THE CAR AND TRUCK FLEET AND LEASING MANAGEMENT MAGAZINE
Our long-time editor and fleet expert, Mike Antich, offers opinions and ideas on the overall commercial fleet industry and draws interesting comments from fleet managers and other industry professionals from across the country. Mike was inducted in the Fleet Hall of Fame in 2010.
Multinational corporations are changing the way they source and manage their vocational fleets to better identify true costs and to leverage opportunities to reduce spend and to maximize the operating efficiency of these specialized vehicles.
There isn’t a single trait that epitomizes a great fleet manager; rather, it is a multitude of traits interacting with one another. The best fleet managers are jugglers who can balance a variety of variables to make the fleet program work efficiently.
Today, more than ever, fleet managers must be goal-oriented in all aspects of fleet management. But, in an era of doing more with less, it is important to select your goals wisely.
A vehicle’s total cost of ownership is comprised of its fixed costs, operating expenses, and depreciation per year or during the course of its service life, minus its anticipated resale value. During the course of a vehicle’s service life, TCO is subject to change due to a vehicle’s age and numerous external factors, which has a direct bearing on replacement policies.
Excessive engine idling doesn’t just consume fuel, it also creates engine hours, which depending on the OEM, are used to determine when the powertrain warranty expires.
Change is percolating in the management of multinational fleets, which is being driven by global market dynamics, evolving procurement trends, and technology platform upgrades that are facilitating cross-border management of individual country fleets.
While there never seems to be enough money to go around, one of the less talked about aspects of fleet management is the amount of budget dollars that are wasted every year.
In a six-month analysis, the FMCSA reported hours of service (HOS) violations have steadily decreased, which is good news and a testament to the efficacy of ELD technology. However, there continue to be negative unintended consequences caused by the constraints and inflexibility with HOS rules that hinder compliance.
Three challenges consistently high on the list for many fleet managers — improving driver safety, mitigating the high cost of fuel, and complying with corporate pressures to reduce fleet’s contribution to the company’s global carbon footprint.
Many times employees who have an “entitlement mentality” do not have a sense of responsibility to take care of the company asset as if it was their own. This impacts fleet costs. A company vehicle in poor condition because of driver abuse or neglect will result in lost resale value or incur unnecessary reconditioning expense at auction.
