Automation is not a thing of the past anymore. If you are running a business, small or large, there is some form of automation that has crept into the operations. Automation systems are designed to enhance the quality of work by replacing human-labor in mundane or time-consuming tasks.
This is true for any industry. In some industries, like with fleet management — the use of automation technology has helped increase productivity, enhance safety, and save a ton of costs. They are tiny electronic devices or chips added to a pre-existing fleet to better the output quality that can be derived from them.
This is done with the help of powerful automation features like a fleet management system. They are a network of devices that work in harmony with all the moving parts of the fleet and feed real-life information to the manager sitting at a station.
Companies like Samsara are industry leaders in fleet management systems. To understand this better and read further, you can visit their website.
A Time Before Automation.
Before the ease of automation hit the market, all of the tasks we talked about were done on paper-logs and needed human labor. The tasks were time-consuming and ate a big chunk of the budget. Some fleet companies even ignored the small statistics that you can derive today by switching to automation.
Over time, there were even governmental policies and insurance benefits to aid the transition to automation. It also reduced or eliminated any minor chance of human error.
A machine is way more competent to pick up most talks over humans. Computers do not feel tired or lazy. They also rarely make a calculation error.
While the advantages are quite distinct, let’s take a deep dive into the monetary stand-point of automation. We can single out instances where the use of automation can substantially reduce the cost of operations.
How Automation can provide better economic results for fleets
Here are a few simple ways in which we can see a reduction of cost, or highlight the benefits of fleet management for better economic output.
1. Fuel Benefits.
When you make a switch to an automated fleet management system, with the help of an integrated monitoring system, you will be able to track the exact fuel consumption of each and every vehicle on the fleet. This will give you real-time data of the expenditure to optimize costs and cut back on low performing assets and products.
2. Better Goods Security.
With the use of live tracking, RFID scanning of goods, and in-vehicle cameras, one can cut-down the threat of goods damage exponentially. This is especially true for large fleets that travel long hours with expensive products.
They give you a live-location of the trucks to ensure consumers are informed at all times. To know more, you can check this article about GPS tracking.
3. Saving On Maintenance.
Routine checkups are crucial to keep the health of the network intact. This can be done very quickly with the help of in-vehicle monitoring systems.
They can be used to trigger warnings when sufficient miles are clocked, so the driver knows it’s time for a checkup. Driver-assistance is another comprehensive tool in ensuring better on-road maintenance.
4. Insurance Saving.
Entities as elementary as your fleet management system’s data or the footage of your dash-camera can be helpful aids in case of insurance claims. The data from these devices serve as valid proof for seeking justified remunerations. Having to-of-the-line safety standards also reduces your annual insurance premium by leaps-and-bounds.
5. Consumer Retention.
The singular source for revenue for any business is a regular business and a growing clientele. Both of which can be sustained with the help of better delivery and higher regard for safety.
Automation serves as a stamp of approval in the eyes of the consumers. They regard business with top-end features as superior.
6. Forecasting Advantages.
Saving and cost benefits are not limited to real-time use only. The data from these fleet management systems can be archived and used to run analytics and dissect past records.
These are great to help forecast the future of the company and make better business judgments. It also helps determine the problem points that are draining the company’s revenue and attack them tactfully.
7. Better Employee Satisfaction.
Many companies that do not adapt to automation hit a monetary loss in a very peculiar way. This is in the form of lost employee loyalty.
A company that can quality adapt to automation will be ahead of the curve and become a fly-trap for new talent. This could potentially cause you to risk employee relationships.
8. Better Organization Of Ground Staff.
This is mostly applicable for fleets that depend on the workforce to the load-and-unload shipment at docks and stations. The use of tracking technology has helped to generate a well-oiled network of human-resources. Since the fleet’s location can be tracked at all times, the company can appoint labor staff for dedicated times and save a ton on costs.
In Conclusion,
There is a common misconception that the process of adding a fleet system of additional electronic technology is highly costly. The trust is that these devices are only a single time investment that can guide the path to better productivity.
Think of these as an investment and not overhead. The advantages of savings and cost-benefits you can derive from automated fleet management are much higher.
Fleet management and automation do not come in the way of your current workforce or replace humans. They simply make the work much more streamlined and free of errors.
A task that could need many people to execute can be done with a simple dashboard. This gives you managers more time to work on consumer demands.
If you are confused as to what additions are needed and what can wait — you might consider getting in touch with a relatable service provider. They will be able to understand the need for your fleet better with their years of experience. These companies will be able to provide you with the products and the support you need to progress your business to the next level.
