One of the world’s greatest management thinkers, Peter Drucker, put it best when he said, ‘If you can’t measure it, you can’t improve it.’ And if your clients are fleet managers, you’ll know just how important it is to monitor fleet diagnostics to manage risk, improve efficiency and reduce costs.
In today’s era of the Internet of Things (IoT), where just about anything can be monitored, the ability to connect sensors, onboard computers and platforms is providing fleet managers with incredible business insight – something that’s vital to business success in a tough world economy.
Monitor, improve and stay in control
Whatever the fleet size, your clients are in charge of a range of functions which include telematics. At a high level, telematics describes the use of technology and communications to connect devices and sensors to a central hub. This data is collected and turned into insight.
More commonly known as tracking and diagnostics, telematics gives fleet managers a comprehensive view of overall fleet health and activity. Telematics systems like 3Dtracking make it easy by integrating a range of data points that include vehicle tracking (geo-location, driver behaviour and engine diagnostics) and other fleet information such as fuel and maintenance, supply chain and vehicle-identifying data. For clients, the capability to monitor more data points means better fleet control and ultimately the ability to pinpoint and diagnose areas for improvement.
Making the business case for diagnostics monitoring
Real-time alerts and in-depth reports put your clients in the pound seat when it comes to improving fleet health and driver behaviours. Thanks to expert algorithms and sheer data-crunching power, centralised diagnostics and tracking solutions give your clients an inside view of mechanical and driver safety issues before they cost the business.
By turning multiple data points into useful knowledge, your fleet management clients will be able to prove the business case for diagnostics monitoring by being able to achieve:
- Lower fuel consumption: by monitoring vehicle use, speeding and idling
- Return on investment on vehicles: by monitoring fuel, odometer readings, carbon emissions and engine fault codes
- Longer lifespan for tyres, brakes, clutches and gears: through proactive maintenance monitoring
- Reduced running costs and a smaller carbon footprint: monitoring route deviations, speeding and over idling
- Lower insurance premiums and fewer accidents: real-time monitoring and in-depth reporting of driver behaviour
- Less vehicle downtime: proactive engine monitoring helps lower repair costs and ensure efficient maintenance
- Better fleet productivity: real-time geolocation to monitor and improve efficiency
Choosing the right diagnostics to monitor
By monitoring vehicle diagnostics remotely, your clients have an always-on insight into the status and health of their fleets. By giving them a critical tool to control repairs and maintenance, fleet owners get exactly the same insight as that provided by specialist workshops and diagnostics equipment. This means independence and a lot more control.
For most commercial vehicles, vehicle diagnostics can be read from the onboard computer, namely the CanBUS or OBD system. For older vehicles, both wired and/or wireless sensors can be retro fitted to specific vehicle parts for monitoring. Using bespoke algorithms, fleet managers can now see this data, along with other environmental variables, on one single platform.
And if you were in any doubt, let’s look at how this worked for a heavy goods fleet. For many clients, tyres are a huge expense and incorrect tyre pressures can literally eat through fuel. By being able to monitor tyre pressure with sensors and read the data in real-time, your fleet owners will cut fuel costs and reduce unnecessary wear and tear on tyres.
Real-time insights for real-time solutions
In a world where time is money, your ability to offer clients real-time fleet control means lower costs, and a healthier fleet and bottom line. Historic detailed reports give fleet managers the option to track trends over time, while real-time alerts deliver actionable data.
In so doing, your clients will be able to use the data that’s measured to plan better and improve driver skills and behaviour, while making sure their fleet is safe, healthy and more economic on the road.
To find out how a high-tech fleet management system can help drive fleet efficiency through diagnostics to suit your clients’ unique business needs, contact 3Dtracking.