Truck fleets provide essential transport to businesses, both small and large. These trucks ensure that the company’s goods get to their destination in time and in one piece. However, there is an enormous difference between a well-managed fleet and an unproductive one. One ensures the goods arrive on time and in good condition, whereas the other loses time and money in areas it doesn’t need to. For a more efficient fleet, read on to learn how to improve fleet productivity.
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Improve Driver Safety
Improving driver safety is crucial as a fleet manager, not just for productivity but also to keep your employees unharmed on the road. To improve fleet safety, consider providing more truck driver training courses. You could also use technology such as collision sensors to prevent crashes from happening at all.
Implement Regular Vehicle Checkups
Vehicles drive more efficiently when they are in good working order. You don’t want multiple trucks pulling to the side of the road because of lazy maintenance! That will only lose time and money in the long run, after all.
To prevent too many unexpected stops, implement regular vehicle checkups. As well as a more efficient journey, it will also do its part in keeping the driver as safe as possible.
Track the Amount of Fuel Used
Fuel costs money – often a lot of it. So, when managing a fleet, you must ensure you keep those costs down as much as possible. To do that, you have to track the amount of fuel used.
Knowing how much fuel is needed means you can devise a plan to reduce fuel costs. That might include reducing vehicle idling, optimizing routes, and tracking fuel trends.
Improve Communications
You want to improve communications from management to the fleet and from truck to truck within the fleet. Doing so means you can come up with solutions to problems faster.
For example, if road maintenance gets in the way of a journey, communicating with each other can help you come up with the best alternative as soon as possible. A fleet communications tool is helpful for this.
Track Driver Behavior
Poor driver behavior can reduce fleet productivity due to poor driver behavior. Likewise, it can be lost for not accommodating specific driver behavior. The best way to mitigate this is by tracking driver behavior to see how to optimize time as much as possible.
Technology such as dashcams can be a real eye-opener and will allow you to understand how your drivers work on the road.
Use the Data You Have
It is not enough to track and monitor everything. While this information is helpful, it is so only when it is actually used – so use it! When you see data about fuel usage, driver behavior, and mileage reports, be sure to use that data to improve productivity.
Final Thoughts
A productive fleet makes a world of difference to the success of a business. With these tips, you can ensure your goods reach their destination without too many hiccups.
