Looking for ways to increase revenue and reduce costs in transport operations is one of the biggest challenges for transport business owners. Among these strategies are acquiring better contracts and improving fleet management efficiency. Today, we’ll focus on the latter — exploring strategies for managing a vehicle fleet using GPS technology and mobile applications.
Fleet management encompasses all activities related to the use and maintenance of vehicles in a transport company. This involves a range of tasks, from route planning and vehicle procurement to ensuring their proper technical condition and handling all formalities related to the cars owned.
These activities also include several less obvious but ultimately crucial tasks such as ensuring safe working conditions for drivers, equipping vehicles properly, and managing fuel cards.
Fleet management is primarily concerned with four key functions:
The ultimate goal of fleet management is to increase profits and continually reduce operational costs while maintaining safety standards and legal compliance.
Effective fleet management in a transport company must be based on several foundational principles, which should be defined from the outset. First, it’s crucial to determine the size of the vehicle fleet over the next few years. Similarly, estimate the number of orders, the number of employees, fixed operating costs, and variable costs such as fuel consumption. Finally, assess the current utilisation rate of the vehicles to create a baseline for making improvements.
You should also consider the tools used within the company, including appropriate software. An example is the fireTMS system, which enables you to consolidate all documents (both paper and digital) into one place. You can enter vehicles into the electronic records and add detailed information about them, such as insurance periods, permits, inspections, vehicle equipment, and more.
A TMS provides the best performance and benefits when integrated with GPS telematics and mobile apps. This is crucial for real-time transport monitoring and quick communication between dispatchers and drivers on the road. It makes it possible to verify whether planned routes are being followed and to respond immediately in case of any issues on the route.
Having a TMS integrated with GPS telematics and additional applications, allows you to manage your fleet of vehicles on an ongoing basis.
GPS systems have long been a cornerstone of the transport industry, providing real-time information about vehicle locations. This makes it easy to monitor the progress of orders. A great complement to GPS telematics are applications that facilitate quick communication between the transport coordinator (such as the owner, dispatcher, or forwarder) and the drivers. For fireTMS, these are the fireTMS Dispo app for coordinators and the fireTMS Driver app for drivers.
The fireTMS Dispo app enables:
The fireTMS Driver app enables:
Effective planning should be based on data analysis of the vehicles owned, their availability, and their suitability for orders. This depends on the vehicle’s condition, equipment, characteristics, type of load, and route. Using TMS software and additional solutions and devices, you can easily select the appropriate vehicle for a specific order and plan the route to minimise costs and equipment wear.
Quick analytics and easy access to reports are also crucial. These tools are invaluable in fleet management because they provide you with the means to quickly assess vehicle availability based on accumulated data, route reports, and equipment information. This is also important for handling vehicle breakdowns or expiring inspections and insurance. Using fireTMS tools, you can promptly respond by sending a vehicle for repairs, inspections, or purchasing insurance.
Reports are also essential for understanding maintenance costs and fleet profitability. They enable you to identify profitable trucks and those that are unprofitable and should be assigned different tasks or sold.
By receiving information from drivers about breakdowns or equipment wear, you can plan parts replacement or repairs even before the order is completed. This helps minimise the risk of major breakdowns and reduces situations where the vehicle is in the workshop and not earning money.
For TMS systems that have advanced route planning tools using maps, detailed routes can be planned in addition, taking into account transport conditions. Additionally, you can analyse the route for empty runs and use this information when seeking orders on transport exchanges to maximise route utilisation. Furthermore, modern systems like fireTMS offer integration with transport exchanges, speeding up route planning and efficient fleet management.
One of the biggest challenges for transport company owners is cost optimisation. While the number of orders can vary depending on the time of year or the overall economic situation, cost levels and optimisation potential depend on the strategies adopted by the owner or managers. Cost optimisation is achievable using appropriate tools designed for the TSL industry.
What costs can be optimised?
Cost optimisation can be achieved using data provided by integrating the TMS system with GPS telematics and applications. This combination enables quick decision-making and better route planning in terms of costs and time. In case of any issues on the route, the plan can be modified in real-time. Additionally, the ability to analyse data over longer periods, such as a month or a quarter, is beneficial for optimising fuel costs by changing fuel card suppliers or negotiating terms with the current supplier.
Finally, training drivers and obtaining certifications significantly impact fleet efficiency. The ability to drive more economically in terms of fuel consumption and wear and tear on vehicle parts results in keeping the fleet in good condition and transporting goods safely.
Reducing direct costs of various training courses and certifications may yield short-term benefits, but in the long run, it can significantly reduce the fleet’s earning potential due to increased accident rates, vehicle wear, or declining service quality.
It’s important to adopt an appropriate strategy for managing a vehicle fleet using modern tools. If you want to see how the TMS system can help you, try fireTMS with a free 14-day trial!
Regularnie dostarczamy informacji o naszym systemie oraz na tematy z branży TSL.
Zapisz się do newslettera i bądź na bieżąco.
fireTMS team
The article was written by the fireTMS team, based on their knowledge, experience and awareness of the TSL industry.
With this article, you will learn more about features such as: Fuel expense register fireTMS enables you to assign fuel costs directly to a given vehicle manually. To register a single fuel cost, you need to go to Vehicles >> Expenses >> Register expense >> Register fuel expense. You need to complete the data in […]
3 minuty czytania
Learn about new features and upgrades by reading this article: Automatic email notifications when a purchase invoice is approved and an outgoing payment is marked as paid The most important aspects of a freight forwarder’s work are time and reaction speed. These are the key factors that have a significant impact on the planning and […]
3 minuty czytania
Learn about new features and upgrades by reading this article: Recurring costs With the new version of the system, the option to add recurring costs was introduced. This allows the user to easily and quickly register a recurring cost, such as a tractor lease, in fireTMS. To add a company’s fixed (recurring) costs, go to […]
1 minuta czytania