5 Ways to Increase Your Truck Fleet Uptime
If you’re a truck fleet manager, you know the value of uptime. The longer your semi-trucks are in service, the more routes they can complete on time, the more you get paid, and the fewer dollars you need to spend on expensive solutions to cover unforeseen breakdowns. Unfortunately, wear and tear on your vehicles isn’t something that can be avoided. Mechanical components break down the more they’re used. That’s a fact of life.
But that doesn’t mean losing part of your fleet to mechanical failures is inevitable. As semi-truck experts, The Larson Group has learned a thing or two during our decades of service about what can be done to decrease breakdowns and increase fleet uptime. That’s why today we’re diving deep into the five big things you can do to keep your trucks rolling as long as possible. From maintenance routines to utilizing the latest in monitoring technology, this guide will cover the basics.
Never Neglect Maintenance
It’s no secret that the more you neglect your fleet’s routine maintenance, the greater your chances of experiencing an unfortunate breakdown. Trucks put a lot of miles on them during their lifetime. All that usage requires extra care to maintain your vehicles and increase their potential lifespan.
Make sure your semi-trucks undergo regularly scheduled maintenance, including routine checks on engine health, brakes, tire pressure, electrical systems, fluid levels, and fuel lines. Regularly maintaining your vehicle significantly decreases the likelihood of downtime.
Additionally, consider employing preventive maintenance strategies through your trucks’ connected services. Preventive maintenance using data to predict issues, will help avoid unexpected downtime by proactively scheduling truck service and parts replacement to keep your vehicles on the road longer. For example, Peterbilt models arm you with real-time 24/7 health monitoring through its SmartLINQ services and remote diagnostics that keeps drivers and fleet managers informed.
Embrace Telematics
Of all the advancements to overland freight hauling that have popped up during the 21st century, none is as influential as telematics. Telematics is the practice of connecting on-board diagnostics (OBD) equipment to GPS tracking and back-office fleet management support to monitor the real-time performance of crucial semi-truck components and rig location.
For instance, integrated OBD can tell you if there are any engine interruptions, what the current fuel consumption is, if the engine spends any time idling, the current state of the battery, and even if your driver is using a seatbelt. Telematics is crucial in today’s global supply chain. Not only do they give you an in-depth glance at the performance of your vehicles, but they can also help you predict breakdowns and avoid downtime by getting the right preventive repairs at the right time. As an added bonus, telematics can give you the data you need for better route efficiency.
Adopt Better Load Matching and Route Efficiency Procedures
Did you know that one of the biggest causes of lost uptime is inefficient planning? It’s true. Not all downtime is caused by breakdowns. Partial loads, deadheading, and bobtailing are all examples of inefficient uses of your fleet vehicles. In each case, time and fuel is expended for a smaller or non-existent return on investment.
Integrating telematics with your fleet can allow you to plan more efficient routes that lead to more of the right loads assigned to the right trucks. The end result is a greater amount of tonnage hauled and more profits.
Part of planning maximized routes is also looking for opportunities to increase fuel efficiency. Reducing fuel consumption also reduces overall fleet management costs and improves the life of your vehicles. Try to establish policies that significantly reduce idling and promote sustainability.
Educate Your Drivers
While a large portion of fleet management is dedicated to keeping your trucks up and running, don’t forget to take care of your most valuable asset: Your drivers.
Without your valuable team of over-the-road truckers, you’d have no reason to manage a fleet in the first place.
With such a shortage of qualified drivers on the road, taking care of your drivers is more important than ever. Creating programs that focus on recruiting and retaining quality drivers is a must if you want to get the most out of your fleet.
A crucial component of retention is driver health. It’s well established that long-haul trucking takes a serious toll on the health of the driver, and unhealthy drivers have a direct impact on the efficiency and safety of your fleet. You can go the extra mile by sponsoring driver wellness initiatives. This includes providing incentives to drivers who embrace wellness initiatives on the road and educating your drivers on ways to stay healthy while on the job.
Finally, your drivers are the first line of defense against vehicle breakdowns. Make sure you thoroughly educate your drivers on how to perform routine checks on their vehicle both before and after a route, and while on the road. If you teach them how to spot issues that could potentially become major mechanical failures, you can prevent unexpected breakdowns.
Invest in Quality Parts and Service
A good semi-truck is much more than the sum of its parts. But by the same token, which parts you choose to use in your vehicles will largely determine how well they perform.
If you put your fleet through regular maintenance, it’s vital to also invest in quality parts to maximize the uptime you’ve gained. That’s why it’s important to source your parts and services from businesses you can trust. Although it may be more expensive up front, it will save you thousands of dollars in the long run.
Keep Moving Forward with The Larson Group
The Larson Group is an expansive dealership network, parts provider and maintenance service provider with decades of experience helping to keep fleets just like yours moving forward. As a group founded by drivers-turned-dealers, we understand the industry better than most and know how to help you get the most out of your vehicles.
We offer 24-hour fleet maintenance services as well as mobile service units to get you up and running again if you do experience a breakdown, and efficiently fast parts delivery. In fact, we keep $75 million in quality parts stocked at our locations (including OEM, aftermarket, and all makes parts) so that you have access to what you need when you need it.
And if the worst comes to pass and you need to take a vehicle out of commission for a while, we offer affordable truck leasing and rental to fill the gap in your fleet so you don’t need to let downtime keep you down.
Contact one of our Fleet Maintenance Experts today and discover how much uptime you can gain with TLG where we are dedicated to uptime, all the time.