Driving efficiencies: the future of fleet management

In the fast-paced world of business, efficiency is king. Inefficient processes lead to stalled productivity, reduced profits and stagnated growth. With over two million fleet vehicles in circulation Australia-wide, this is especially true for fleet managers.

The rise of intelligent technology solutions – driven by telematics and automation software – has removed the traditional roadblocks to efficiency and revolutionised the way businesses with a fleet optimise their time and resources.

Fleet management challenges

Managing a fleet is no easy feat. Conventional fleet management is both time consuming and labour intensive. Complex scheduling, ongoing vehicle maintenance, mechanical diagnostics, fleet replacement and life cycle management, as well as daily communication challenges make it almost impossible to stay agile and responsive to changing business needs.

Add to this the human resource required (managers, drivers and administration staff), and uncontrolled driver behaviours, and unavoidable human errors steadily start to stack up. These factors are not only unsustainable long term, but they also take managers away from their biggest priority – business growth.

Fleet optimisation through automation

The last decade saw a boom in the development of intelligent technology solutions. While logistics technologies are becoming more and more commonplace, many businesses are yet to realise their full potential.

Arguably one of the most recognisable new technologies is fleet automation. But how does fleet automation software in particular, translate when rubber meets the road in real life? Automation gives fleet businesses unparalleled and immediate insight into each stage of the delivery process, from job scheduling through to invoicing. Doing so streamlines traditionally complex tasks into automatic, accurate and instant actions so that resource and investment can be redirected into other business areas.

Fleet management integration

Telematics is another important piece of the future fleet management puzzle. A combination of the sciences of telecommunications and informatics, the field of telematics now most commonly applies to vehicles.

According to the Financial Times, it is estimated that in the next five to seven years telematics will be a central part of every fleet business. So, how does it work? At its core, telematics uses location data for various business applications such as job scheduling, route optimisation and GPS tracking.

To do this, various internet-connected sensors are placed on a vehicle and, when combined with specialised automation software gives fleet managers unprecedented access to monitor the location, movement, status and behaviour of all vehicles in their fleet.

Benefits of fleet management integration

What are (just some of) the key benefits of integrated fleet management?

  • Increased productivity: route optimisation intelligently identifies the quickest route, saving time and resources, and allows more jobs to be completed in less time.
  • Better safety: GPS tracking ensures drivers stay safe on the road. Options for dash cams, temperature monitoring and live driver feedback also reduce the costs associated with accidents and vehicle maintenance.
  • Lower costs: savings can be seen across a number of areas such as petrol and vehicle maintenance, as well as cost savings from reduced paperwork and administration.
  • Improved responsiveness: real-time data means decisions and adjustments can be made instantaneously depending on traffic, workloads or other unforeseen events.
  • Enhanced customer satisfaction: customers can actively receive progress updates on the status of their product or service online at a time and place that suits them.

Fleet automation in action

Fleet management solutions aren’t just for big business. Small to medium sized enterprises (SMEs) benefit just as much (if not more) from considering how GPS vehicle tracking systems, job scheduling and fleet optimisation can drive productivity.

While SME’s have the upper hand when it comes flexibility, they often can’t compete financially or practically with larger businesses. This is where a logistics suite can help, combining the responsiveness of small business with the power of big enterprise.

Dial A Tow, an Australian-owned car carrying and towing company with a 25-vehicle fleet, implemented SolBox’s Fleet Management solution after facing ongoing challenges tracking their fleet and managing the rising cost of labour for routine administration.

Within six weeks of implementing SolBox’s dynamic solution, revenue increased by 30% and productivity surged by an additional 200 jobs per week. Within 10 weeks, invoicing time was halved and there were noticeable improvements in the levels of customer satisfaction, driver safety and management productivity.

Finding the right fleet management solution

The future is clear – no matter how big or small, harnessing the power of an integrated fleet management solution can significantly impact productivity, customer satisfaction and your bottom line.

With so many options on the market, finding the right solution can seem daunting. Not all solutions are created equal, so it’s important to find out what’s right to meet your unique business needs. Some key factors to consider are:

  • Ease of use
  • Ability to integrate with other platforms
  • Ongoing support
  • Scalability
  • Get in the driver’s seat

When it comes to fleet management integration and automation, you need to be in the driver’s seat. A great place to start is by talking to an expert.

SolBox offers free 30-minute strategy sessions and live demonstrations with their Solutions Experts.

Finding the right fleet management solution

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