What Makes For a Strong Fleet Management Strategy?
It’s critically important to have an effective and efficient fleet management strategy. Are you utilizing your vehicles to their fullest extent? Do you have the right vehicles on the right routes?
Here’s the thing: a strong fleet management strategy differentiates successful and profitable last-mile operations from the rest of the pack.
When it comes down to it, the name of the game is right-sizing assets to package volume, while protecting safety, service, and labor efficiency.
This article covers some of the key considerations for a high-impact fleet strategy:
1. Route Density and Package Mix
Before you can assign trucks, you need to understand your territory.
Consider the following on a per-route basis:
Stops per mile
Residential vs. commercial split
Bulk package / IC frequency
Dense residential routes are often better serviced by P1000s than small vans that limit capacity.
Bulk package, high-IC, or urban and industrial routes can be better served by higher capacity vehicles - you don’t want these routes cubed out.
👉 High-performing fleets are route-specific, not “one truck fits all.”
2. Vehicle Right-Sizing
Having the wrong sized vehicle on a route costs money. Either you’re running a truck that’s too large for the route and risking safety incidents, or you’re running multiple vehicles on a route that should only require one truck.
Experienced contractors:
Align cargo volume to projected volume, not to peak numbers (unless it’s peak, of course)
Avoid running undersized trucks, which significantly increases your expense
Right-sizing results in:
Substantial operational savings - up to $120k per unnecessary route eliminated (by using the correct size trucks on all the rest of your routes)
Reduced payroll, repair and maintenance, insurance, and fuel costs
Improved profitability
More efficient operations
Happier drivers
👉 Right-sizing your vehicles provides the biggest opportunity for improved ROI.
3. Fleet Maintenance and Efficiency
It’s important to take a proactive approach to fleet maintenance.
Consider whether buying or leasing (or, most commonly, a combination of the two) makes the most sense for your operation.
Key factors:
Maintenance cost per mile per vehicle
Unpredictable maintenance expenses versus set, predictable payments
CAPEX utilization
Best practices for a strong fleet maintenance approach:
Consider all-inclusive lease programs
Analyze your fleet to determine which trucks should be placed on which routes, which need to be refreshed, and which still have some life to them (we’ll help you with this - for free!)
👉 Downtime for trucks = lost profits. Get a Free Fleet Efficiency Analysis from Hello Truck Lease today.
4. Driver-Truck Fit
Drivers are just as important to your fleet strategy as assigning the right truck to the right route.
Assign experienced drivers to more complex routes, and newer drivers to more easily navigable trucks and routes.
Additionally, depending on which state you operate in, larger vehicles may require certain endorsements and training. Investing in training more of your staff to acquire endorsements and be comfortable in larger vehicles allows for more flexible scheduling and contingency planning.
👉 Optimize your driver staff for more efficient workdays, higher flexibility, lower driver turnover, and less vehicle damage.
5. Fuel Strategy and Efficiency
Fuel strategies are easy to overlook, but can lead to significant savings when attended to.
Fuel expenses can rank as high as 2 or 3 on your P&L, so saving at the pump really affects your bottom line.
To maximize fuel efficiency:
Consider using a fleet fuel card with discounts on every gallon, a no-fee structure, spending controls, and fraud protection
Right-size trucks (worth mentioning here, too, because it makes a huge difference)
Monitor MPG by truck and route
👉 Save up to thousands of dollars per year with a fuel-efficient strategy.
6. Make Fleet Decisions at the Route Level
By making fleet decisions at the route level, you’re taking a higher-level, more strategic view of your operations.
Track:
Fuel cost per route/truck
Maintenance per route/truck
Stops per on duty hour
Revenue per route vs total truck cost
This reveals:
Which routes are under- or over-trucked
Which trucks are bleeding margin
Where resizing actually improves profitability
👉 View your operations at the route level to measure performance metrics that truly reveal your business’ health.
Having an effective and efficient fleet management strategy will change the game for your operation. Remember to evaluate:
🚚 Route Density and Package Mix
🚚 Vehicle Right-Sizing
🚚 Fleet Maintenance and Efficiency
🚚 Driver-Truck Fit
🚚 Fuel Strategy and Efficiency
🚚 Make Fleet Decisions at the Route Level
That’s a Lot. Where Do I Begin?
We’ve got your back. Start a conversation with Hello Truck Lease today to get a Free Fleet Efficiency Analysis.
As former FedEx P&D contractors ourselves, we understand the complexities of maintaining an optimal fleet management strategy.
We’ll run a complimentary analysis on your fleet, and provide recommendations for how you can most effectively and efficiently achieve your goals.
Click here to get started!
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