A centralized computer-based fuel management system can be a crucial piece in the optimization of supply chain efficiencies and overall fuel supply performance for fuel-site operators, large or small.
Peter J. Cochefski
Every business and industry must be prepared for change and the waste industry is no different. One of the most predictable expenses, and one of the most volatile in the waste industry, is transportation. How can managers take something so unpredictable and make it more manageable?
When you consider the impact of rising fuel costs for any waste truck, the unique wear-and-tear it experiences and maintenance, it is easy to see why waste-industry managers must keep close tabs on their fleet expenses. It can be the daily challenges to waste operations, problems that can directly affect bottom-line profitability and that cause the most stress.
Generating annual U.S. revenues are projected to reach $60 billion by 2016 and the waste industry generally has slight margins and tight management of fuel operations, which is an easy way to help ensure profitability. The largest U.S. waste transportation segment is the collection process, which represents $34 billion annually, accounting for 61 percent of industry revenues. Transporting and processing waste and recyclables account for another 11 percent of industry revenues.1
However, transportation is often a service that may not be part of the waste manager’s core experience. To combat this, many waste companies have turned to technology to make up for what they may lack in trucking and fleet management expertise. Because of the mechanized nature of waste collection and the potential for low operating margins, it is imperative that waste management companies maintain control of their entire transportation process. Municipalities are constantly trying to hold or cut costs, regardless of its vendor’s added operational expenses.
Managing the efficiency of waste pickup and its destination delivery is essential to managing the bottom line of any waste operation. The waste industry experiences an immediate impact on its bottom line whenever fuel costs or anything related to transportation expenses undergo a dramatic change. Any waste management operation that has access to fueling sites recognizes that the cost of fueling vehicles is immense. Also, consider that a small percentage of the annual fuel budget is lost due to theft or waste.
A waste company’s fleets can cost millions of dollars to operate. Any downtime due to operational failure or lost time trying to coordinate convenient refueling stops will not only adversely affect delivery schedules, but also lead to additional fuel costs as other trucks are forced to pull double duty. Unfortunately, if there is enough inefficiency in a fueling process, it may be costing any waste company’s trucking operation thousands of dollars a year in fuel, equipment maintenance, liability and compliance costs. This can erode margins that are being generated in other more efficient areas of the business.
Adoption of centralized data management for waste trucking operations has been an increasing necessity in the industry. Technology has enhanced data access and processing to deliver information that can quickly be analyzed for immediate decisions that affect the bottom line. Fuel is the lifeblood of any business with fleets of vehicles, so why live with inaccurate inventory levels when technology has been developed with ultra-accurate inventory measurement in mind?
Automated Fuel Tracking
Automated fuel tracking allows real-time access to inventory levels and fueling habits at any time of the day or night for all of a company’s fueling operations. It provides a more accurate account of the amount of fuel usage at a facility, and exactly where that fuel is going, which will decrease opportunities for theft. From a corporate standpoint, all fueling activities may be monitored from a central office, whether regionally or nationally.
Reduced Maintenance Costs
Maintenance issues cause headaches not only when a piece of equipment fails, but also when the maintenance issue needs to be documented. If this data is not accurately recorded, the site operator runs the risk of overpaying for a service call or repeating service calls. Fuel management services can let the operator know how much time the technician spent onsite, how much service calls cost and the frequency of service calls for the same problem, which is something that can be hard to track by an onsite manager or clerk.
Compliance Management
Automated fuel management systems have been designed to track and update compliance data and incidents 24/7/365. Compliance management at commercial or industrial sites can be a lower priority, but automated management of this process increases its importance in the system without increasing the amount of employee interactions.
Alarm Management
Alarm management is traditionally a labor-intensive, manual job. Automated fuel management allows this difficult task to be outsourced to a company that can diagnose, solve and document alarm conditions immediately. Detecting an alarm event at the earliest possible point is essential to identifying a potential environmental risk and mitigating the costs that can be associated with environmental cleanup and remediation.
Manage Contractor Database
Unless site operators have a long-standing relationship with a service professional, they enter the unknown when onsite repairs or maintenance are needed. Automated fuel management systems allow a contractor database to be set up for the site, often by the company that is providing the fuel management service. This ensures that contractors who don’t have the ability—or even current or correct insurance—are not called for a particular job.
Fuel Management Services
The modern automated fuel management system can easily provide fueling facility managers, owners, fuel buyers and fuel suppliers with an end-to-end fuel management solution. Centralizing the capture and storage of key fueling site information through automated processes ensures that the end-user creates and maintains consistent site operations, delivering maximized operational efficiencies and site profitability.
Modern fuel services offer assistance in compliance, alarm, service and project management. These services can provide best management practices (BMPs) for everyday fleet operations. The BMPs for fuel management will improve operating efficiencies, reduce costs and minimize environmental impact.
The Crucial Piece
A centralized computer-based fuel management system can be a crucial piece in the optimization of supply chain efficiencies and overall fuel supply performance for fuel-site operators, large or small.
Peter J. Cochefski is the Director for Ryder Fuel Services (Houston, TX) is a subsidiary of Ryder System, Inc., and a provider of fuel management programs that focus on Compliance Management, Remote Monitoring and Alarm Management, Service Management, Fuel Management and Supply and environmental Best Management Practices. These programs help Ryder Fuel Services customers, depending on their specific needs, improve operating efficiencies, reduce costs and minimize negative environmental impact. Peter can be reached at (281) 647-8900 ext. 222 or via e-mail at
Note
- Wastebusinessjournal.com: www.wastebusinessjournal.com/overview.htm.