September 2008, Automotive Fleet - Feature
60 Ways to Reduce Your Fuel Spend
By Mike Antich
2. Establish Minimum MPG Requirement for Selector Placement.
To add a vehicle to the fleet selector, some fleets require it must
have minimum mpg rating. PPG is adopting a 30-mpg minimum for its fleet
selector. “Our sedans for the 2009 model-year lineup will all have
four-cylinder engines that get a minimum of 30 mpg,” said Charles
Szymanski, manager global property casualty insurance & auto fleet,
for PPG Industries in Pittsburgh, Penn.
Another company that bases selector decisions on EPA ratings is
Labcorp. “We choose those vehicles with the best EPA fuel economy
ratings,” said Lynda Dinwiddie, associate VP, fleet & travel for
Labcorp in Burlington, N.C.
3. “Right-sizing” to a Smaller Vehicle.
“We are attempting to downsize our fleet where it makes sense,” said
Craig Howard, fleet manager for Verizon Business Fleet Operations.
Likewise, Toshiba America Medical Systems is investigating the
feasibility of downsizing to smaller vehicles. “I am working with our
service executive team to determine if we can possibly downsize from
the Grand Caravan to a smaller more fuel-efficient vehicle,” said Jeff
Berg, manager fleet & travel administration for Toshiba America
Medical Systems in Tustin, Calif.
Honeywell has been “right-sizing” its cargo-type vehicles for the
past few years. “We are continuing to right-size cargo-type vehicles by
offering the Chevy HHR with a ladder rack for those that have a
mini-cargo van, just to carry a ladder,” say Shelly Lofgren, fleet
manager for Honeywell International.
4. Expand Hybrid Fleet.
More fleets are looking to add hybrids to their selectors,
especially for urban applications. “We are looking to increase use of
hybrids for inner-city vehicles and alternative fuels such as CNG,”
said Howard of Verizon.
USG is also expanding its fleet of hybrids. “Toyota Prius remained
on the selector for the second year with the addition of the Camry
Hybrid at the sales manager level,” said Maria Williams, fleet
operations supervisor for USG Corp. Another company increasing its
investment in hybrid vehicles is Toshiba America Medical Systems. “We
are in the process of converting our 150 Chrysler 300s over to Toyota
Camry Hybrids,” said Berg of Toshiba America Medical Systems. “So far,
we have replaced about 70 vehicles and should have the rest replaced in
the next 18-24 months.”
Examples of other corporate fleets that have made substantial
investments in hybrid vehicles are Hoffmann-LaRoche, Johnson &
Johnson, PepsiCo, Consolidated Coca-Cola Bottling, Apple Inc., etc.
5. Tighten 4x4 Eligibility.
Another trend is to eliminate across-the-board 4x4 use. “We are
making recommendations to management to go back to only offering
four-wheel-drive vehicles for Snow Belt territories, taking larger SUVs
and minivans off the selectors for sales groups that don’t really need
them to do their jobs,” said Donna Bibbo, manager, fleet & employee
services for Novo Nordisk Inc. in Princeton, N.J.
At a growing number of fleets, a driver must obtain management
approval to get a 4x4 vehicle. “If a driver says 4WD is necessary, it
is now the exception rather than a standard,” said Debbie Lakes,
manager – corporate fleet for Flowserve Corp. in Dayton, Ohio.
Personal Use Charges Raised
6. Increase Personal Use Charges.
There is a broad-based trend to increase personal use charges to drivers.
Many fleets are re-examining chargeback systems to determine whether
personal use expenses are adequately recouped. Many fleets have
increased personal use charges in reaction to higher fuel prices. The
average personal use charge to employees in 2005 was $70-$90 per month.
Today, it ranges from $80-$150 per month, with an average of $105 per
month. The question is whether it needs to go even higher in today’s
cost environment. Personal use of company vehicles accounts for
approximately 15-18 percent of the overall miles accumulated during a
vehicle’s service life.
7. Eliminate Personal Use.
Some companies are considering the outright elimination of personal use privileges to reduce fuel spend.