Fleet management has many challenges, with unexpected vehicle downtime being particularly disruptive and expensive. Enhancing preventative maintenance, leveraging technology, and consolidating expertise all mean that fleet managers can proactively avoid many of these downtime events.
Focus on Preventative Maintenance
The easiest way to reduce downtime is to stop breakdowns and failures before they happen. While completely unavoidable in some cases, a shocking number of road calls and stranded vehicles simply come down to overlooked maintenance.
Managers should ensure thorough preventative maintenance checks and services are scheduled for every vehicle at proper intervals. Checking batteries, tires, filters and common wear items during routine services dramatically cuts down on unexpected downtime later on. Technicians can catch minor issues before they snowball into major repair bills and time off the road.
Implement Telematics Solutions
According to the good folk over at Idrive, one powerful ally in the fight against downtime is telematics technology – using sophisticated GPS tracking systems combined with fleet management software. Modern telematics equip managers to monitor real-time vehicle health metrics, get notifications when trouble strikes, and streamline dispatch coordination.
For example, a telematics solution may detect early symptoms of an emerging mechanical issue through engine fault codes. It can then immediately notify the manager via text or email so they can promptly schedule repair before a total breakdown.
Building a Culture Around Uptime
While improved maintenance routines and technology are impactful, achieving world-class uptime across a large fleet also requires buy in from team members at all levels. When a culture is cultivated emphasizing the negative impacts of downtime events, drivers, technicians and managers intrinsically become more vigilant.
Building an internal culture focused on maximizing productivity through near perfect vehicle availability starts with leadership. Fleet managers need to track, report on and discuss metrics such as time between failures, repair expenses and downtime incidents at safety meetings. The importance of consistent uptime for both drivers and technicians is underscored by awards and recognition given to those individuals who achieve and maintain extended periods without downtime.
The Power of Centralizing Expertise
An underutilized method fleet leaders can leverage to minimize downtime is to centralize their most experienced technicians and managers within an internal team fully dedicated to vehicle uptime. Rather than having their foremost experts spread thinly across facilities doing everyday work, they instead focus on big picture reliability.
This reliability team oversees preventative maintenance programs, monitors telematics data for early warning signs, manages parts inventories, handles complex repairs and troubleshoots emerging downtime root causes. With their sole mission being maximizing fleet uptime, these masters of reliability can nip issues in the bud fleetwide. Centralized expertise drives widespread improvements.
For example, if the uptime team identifies a pattern of transmission failures from fluid leaks within a certain vehicle make and model, they can rapidly respond. They may issue a preventative maintenance update to replace transmission seals earlier in other similar vehicles, eliminating the issue. Their sole job being tracking reliability metrics enables rapid action.
Conclusion
Keeping a fleet of vehicles consistently in service and on the road takes vigilance, coordination, and proper resourcing. Breakdowns, maintenance delays, and other surprises are often unavoidable. Yet many downtime events can be mitigated through purposeful strategy: centralized expertise, telematics adoption and preventative maintenance being prime examples. Companies willing to emphasize and invest in maximizing vehicle availability reap the benefits through improved productivity and customer service.
While the problem of downtime can seem overwhelming, those fleet managers willing to start small with impactful changes often find major improvements well within reach. Minor preventative tweaks and staff realignment can set off a positive chain reaction, transforming vehicle availability.
