Even with the largest civilian fleet in the world, the U.S. government can ensure reliability, safety and minimal costs through the scope of right-sizing with telematics.
By Clinton Strother
According to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), right-sizing a fleet is a management practice that can assist vehicle fleet managers in building and maintaining sustainable and fuel-efficient fleets. With 656,000 vehicles, the U.S. government runs the largest civilian fleet in the world. Government officials are responsible for ensuring their fleets are reliable, safe, and low-cost vehicle solutions for each agency.
When it comes to right-sizing a fleet, there is a distinct difference between this and downsizing. The U.S. DOE has identified it as a practice that can aid managers in building and maintaining sustainable and fuel-efficient fleets. It does not just reduce costs, but it also creates a cost-effective fleet for the long haul.
The sooner that happens, the sooner there will be significant cost cuts that will guarantee reduced maintenance and fuel costs expenses, lower emissions, and optimized usage. The tool that will do this is a telematics platform that provides the most vital data on under-used vehicles, route inefficiencies, and over- or under-powered units that are not working sufficiently for a fleet’s needs.
Images courtesy of GPS Inisight.
Analyzing Data to Right-Size Fleets
Understanding how vehicles are used is essential to right-sizing a fleet. This means analyzing several aspects about the fleet. An agency can ask five fundamental questions to help guide them in the right direction:
1. How often are specific vehicles used throughout their lives?
2. Does the agency have the appropriate number of vehicles?
3. Where are the vehicles at any given time? For example, are they spending time parked in a company lot or constantly on the road?
4. Is the agency using the appropriate type of vehicle for its intended purpose?
5. What is the overall general health of the fleet?
Telematics is the best way to confidently know the answers to these questions. That is because a telematics platform uses its abilities to identify these underused vehicles, route inefficiencies, and vehicles that do not meet a particular fleet’s needs. It can produce and analyze an agency’s most pertinent data in a highly digestible way.
Insights like these can help those running the fleets establish if they have the appropriate type and number of vehicles and if they are used most efficiently. This brings transparency that can assist in better understanding if some assets are overused while others are sitting idle. Fleet managers have the support they need to precisely identify vehicle availability and downtime while determining the use of each vehicle.
Fleet use data has shown through landmark history reports that an agency can identify over or underused vehicles by providing the necessary information. When managers can understand why a vehicle has gone unused for an extended period, they can better understand the assets that are genuinely needed within a fleet and which ones are not. This kind of review should be run regularly, and frequent conversations should be had with drivers about the operation of their vehicles. Other specific telematics data and fleet analytics should be combed through regularly to help identify and understand all of these critical aspects of a fleet.
Observing Telematics at Work
It is one thing to implement tools that can help right-size a fleet, and it is another to see the payoff when right-sizing produces so many benefits. For example, in a study of how this can happen, one company that implemented telematics to right-size their fleet determined that vehicles and other assets were idling unnecessarily for hours. That amounts to unnecessarily high greenhouse gasses and engine wear, leading to warranty issues. By using telematics, the company addressed the problems and, ultimately, experienced a 1,500 percent ROI, saving more than $1 million in fuel costs. That is peak efficiency in operations.
The Nitty-Gritty of Right-Sizing
When it comes to massively large fleets—even those run under the U.S. government—there will inherently be more opportunities for mistakes in oversight. This supports the argument that agencies must do what they can to right-size a fleet. These are the key aspects of how right-sizing via telematics will prove to be beneficial:
- Costs of maintenance and fuel: An agency will spend lessmoney on fuel and maintenance when it is right-sized.
- Practical usage: Once agencies comprehend the number of vehicles and what type they need, they will have an optimized fleet that gives them a better ROI on each vehicle.
- Reducing emissions: When agencies have the right-sized fleet, they better understand the best new vehicles to purchase when the time comes. This might mean choosing something more fuel efficient or knowing if an electric vehicle would be
suitable. Either way, this will ensure they select the most appropriate vehicle to save money and be environmentally conscious. - Vehicle savings: The initial purchase of vehicles is one of the most expensive items for fleets. Having the data provided by telematics will help give agencies a better understanding of what kind of vehicle is needed to help to right-size the fleet, aid in making the soundest vehicle investments, and eliminate purchasing an unnecessary vehicle or underusing one.
Waste trucks ready to role
Long-Term Assessments
When the most important parts of a fleet are monitored, like the asset location, maintenance, and use, an agency can guarantee it has a right-sized fleet with the appropriate type of vehicles and that those assets are in the correct place at the right time. Right-sizing should be a highly active and ongoing process for a fleet to work at peak operational efficiency.
Unnecessary downtime means a lack of productivity, which equates to money lost. By right-sizing a fleet, agencies can ensure they have the ideally suited mix of assets for maximum productivity, guaranteeing an improved revenue stream. However, the benefits far exceed that; it adds up to lower maintenance and fuel costs, reduced emissions, optimized usage, and guarantees that the correct assets are accessible when necessary—and that those assets are dispatched to the appropriate location as needed. When government agencies can implement technology within their fleets to better serve their purpose, they can adjust anytime and provide better service. In the long run, this will save them money and ensure their business runs efficiently. | WA
Clinton Strother is Director of Government Sales at GPS Insight. He has more than 10 years of experience in fleet and logistics management as a private fleet operator with FedEx. Clinton joined the GPS Insight team after a highly successful tenure with Sourcewell, specializing in Government contracting and procurement administration. Clinton brings a wealth of knowledge within the realm of government contracting to assist GPS Insight customers throughout the buying process and to ensure they can move projects forward efficiently and cost-effectively. He can be reached at [email protected].
References
• https://apnews.com/article/biden-technology-business-electric-vehicles-climate-and-environment-b3ad03159e5156b2e867e02cdd0a999e
• www.gpsinsight.com/customer-success-stories/rio-tinto-kennecott-utah-copper