It’s common knowledge that a primary goal of all fleet management teams is to reduce the amount of capital spent on vehicle fuel. Whilst cutting fuel costs seems simplistic in theory, the problem is the majority of organisations will not strategically analyse how they can efficiently reduce their fuel spending. Here are four helpful tips you can implement in your operations to make noticeable savings.
Often organisations become so fixated on how they should best arrange their fleet to reduce costs that they don’t consider other alternatives. Rather than applying typical fuel reduction techniques such as dispatching smaller or more fuel-efficient vehicles, fleet management teams should seek alternative transport solutions. A common example of this could be employing the services of a local courier if your transport needs are small parcel deliveries within city centres.
Leading fleet management teams will always question the importance of every fleet journey. Taking the time to carefully pre-plan each of your fleets journeys can often result in findings that will significantly reduce the amount being spent on fuel. Costs are cut on fuel when organisations take note of details such as not travelling in busy traffic periods or only sending one vehicle out to two closely located destinations.
Educating your fleets drivers on the importance of “smooth driving” is one of the easiest ways to save dollars being spent on vehicle fuel. Avoiding harsh acceleration and heavy breaking when making a journey will not only improve fuel savings by up to 10 percent, but also significantly slow the process of wear and tear of the car and tyres.
It is essential that Fleet Managers understand that first and foremost, the purpose of a fleet is to serve the needs of the business. Continually questioning the rational of the fleet system being used to reduce the distance driven during fleet journeys is the most effective way to save money from fuel use.
