Donlen has introduced a preventative maintenance program called eCoupon that delivers "comprehensive electronic service notifications" to drivers' tablets or smartphones when it's time for service intervals to improve preventative maintenance compliance and national account utilization, according to the fleet management company.

eCoupon builds on Donlen's existing SafeCare preventative maintenance Coupon Book program. It elevates the effectiveness through the use of innovative technology and eliminates the need for drivers to bring their paper coupon into the shop, according to Donlen.

The program ties together the maintenance history data of a vehicle, driver location data, and Donlen's national account vendor network to provide financial and productivity benefits for customers.

Fleet vehicles frequently deviate from on-time preventative maintenance as fleet drivers typically need to find room in their work schedule to bring their vehicle into a shop. Therefore, statically followed service intervals have limited impact in reducing the over- or under-maintenance of a vehicle.

Donlen's eCoupon continuously screens the maintenance history of a fleet vehicle and resets the counter after a preventive maintenance service is performed. An eCoupon email will be sent to the driver when a vehicle reaches the next service interval based on days or miles. The eCoupon lists services that are due based on the vehicle's maintenance history with a feature Donlen calls Smart Send Functionality.

"We put data and technology to work to create real value for our customers," said Oliver Zerhusen, Donlen's director of maintenance and accident. "The Smart Send Functionality enables our customers to reduce preventative maintenance costs by optimizing the service schedules of their fleet vehicles."

Donlen's eCoupon is tied to the company's network of 20,000 national account maintenance vendors that provide preventative maintenance services at reduced costs and improved downtime compared to independent maintenance vendors. eCoupon shows the location and addresses of the national account vendors closest to the driver's location.

"We have seen reductions in overall maintenance spend of up to 6% for fleets using our eCoupon," said Zerhusen. "With maintenance costs being one of the highest vehicle expense categories, those cost reductions translate into tangible bottom line improvements for our customers."

With eCoupon, drivers get progressively more aware of which maintenance vendors to use for scheduled repairs and services. Additionally, drivers don't need to think about when to bring a vehicle in for service as the eCoupon will tell them exactly when to do so. Besides the financial benefits for our customers, drivers equally benefit by being just a little less distracted, enabling them to focus on their work and get more done, according to Donlen.