Ford has developed a fleet purchasing planner that helps better inform commercial fleet managers about how to reduce their carbon footprint when purchasing new fleet vehicles.

The Ford Fleet Purchase Planner is a new tool Ford is making available only to fleet buyers, who can use it to build a fleet of vehicles while also factoring in environmental concerns, individual driving habits of employees, and terrain traveled.

Buyers can adjust the vehicle lineup until it meets their sustainability goals.

"The one-size-fits-all approach is outdated," said John Ginder, manager of systems analytics and environmental sciences, Ford research and advanced engineering. "Given what can now be done with analytics, customers shouldn't settle for buying one vehicle for an entire fleet based on factors such as projected use or miles per gallon."

So far, the tool has helped KONE, an elevator and escalator manufacturing fleet, set up a plan to update its fleet of 160 Ford Fusion sedans with the new Fusion Hybrid by 2018. The move is expected to result in a reduction in KONE's carbon emissions by 850 metric tons a year and provide the company a cost savings.