as receive alerts for upcoming services.
Are you looking for the ideal fleet maintenance software for your trucking business? Find out more about ours in this blog.
