April 2008, Automotive Fleet - Cover Story
How Fleets Tackle Rising Fuel Costs
By Cindy Brauer
Fuel Management Offers Comprehensive Control
With the convenience of fuel cards and data capture capabilities, fleet management programs help fleet managers track, monitor, and analyze fuel use. Based on that analysis, policies and procedures can be implemented to reduce fuel spend.
USG Corp. Fleet Operations Supervisor Maria Williams used a fleet management program for six years, but couldn’t measure fleet fuel use.
Based in Chicago, USG manufactures wall, ceiling, and floor products. The company’s 1,400-unit U.S. fleet serves the sales force.
“Now we have a national fuel card,” said Williams. “It has allowed us to capture all fleet costs and to know at any given time exactly where those costs are.” Drivers are limited to three transactions per day with a dollar limit.
Williams runs total expense reports that drill data down to individual vehicles by driver and vehicle class, year, make, and model. “Through analyzing this data, we can see where to trim costs,” she said.
Joe Micari, director, fleet operations, American Red Cross/Biomedical Unit, reported that requiring the use of the same fleet fuel card throughout the 35 Red Cross regions provides several benefits.
Where allowed, the cards accommodate deduction of state motor fuel taxes at the pump. When the deduction is not allowed, quarterly reports tracking fuel purchases are used to substantiate federal and state refund claims. The card is also a valuable tool to monitor mileage and maintenance requirements, said Micari. “We have realized administrative savings as a result of paying one monthly invoice for fuel,” he added.
Port City Electric Co., based in Mooresville, N.C., implemented a fuel company card program for the 3-cents-per-gallon rebate offering, according to Tony Lozano, CFO. He estimated the fleet’s total annual savings is $80,000, including rebates, fees, and the elimination of about 30 unnecessary fuel cards.
With a fleet of more than 750 vehicles, Cedar Rapids, Ohio-based Iowa Glass Depot uses a fuel card program to monitor driver behavior, fueling, and purchases, and to ease data management. Cards are assigned to a vehicle, rather than the driver, to prevent drivers from fueling personal vehicles. Each driver is assigned a PIN code to prevent fuel theft by another driver.
Cephalon fleet management, headquartered in Frazer, Penn., utilizes a fuel card program to monitor driver fuel consumption, including station location, fuel prices, grade used, and purchase frequency through monthly reports. E-mail alerts are sent to drivers who misuse the system, reported Dick Prettyman, Cephalon senior fleet administrator.
Another way to control fuel costs is tighter and more frequent exception reporting to ensure best buying practices and eliminate fraud, an approach taken by Sue Miller, senior fleet manager for McDonald’s Corp.