Fleet Management
Chapter 1
Justifying the Fleet’s Existence
The Changing Role of the Private Fleets
Historically, Fleet management consisted of properly specing and maintaining vehicles and equipment. The fleet manager was simply expected to keep vehicles on the road at a reasonable cost. Today’s Fleet manager has expanded responsibilities and is accountable for all logistics management: supply chain management, physical distribution and fleet management; warehousing; order processing; forecasting; inventory control; material handling; production planning; customer service.
A private fleet manager must determine the best delivery system a company should employ to obtain the lowest possible cost and highest level of service: owned or leased private fleet; for hire transportation (dedicated contract); combination of both.
Challenges
The National Private Truck Council identified five challenges a fleet manger faces. All also have opportunities associated with them.
Doing more with less: Challenge: Fleet Manager (F/M) are expected to provide better customer service and increased productivity at a lower cost. Opportunity: F/M can take on increased operations and logistic responsibility by broadening their management scope to include warehousing, purchasing, inventory control, etc. It is not uncommon for the best fleets to have a 10% cost advantage over the competition.
Governmental Regulation: Challenge: F/M must stay abreast the ever-changing government regulations, Alternative Fuel mandates, energy taxes, increased permits and road use fees, hours of service, and deregulation have increased cost pressures making it more difficult to reduce the cost of owning and operating a private fleet. Opportunity: F/M implement quality improvement programs and benchmarking programs to offset increased costs. They stay on top of regulatory changes and are not surprised by regulatory actions. It can also affect costs and health by properly analyzing
Justifying the Fleet’s Existence
The Changing Role of the Private Fleets
Historically, Fleet management consisted of properly specing and maintaining vehicles and equipment. The fleet manager was simply expected to keep vehicles on the road at a reasonable cost. Today’s Fleet manager has expanded responsibilities and is accountable for all logistics management: supply chain management, physical distribution and fleet management; warehousing; order processing; forecasting; inventory control; material handling; production planning; customer service.
A private fleet manager must determine the best delivery system a company should employ to obtain the lowest possible cost and highest level of service: owned or leased private fleet; for hire transportation (dedicated contract); combination of both.
Challenges
The National Private Truck Council identified five challenges a fleet manger faces. All also have opportunities associated with them.
Doing more with less: Challenge: Fleet Manager (F/M) are expected to provide better customer service and increased productivity at a lower cost. Opportunity: F/M can take on increased operations and logistic responsibility by broadening their management scope to include warehousing, purchasing, inventory control, etc. It is not uncommon for the best fleets to have a 10% cost advantage over the competition.
Governmental Regulation: Challenge: F/M must stay abreast the ever-changing government regulations, Alternative Fuel mandates, energy taxes, increased permits and road use fees, hours of service, and deregulation have increased cost pressures making it more difficult to reduce the cost of owning and operating a private fleet. Opportunity: F/M implement quality improvement programs and benchmarking programs to offset increased costs. They stay on top of regulatory changes and are not surprised by regulatory actions. It can also affect costs and health by properly analyzing