How fleet managers can simplify preventive maintenance

Preventive maintenance is essential for keeping a fleet on the road. By using a maintenance schedule and regularly inspecting essential vehicle components, fleet managers can extend the lifespan of their fleet vehicles and reduce unplanned downtime.

Increasingly, longer-term preventative and predictive maintenance is the preferred answer. And fortunately, there’s a lot of business owners and fleet managers can do to extend the life of their current fleet.

For managers, knowing how to streamline this maintenance approach will make it easier to avoid disruptions without making inspections or repairs less effective.

 

Driver safety

Utilizing data provided by fleet management technology such as GPS tracking or driver-facing dash cameras can allow fleet managers to individualize driver training and help prevent distracted driving accidents or harsh driving. 

 

Digitize Paperwork and Scheduling

Administrative work can be one of the most time-consuming portions of preventive maintenance. Digital solutions can make storing, accessing, and analyzing this information much simpler. Support staff and mechanics can generate templates for common repairs using information from previous work, streamlining the process of documenting maintenance.

 

Real picture of the operation

Fleet management software gives you a more comprehensive picture of your fleet’s operations. When you have this well-rounded view of your fleet, you can expand it more efficiently. By understanding your current fleet, you can find opportunities to grow. 

 

Putting predictive maintenance into practice

Fleet management systems provide everything you need to develop a preventative maintenance schedule, helping you manage maintenance costs. Kilometers traveled, engine hours, fuel usage. These are some of the data points that can be used to create a preventative maintenance schedule.

 

Lifetime Warranty

When you choose to use Link2Pump fuel management solution, you also have included a lifetime warranty. Our unique lifetime warranty protects your investment and eliminates unexpected expenses. We offer a hassle-free parts replacement policy, where servicing is simple and easy and can be done quickly by the customer, reducing downtime to a minimum. And you don’t need to overpay for it.

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Technology can help with fuel efficiency

More than ever, it is time to invest in technologies that help with its management. You can estimate the fuel consumption of each vehicle, compare expenses on each type of vehicle and route, and thus plan your action to further reduce fuel costs.

 

In the scope of any project or job, the cost of fuel often accounts for one of the most significant expenses. From the cost of lost fuel to theft to engine issues associated with contaminants in the fuel, to lost productivity due to lack of fuel; storage, transportation, and distribution of Jobsite fuel have the potential to significantly affect the bottom line. However, changing technology in fuel storage is helping companies tackle those issues and mitigate costs.  

 

Companies that manage the cost of fuel well spend up to 30% less than companies that do not control the expense. Which one is yours? 

But how can Fuel Tracking Technology help you save fuel?

  • Reduce engine idle time
  • Have better control of the routes taken by vehicles
  • Know how efficient drivers are being
  • Create the best routes for vehicles

Link2Pump services account all across the US, helping businesses to save human and financial resources in the fuel tracking and reporting process. By automating and managing fuel dispensing from bulk storage tanks, we turn a complex process into a simple experience.

 

Link2Pump Pedestal automates the fueling process on-site, capturing the data points you need and sending them to your online account in real-time. Account access is available from any device, anywhere, any time. Fully compatible with mechanical, digital, and electronic dispensers, each unit controls up to 4 fueling points and features extensive data input options and restriction capabilities.

 

Loss of fuel, or fuel that goes unaccounted for, is a sometimes-overlooked expense. Fuel theft is nearly a $133 billion issue that includes stolen, adulterated, and defrauded products. But here’s the good news: Fuel loss can be prevented, and the bottom line can be protected. Card-locking control technology combats the potential of fuel theft by allowing only authorized individuals to access fuel.

When fuel can account for up to 50% of a job’s total operating costs, it’s important to do everything possible to protect fuel assets. 

 

Our company has solutions for several industries, such as agriculture, aviation, construction, government, marinas, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and utilities. If you want to learn more about our solution and are looking for alternatives to improve the bottom line and productivity, please get in touch.

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Benefits of IoT in Fleet Management Industry

Vehicle fleet management in IoT is a natural environment for the application of advantages, utilities, and benefits. The IoT is the precise tool to help you efficiently manage your vehicle fleet, minimizing costs and increasing productivity, asset life, and service quality. Research predicts the revenue of the global IoT fleet management market will reach an estimated US$15,500 million by 2024.

 

Regionally, North America has been leading the worldwide IoT fleet management market and is anticipated to continue in the dominant position in the years to come, states the IoT fleet management market study. Robust network infrastructure, implementation of strict legislations, and rapid acceptance of technologically advanced products is the main factor behind the dominance of the North America IoT fleet management market. The number of players being headquartered in North America is another significant factor that is supporting this regional IoT market.

 

IoT allows us to establish an effective interconnection between physical assets and managers, through the network. So when we install sensors in our fleet vehicles, we implement the first link in a sequence of processes that will let you know minute by minute, what happens with each unit.

 

Once connected, the sensors perform a wide range of readings, generating alerts about routes, location, incidents, or out-of-range measurements. This triggers a succession of actions ranging from the transmission of data via the Internet, through its collection and organization in a database, to the crossing and analysis of data, to transform them into useful information for decision-making as well. As for planning routes, tasks, and plans for preventive and/or predictive maintenance.

 

Key benefits of IoT in fleet management

  • Real-time vehicle monitoring
  • Risk mitigation
  • Remote data management
  • Impeccable customer service
  • Cost optimization
  • Smart reporting
  • Environment-friendly operations
  • Preventive maintenance
  • Engine performance
  • Improved fuel efficiency

 

IoT is making the adoption of these changes much easier than ever for companies. They are equipped to strategize better and increase productivity by automating routine tasks.

Therefore, integrating information technology improves the performance of your fleet business manifolds. It assures improvement in efficiency and compliance with road security standards.

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Global Logistics is On The Move

As with most other industries, the outbreak has transformed global logistics in profound ways. But unlike most other industries, the decline in economic activity during the pandemic has not impacted global logistics too adversely. The consumption of goods, medicines, and other essential stuff — and thus the corresponding logistics needs — remained relatively unaffected.

According to a recent study, the growth of the global transport and logistics software market is expected to increase at a considerable rate during the forecast period, between 2021 and 2026. In 2021, the market is growing at a steady pace and with the growing adoption of strategies by the main players, the market is expected to rise over the projected horizon.

Some researchers affirm that the pandemic has been an inflection point for the transport and logistics industry too, thereby compelling organizations across the world to focus more closely on gaining end-to-end visibility in their business operations, fleet management, asset tracking, and shipment monitoring.

For your company to be a reference in the market, it needs to invest and apply the results of a new technology well. It is possible to gain an advantage over the competition, adapt to new business models, and offer services more competitively. The market demands it today, and the risk of non-adaptation is to stay out of the globalization that new technologies impose

Whether it’s automotive, financial services, food, or grocery delivery, technology has always been the biggest disrupter in any industry, and the logistics space is no different. 

Whether it is automotive, financial services, food, or grocery delivery, technology has always been the biggest disrupter in any industry and the logistics space is no different. As more advanced technologies are getting rolled out, industry pundits reckon that business processes are getting streamlined for companies to deliver better efficiencies. The advancements in technology, such as automated material handling equipment, biometrics, GPS, etc, aid organizations and businesses to work proficiently, thereby spurring the growth of the logistics market across the globe.

The impact for logistics operations is, without a doubt, having to follow these trends for the logistics market to face competitors and become more competitive in the market. It is a process that requires adaptation, versatility, effort, and learning. Are you ready for it?

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Connection puts the driver at its center

The promise of capturing vehicle data and turning it into profitable new services and business models has driven significant investments in the commercial vehicle telematics space by truck manufacturers and suppliers.

 

However, despite significant investments in IT platforms, vehicle technology, and service innovations, we have not yet reached the maximum. We still have spaces to make more progress. 

 

With all the sensors that can be placed on vehicles and the large amount of data that can be collected, it is necessary to implement a data collection strategy. Players need to understand which services create value from a fleet or owner-operator perspective, how this translates into a dataset to be collected, how sufficient data quality can be ensured to define baselines, and which sensors can be effectively deployed to collect the relevant data.

 

What you need now is to find the right engagement model, collaborate on service design, and potentially co-create services together with customers. All of this is to protect the core business around predictive maintenance and dealer integration, for example in service activities.

 

From a fleet perspective, the central element that enables fleet productivity and profits continue to be the driver. Driver availability and escalating driver costs are top-of-mind for many fleets globally.

 

Making the job of a driver more attractive is a key challenge. Ways to address this are increasing cabin comfort and convenience, leveraging the right communication technology in the vehicle, and providing the right environment in terms of software and app support to drivers both from work as well as a leisure perspective. Telematics plays a role in all these areas.

 

Starting from a safety and security perspective, traffic accidents involving trucks are a major issue for all road participants. Technology that documents a crash, such as via a video camera that tracks the environment and the driver, can provide vital evidence in legal trials. Beyond this application, a basic breakdown service that communicates the severity and location of the crash as well as informing the emergency services is a clear benefit.

 

Driver health tech tracking heart rates, stress levels, and glucose levels can contribute to improved road safety as well. In emergencies, such as a heart attack, the vehicle can take over and execute a safe emergency stop.

 

On driver welfare, interior memory settings are used to adjust factors such as seating or mirror positions to meet driver needs. Radio stations and apps can be pre-selected according to driver preferences. Condition-based or predictive maintenance enhances uptime which is good for fleet managers but also for drivers who are paid per mile driven.

 

Predictive maintenance, statistical analysis of workshop activities, and their integration in the workflow have the potential to generate profits either via increased revenue or via reduced cost.

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3 ways fleet managers can reduce operational costs

Try different ways of cost-cutting and still keeping safety/operational efficiency is a regular job of every fleet manager. In the last months, with the pandemic, reducing operational costs has assumed critical significance. 

There are several expenses in this line of work. The biggest, of course, is fuel fees and asset maintenance costs. The good news is that there are different ways to optimize and reduce operating expenses.

Here are three steps for fleet managers looking to reduce operating costs: 

 

Exercise control over the distance covered

In the past, fleet managers did not have direct visibility over daily fleet operations data. You could not keep track of every mile covered by all the vehicles in your fleet. This often encouraged a tendency to use company vehicles for non-essential or personal purposes.

With increased connectivity and GPS tracking, this is no longer an issue. Using technology, businesses can now optimize routes like never before, cutting down on mileage and fuel costs. Telemetry data also allows fleet managers to effectively discourage frivolous usage of vehicles.

 

Improve fuel consumption

With fuel costs accounting for the lion’s share of operating costs for many fleets, this step may seem like a no-brainer. But many fleet managers end up not worrying about this all-important detail. 

Link2Pump offers a simple solution that automates the entire fueling and tracking process. This way, you will always know where every drop of fuel is going, keep your inventory under control and do much more to drive fuel efficiency and performance to your fleet.

 

Use technology for efficient maintenance

Maintenance is a vital function that has a value multiplier effect on your fleet – it improves productivity, reduces accident risk, and increases the longevity/resale value of vehicles. It is also an incredibly complex task, with huge potential for waste and inefficiency.

 

You can use maintenance software to boost savings without compromising on safety. These kinds of solutions give you full visibility on your fleet’s maintenance status, with automated scheduling, real-time data alerts, and other optimization options.

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How does a fuel management system work?

How does a fuel management system work?

Fuel is one of the top 3 expenses in any fleet’s cost structure. Tracking and reporting where it is being spent can be challenging and time-consuming. So how do you stay on top of it? 

Link2Pump offers a simple solution that automates the entire fueling and tracking process. This way, you will always know where every drop of fuel is going, keep your inventory under control and do much more to drive fuel efficiency and performance to your fleet. 

 

But how it works? 

The Link2Pump Pedestal unit connects to your fuel dispenser, protecting your fuel from unauthorized use. The operator will be prompted for key information, like a driver, vehicle number, and mileage. Only then the L2P unit activates the pump. While the operator fills up the tank, L2P records the gallons being pumped and uploads all fueling data to your online account once the transaction is over fueling data is available in real-time and you can see and manage it from any device. Cloud backup guarantees zero chance of data loss.

Link2Pump also offers an open API for seamless and free integration with 3rd party software. Your fuel transactions and tank inventory data in the L2P system can interface via web service with basically any software platform, such as fleet fuel cards, billing programs, fleet maintenance, telematics, and much more. You can also export to text and spreadsheet files.

Our unique lifetime warranty protects your investment and eliminates unexpected expenses. We offer a hassle-free parts replacement policy, where servicing is simple and easy and can be done quickly by the customer, reducing down-time to a minimum.

Take your data off the paper and into the cloud and drive your business forward with Link2Pump. If you want to learn more about our solution and are looking for alternatives to improve bottom line and productivity, please get in touch.

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5 ways to enhance fleet efficiency

Fleet management is a task that initially may seem easy, but in practice, it presents great complexity. Good fleet management is not only related to taking care of the entry and exit of vehicles. Good fleet management must understand the entire operation, maximizing the availability of vehicles to perform services, reducing costs with tires, fines, maintenance, fuel, and ensuring driver satisfaction.

It is a strategic activity for fleet companies and, therefore, it needs to achieve good results to ensure the company’s competitiveness and the quality of the service provided. However, with so many processes and information to deal with, how to organize fleet management to make it more efficient?

This is a big challenge for the manager and we are going to present 5 tips here that can help you with this task.

Train the drivers

Drivers have a huge role to play in fleet operations. Driver training is a popular practice adopted by companies around the world to improve efficiency. It ensures that a driver is fully capable enough to handle all kinds of situations while driving. 

With a well-trained and experienced workforce, businesses can save a lot of expense. It includes fuel costs and vehicle maintenance charges. In addition to that, a skillful driver can avoid accidents, saving companies from a lot of operational and financial problems.

Improve Fuel Management

The tracking solutions offer an excellent fuel management feature that caters to all the fueling needs. It monitors the fuel levels of the vehicles in real-time, providing useful insights about consumption trends. Also, companies that manage the cost of fuel well spend up to 30% less than companies that do not control the expense.

Use Mobile Application

It is essential to stay connected to the team all the time. The managers should be aware of the operations whether they are in the office or not. To monitor operations on the go, a mobile app can be used. With the help of the app, they can have all the main features of the management software on their mobile device. It helps the managers to keep doing their job from any remote location, ensuring smooth operational flow.

Keep Vehicles Well Maintained

Along with your drivers, your vehicles are your most important asset. Keeping them well maintained and regularly serviced prolongs their useful life and helps avoid expensive downtime. Having all the data at your fingertips lets you keep close control over their condition, allowing faults to be dealt with before they become major issues.

Improve Team Communications

Your fleet drivers are an invaluable asset, so treat them with respect and keep them fully informed. In addition to regular training, it’s important to give them the necessary information to do their work to the very best of their abilities.

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How to Improve Efficiency With Fuel Tracking Technology

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How to save fuel is a very common question among people who own vehicles. Among fleet managers, therefore, knowing how to answer this question is essential for the success of the business.

That’s because, when monitoring the expenses of a field operation and accounting for everything that goes in and out, the percentage that the cost of fuel represents is surprising.

For example, did you know that annual fuel costs can represent 15% to 20% of the cost of a vehicle? The amount spent per year is second only to the cost of the vehicles. 

So, how can fleet managers get more control over fuel costs when prices are unpredictable? Not knowing these details can bring many losses, such as a fleet that uses more fuel than it should and vehicles being stopped for more frequent repairs.

Companies that manage the cost of fuel well spend up to 30% less than companies that do not control the expense. Which one is yours? 

But how can Fuel Tracking Technology help you save fuel?
  • Reduce engine idle time
  • Have better control of the routes taken by vehicles
  • Know how efficient drivers are being
  • Create the best routes for vehicles

According to the U.S. Department of Energy, idling a heavy-duty truck uses up about 0.8 gallons of fuel per hour. Trucks usually idle for about 1,800 hours a year, which uses about 1,500 gallons of fuel. Overall, idling costs the U.S. about $3 billion annually.

You can monitor idling time and fuel usage with tracking technology and ask drivers to consider how they can reduce idling without sacrificing comfort, safety, or productivity.

Also, overspeeding or driving beyond speed limits consumes more fuel. However, a fuel management plan is a right way of ensuring you aren’t using up a lot of fuel.

Fuel planning includes key metrics such as fuel tendency, chances of fuel reduction, and permitted fuel card usage. The plan can be used to determine vehicle fuel usage and fuel card transaction information.

If you want to learn more about our solution and are looking for alternatives to improve the bottom line and productivity, please, get in touch.

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Vehicle Telemetry: what you need to know

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In fleet management, it is very important to keep looking for new technologies that help the control system of different KPIs, such as fuel, routes, loads, mechanics, drivers, among others. Vehicle telemetry is yet another of the digital innovations that assist in this process, collecting vehicle information remotely.

With telemetry, it is possible to check speed, distance, location, downtime, and fuel consumption. In this way, operations are optimized and controlled in real-time to verify all the information necessary for effective fleet management.

How does it work? 

Vehicle data is generated in real-time. The onboard computer is essential in this process since telemetry is the management system with all the data collected. The system is usually wireless, whether radio or satellite, to identify all the information.

Usually, equipment is installed in vehicles, which arrive wirelessly at a server, accessed by the manager. The data can be tracked in any environment, and bring opportunities to further optimize the functioning of the processes. 

Fleet managers can make a mapping according to the required KPI, seeing issues such as mileage on specific routes, and more. Telemetry is a tool to manage the vehicle’s handling, but the system can be even more detailed, also controlling fuel consumption.

That is why your telemetry tool must integrate with other solutions, like fuel management, for example. This way the vehicles in the fleet that are monitored by the telemetry system are fueled according to the release determined by the manager.

There are a lot of benefits that telemetry can bring to your business. Increased security, cost reduction, conservation and security of assets, and optimization of processes are just a few of them.

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