If your business model revolves around a fleet, you need an excellent management strategy to keep costs under control. Operating a fleet is expensive because you face many unpredictable factors, such as vehicle breakdowns or rising fuel prices. Fleet managers often struggle to stay within budgets. The good news is that you can reduce business costs by making a few impactful changes in your management approach.
Here are a few helpful ways to reduce business costs as a fleet manager.
Choose Your Fuel Supplier Carefully
When you operate a fleet, fuel is an unavoidable expense. Finding a reliable supplier that can deliver efficient fuels at competitive prices is critical. Considering the soaring fuel prices, the only way to cut costs is to reduce fuel consumption or change how you buy fuel. It is more cost-effective to buy DERV in bulk. Whether your fleet needs 2,000 or 20,000 liters, top fuel suppliers can deliver your order within 24/48 hours.
Don’t Skip Vehicle Health Checks
Another excellent way to reduce business costs in the medium and long term is to practice preventative maintenance. Regular vehicle health checks are vital because they can help detect problems before they escalate. As a fleet manager, schedule maintenance sessions according to the instructions of the vehicle’s manufacturer. Skipping this step can lead to costly auto repairs and downtime.
Invest in Driver Training
Driver performance is another important factor that determines your total business costs. Investing in driver training is an excellent way to keep your fleet costs under control. Training sessions should include information about how to use onboard equipment properly and drive economically. Drivers must also understand why it is crucial to adopt a defensive driving style to avoid accidents.
Proper training can help drivers learn how to manage their time, deal with unpredictable events on the road, and avoid fuel waste. It can also help them learn how to communicate effectively with the rest of the team.
Reduce Idle Time
In any line of work, idle time costs a company money. When you operate a fleet, idle time is even more costly. You are essentially wasting resources such as time, labor, and fuel. A fleet manager can take several measures to reduce idle time. The most important one is to instruct drivers to shut off the engine to prevent unnecessary idling, which will improve fuel efficiency.
Proper route planning can also help avoid idle time. Monitoring road conditions is important for running a cost-efficient fleet because it keeps your drivers away from road works or traffic jams.
New or Old Vehicles?
If you need new vehicles for your fleet but want to keep your costs down, you are probably looking at old vehicles for sale. In the long term, this approach is not the best. Old vehicles are cheaper than new ones, but they are also more prone to breakdowns and have no valid warranties. New vehicles require little maintenance, are fuel-efficient, and incorporate advanced tech and safety features. Thus, new vehicles can save you money.
Follow our tips to run an efficient fleet and increase your profit.