Automotive Fleet's former editor, Mike Antich, shared his 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.
Now is when the fleet industry should be proactively identifying these future technicians. The fleet industry has a window to tap into this idled labor pool, who will look attractive to other industries experiencing labor shortages leading to increased competition to recruit this talent.
Whatever the final impact of the pandemic on fleet management, one legacy will be the creation of an expanded base of new customers comfortable with e-commerce transactions to be serviced by a growing number of final-mile delivery fleets.
As fleet manager, your mission is to lower potential infections among those using fleet assets and to minimize the risk of spreading the virus to others with whom drivers interact.
Extending the oil drain interval to higher miles puts it out-of-synch with courtesy checks for tire wear and brake pad or rotor inspections. By extending oil drain intervals, there will be less frequent inspection of these wear items than what has occurred in the past.
Every company has a corporate culture and if you drill down the corporate strata, every department likewise has its own culture that embodies the management philosophy of the department manager.
Younger employees who are aware of fleet manager core competencies will gravitate to fleet as a stepping stone because of the exposure to cross-functional groups.
Everything fleet does revolves around money: asset acquisition, fuel to operate assets, maintenance to keep assets operational, and myriad other miscellaneous, incidental expenses ranging from tolls, parking tickets, and waste disposal fees to taxes.
Truck fleet managers need to be diligent in tracking and documenting all PM work that comply with OEM recommended guidelines to ensure there is no PM variability.
There are three key reasons why the transition to synthetic oils is occurring. They are the proliferation of smaller displacement turbocharged engines, escalating CAFE fuel economy requirements, and government regulations to lower tailpipe emissions.
Vocational vehicles are in the business of delivering goods and providing services. They are earning assets and to maximize their productivity, you need to minimize unscheduled downtime or offset downtime for routine PMs by doing the work during non-revenue-producing hours.
The commercial fleet market wants EVs as evidenced by the increased number of national fleets that are adding low- or zero-emission equipment requirements into RFPs.
For the past several model years, order-to-delivery times for high-volume work trucks and vans have increased due to strong demand. Vocational trucks are vulnerable to OTD delays because fleet orders are usually concentrated among a handful of models.
While personal use averages 16%, outside market dynamics can cause personal use mileage to increase. For instance, when fuel prices increase, there is typically a spike in employees using fleet vehicles for personal use since the company pays for gasoline.
A great fleet manager constantly conceptualizes new initiatives, is creative in problem-solving, motivates staff and suppliers to excel, and is willing to experiment by implementing new technology-based fleet solutions.
Although most commercial fleets self-insure or have large deductible programs for their fleet to cover vehicle damage, most carry commercial general liability insurance for bodily injury or property damage caused by their company vehicle or employee.
media brand
The secure and easy all-access connection to your content.
Bookmarked content can then be accessed anytime on all of your logged in devices!
Already a member? Log In
