Digging Out: The Road to Paperless Fleet Management

Visionaries have long touted the ability of computers to electronically manage large volumes of data which would minimize the use of paper to record and transmit this information.

However, most people will tell you that since computerizing their operations, the volume of paper handled has increased dramatically, primarily because computers have made it easy to generate volumes of reports, charts, graphs, and spread-sheets as needed.

Bill Adler, president of PHH Fleet-America, tells a story of a prospective fleet client who ushered him to a conference room containing a large laundry basket filled with reams of paper.

The prospective client said: "If you can figure out a way to reduce that mound of paper to a single page containing all the information I need to make an informed decision, our business is yours."

Adler remembers that mound of paper and views it as a sobering commentary on the fleet management process. Is this an allegory for the future of fleet management? Not necessarily. A variety of converging technologies such as document imaging, fiber optic telecommunications, virtual databases, and "smart cars," to name a few, offer the potential of widespread "paperless transactions" before the end of this decade.

The major impetus toward developing paperless transactions will be electronic document imaging, which will allow digitized images to be transmitted from computer to computer, says Jim Frank, president of Wheels. This technology exists today but Frank believes the key hurdle to overcome before paperless transactions become a reality will be "cultural," whereby people feel comfortable I maintaining and transmitting information electronically rather than on paper. However, Frank does not foresee this as being a long-term problem.

"It's hard for me to predict how long it will take for people to culturally accept not having to use paper, but we will begin to see it happen in the next year to year-and-a-half," predicts Frank.

Document Imaging is the Key

Electronic document imaging is ideally suited for fleet management. "Imaging systems will allow the fleet manager to receive images of vehicle titles, photos of traded vehicle titles, photos of traded vehicles, and signed copies of document," says Gene Wojciechowski, director of customer systems for GE Capital Fleet Services. "These (digitized) images can be directly faxed to the fleet manager's personal computer, where they can be stored, analyzed, or printed."

One example of a document imaging system is Donlen Crop.'s new Computer Decision Support System which is designed to transmit to customers actual images of key vehicle documents, in addition to providing instant access to customer account information and customized industry-related software. The Donlen system allows a customer service rep to call up this various data on a screen and view them simultaneously. In addition, with a push of a button, any image on the computer screen can be printed or faxed to a customer while the customer is still on the phone.

According to Donlen, the next step will be to introduce document imaging technology into its operational areas to streamline work flow and improve productivity.

"The potential for additional applications is almost limitless," says Gary Rappeport, president of Donlen Crop. "Beyond that, the technology gives us the foundation to someday utilize various forms of multi-media, ranging from voice to video, to further our ability to provide our customers with the information and tools to efficiently manage their fleets."

ARI has integrated voice and data technology in its new vehicle voice-response system which allows drivers, using a touch-tone phone, to directly dial its mainframe computer to obtain the latest status information on their ordered vehicles.

Eliminating 54,000 Pieces of Paper

Another development that promises to reduce the volume of paperwork within the industry is electronic data interchange, commonly known as EDI, which is the standardized transfer of data via computer from one company to another. EDI transfers information from computer to computer over phone lines via a modem. The data is transmitted without human intervention since no keystroking is required to receive information. EDI has widespread applications in fleet management and the National Association of Fleet Administrators has recognized this by establishing a task force to study the development of an EDI industry standard.

One fleet that has adopted EDI is R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. According to Larry Giddens, the company's director of fleet operations, EDI holds the promise of eliminating almost 54,000 pieces of paper annually. Not only did EDI streamline administrative responsibilities, it promises to save the company approximately $4 million annually.

In addition, auctions, fleet management companies, vehicle manufacturers, and other vendors have utilized EDI technology for vehicle remarketing, national account programs, glass replacement, and other areas of fleet management. For instance, usage of EDI systems has speeded-up the vehicle damage repair process substantially, and has eliminated much of labor intensity of the accident management process, especially vehicle condition report assessment and administration.

Reducing Vendor Paperwork

GTE California has made new technology part of its commitment to maximize its efficiency and control costs, says Darryl Meekhof, state manager of fleet operations.

With an in-state fleet of more than 6,500 vehicles (GTE's national fleet exceeds 26,000 units), computerization is a necessity. One system that GTE has adopted is a Verification of Installed Prices (VIP) program developed by Windshields America, Inc. This computer program automatically verifies all pricing, parts, and vendor information for the company's windshield and glass repair and replacement, as well as verifying this information for more than 28,000 auto glass specification items. The system can also track and verify data for more than 200 of GTE's vendors throughout California.

Making Paper Obsolescent

As recently as the late 1970s, all lessee vehicle ordering was done manually on paper and sent to the leasing company by mail. It is now commonplace for a fleet manager to place new vehicle orders into his or her personal computer and transmit the data to the fleet management company's mainframe computer either on-line or off-line.

An on-line vehicle ordering system, such as the Computer-Aided Pricing System (CAPS) offered by ARI, instantaneously edits and adjusts equipment and pricing to a vehicle order before its is logged into the fleet management company's mainframe computer. On-line vehicle ordering ensures receipt of accurate and upto-the-minute information to a much greater degree than paper-based ordering systems.

What are the other new technologies and concepts that will be needed for tomorrow's paperless fleet management?

To answer this question, it is first necessary to understand how the fleet management profession will evolve in the 1990s.

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"In the past, it was possible for fleet managers to get by doing the routine tasks of buying, administering, and selling fleet vehicles," says Adler. "Since then, the role of fleet management has expanded greatly. Fleet management now implies more than vehicle asset management. It now entails cost control, risk management, tax management, and the application of new-found knowledge in complex areas such as alternative fuels."

Technology is enabling fleet managers to perform these new and additional responsibilities faster, cheaper, and smarter. However, the fleet management technology of the future will move beyond being solely computer-based applications and data processing. This technology will integrate hardware, software, and telecommunications into a single, flexible system.

According to GE Capital, the fleet department of the future will be "seamlessly" integrated with its management services company, where the data flow between the fleet managers' and services companies' computers will be instant and limitless.

"There will be no need for paper reports; indeed the fleet manager of the future will not have time to delve through mountains of paper," says Wojciechowski. As fleet managers assume additional duties, such as travel and other transportation -related responsibilities, they will be forced to devote less of their time to fleet management. To compensate for this lack of time, a fleet management company's computer system will pitch in by automatically tracking and graphically reporting exception areas that diverge from the fleet operating parameters set by the fleet manager.

"The vast storehouse of information maintained by the fleet management companies will be available to the fleet manager through the introduction of the CD/ROM (an optical data storage medium), which will store such data as all of the national vendors' price guides, the schematic diagrams of every vehicle part, and the map locations for hundreds of thousands of service facilities," says Wojciechowski.

"Fleet managers will be able to improve their productivity through technological innovation," agrees Adler.

One technological innovation cited by Adler is the virtual database. A virtual database is a single database available to a variety of users, but using a variety of computer systems located in many different locations.

One potential application for the virtual database concept would be on-line access of vehicle specifications and pricing from auto manufacturers.

"Presently, vehicle specifications and pricing information exist in a variety of databases in many different computers owned by fleet management companies, fleets, suppliers, price guide publishes, and factories," says Adler.

"However, only one of these databases always ha the correct information and that is the factory database," adds Adler. "All of these other databases are simply copies of the factory database and are likely to be imperfect."

If a factory database were a virtual database, it could be available to all users in the same form and would eliminate the need for the industry to maintain multiple databases. "This would lower costs while improving quality, reliability, and timeliness of data," observes Adler.

Driver-based Computer Systems

The evolution of "smart cars" and advancement in microprocessor technology will allow drivers in the near future to "talk" directly with a fleet management company's computer system by using a computer in their vehicle.

"The on-board computers in every vehicle will have the capability to transmit data to a fleet management company using cellular technology," says Wojciechowski. Current microprocessor technology allows drivers to register the amount of fuel purchased, vehicle mileage when maintenance is performed, and a variety to other administrative information, says PHH FleetAmerica, which is testing such a system with two of its major clients. In addition, on-board vehicle microprocessors will allow continuous diagnostic testing information to be captured automatically. According to Wojciechowsk, tomorrow's fleet drivers will be informed of vehicle servicing needs before they even realize there is a problem.

"All administrative transactions will be electronically transmitted by the driver directly to the fleet management company instead of moving paper across a fleet manager's desk," says Adler. "Naturally, all of these transactions would be based on a company's fleet policy. It will free a fleet manager from the day-to-day administrative hassle and allow him or her to devote more time to management responsibilities."

 

Computers Will Become Even More Powerful

In the past, fleet management technology primarily denoted data processing. This technology was typified by large mainframe computers whose applications were primarily financial, expense management, and high-speed transaction oriented, says Adler.

However, yesterday's mainframe computer technology was inflexible because of its complexity and closed architecture. As a consequence, it was time consuming and very expensive to modify these systems to perform customized applications such as those required of fleet management.

The other drawback to this technology was that it generated mountains of paper requiring fleet managers to shift through pages and pages of data in order to make management decisions. Although this technology was a quantum leap improvement to the previous manual methods, there were limitations to its usefulness.

Today, desktop computers are frequently more powerful than the mainframe computers of yesteryear. This increased power allows today's desktop computers to develop and process data through multiple local area networks, which makes the sharing of information instantaneous, cost-effective, and efficient. One of the first benefits to the increased electronic exchange of information will be a further reduction in the volume of paper that moves from desk to desk.

With the introduction of laptops, computers are no longer deskbound and are increasingly finding their way in the hands of fleet drivers. Laptops are now small enough and light enough to be easily carried around in briefcases. Laptops are presently being used by drivers in some fleets to record personal use mileage and other car-related expenses which are electronically transferred to the fleet department or fleet management company computer. The next revolution in personal computing is already dawning as even smaller hand-held computers are becoming commercially available.

According to Dave Zuidema, manager of information products for PHH FleetAmerica, current trends portend increased computing power becoming available to fleet managers resulting in a higher degree of automation in all fleet functions. This will allow the development of detailed fleet management data that presently doesn't exist.

According to John Bauer, manager of electronic client communications for Wheels, he envisions the availability of comprehensive fleet safety and maintenance data. "Information will be detailed enough to analyze the relationship between driver training, safety, components, preventive maintenance, and accidents," says Bauer.

The Shape of Things of Come

A revolution is dawning in fleet management and it will be technologically drive. These new technological applications will shape the fleet of tomorrow and tomorrow is not as far away as you think.