One of the main aspects of fleet management is making sure that vehicles are available to be deployed when they are needed. This is done by scheduling which
vehicles will be used for different routes on what days, so that there is no vehicle sitting idle for too long. The second major component of fleet management
is the upkeep of vehicles. This includes routine maintenance, preventive maintenance, repairs, refueling and cleaning. A third component to fleet management
would be accounting for fuel consumption. In order to save money, this should always be monitored. Vehicles should also have a schedule for oil changes and
tire rotation in order to keep them running smoothly.
Budgetary planning is another part of fleet management, as well as looking at whether or not new vehicles need to be purchased or old ones can still be repaired
or upgraded. All in all, these tasks help companies save time and money because everything runs more efficiently. For example, if a company has twenty cars and
only needs five for one particular day, it may put those five cars on standby instead of having them drive back from their route to go sit idle in the parking lot.
Furthermore, many GPS tracking systems offer detailed reporting on how each individual car is being utilized throughout the day. From this data it's possible to
determine if certain drivers might be using their assigned vehicles less than others and reassign accordingly. Another way it helps to optimize fleet usage is by
determining which drivers are working overtime and can take the next day off. Finally, if someone wants to track down an employee who hasn't shown up for work for
two hours, locating his or her car via GPS could make finding him or her much easier!
With all of these benefits of fleet management available, it's understandable why every industry relies on its use - even outside of trucking and transportation!