Getting a work truck fueled, inspected, and serviced shouldn't take more time away from the job than necessary. But when those services require separate trips to different locations, even routine maintenance can cut into a fleet's productive hours.

Kooner Fleet Management Solutions and Global Partners have announced a referral partnership connecting mobile fleet maintenance with commercial fueling services. The agreement is designed to give fleet operators access to complementary services that can be performed where their vehicles are already located.

Rather than combining their operations, the companies will refer customers to one another based on their fueling and maintenance needs.

Reducing Trips That Take Trucks Off the Job

Under the agreement, Kooner customers can be referred to Global Partners for bulk fuel delivery, mobile refueling, wet hosing, fleet fuel cards, and access to high-volume diesel fueling locations.

Global Partners customers, meanwhile, can be connected with Kooner for mobile fleet maintenance, preventive maintenance, trailer repairs, DOT inspections, and dedicated or recurring on-site technician support.

The arrangement addresses a familiar challenge for vocational fleets. Trucks often need to leave their normal operating locations for fueling or service, requiring both vehicle and employee time that could otherwise be spent on the job.

"Fleets leverage a host of providers for fuel and maintenance. The challenge is how much productive time they spend getting vehicles to those services. Every trip off-site can pull a vehicle and an employee away from the work they’re there to do," Bill Cooper, vice president of sales at Kooner Fleet Management Solutions, told Work Truck.

Cooper explained that the partnership is intended to help fleets coordinate those services around their existing operations rather than rearranging work schedules to accommodate them.

"Kooner brings maintenance to the fleet, and Global brings fueling to the fleet. This referral partnership gives operators access to complementary services that can reduce those trips and make better use of the time vehicles are already parked. The opportunity is to fit fueling and maintenance around the operation’s schedule," he said.

Making Planned Downtime More Productive

For fleets with vehicles returning to a yard or terminal at the end of a shift, those parked hours can provide an opportunity to address multiple service needs before the next workday.

Fueling, inspections, and preventive maintenance can potentially be handled during those windows instead of requiring separate trips while trucks are needed in the field.

"The biggest opportunity is making better use of planned downtime. When vehicles return to a yard between shifts or overnight, that creates a window to complete fueling, inspections, and preventive maintenance before they’re needed again," Cooper told Work Truck.

The benefit isn't limited to reducing the number of trips a truck makes for service. Addressing maintenance needs before vehicles head back into the field can also help fleets avoid interruptions during scheduled work.

"It’s about more than eliminating trips. Addressing maintenance needs during those windows can help prevent a manageable issue from becoming a breakdown during a route," he said. "The goal is to have vehicles ready when drivers arrive, with fewer interruptions during the workday."

How the Referral Partnership Will Work

The companies will continue operating within their respective areas of expertise. Each will evaluate referred customer opportunities and work directly with fleet operators to determine which services fit their needs.

For fleet managers, that means the partnership creates an additional connection between fueling and maintenance providers rather than a single combined service program.

The companies say the goal is to make it easier for commercial fleets to find relevant support for both services while improving vehicle availability and reducing avoidable downtime.

Want to learn more about how the future of fleet maintenance is predictive? Check out the At the Show interview below!