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What Is Fleet Vehicle Maintenance?
A well-maintained fleet improves efficiency, boosts productivity, and enhances the customer experience, regardless of the business or industry. In addition, implementing a fleet maintenance program protects against unexpected and costly downtime. For businesses in Indianapolis, implementing a structured fleet maintenance program can significantly reduce downtime and extend vehicle longevity.
This guide explores the benefits and challenges of fleet vehicle maintenance and explains how to implement a fleet maintenance program to maximize your return on investment.
What Is Fleet Vehicle Maintenance?
Essential in the automotive and fleets and transport industries, fleet vehicle maintenance enables businesses to monitor and deploy their assets accordingly. Fleet vehicle maintenance in Charleston, South Carolina helps businesses maximize vehicle longevity and minimize downtime. Preventative, predictive, and corrective maintenance comprise the three types of fleet vehicle maintenance.
Below are examples of how these types of fleet maintenance ensure smooth operations:
- Preventative: Scheduled oil changes and brake rotor and pad swaps showcase the concept of preventative maintenance.
- Predictive: Driven by real-world data, predictive maintenance seeks to address failing vehicle components by replacing them shortly before their service end of life.
- Corrective: Also called reactive maintenance, corrective maintenance promptly addresses an unexpected problem that arises, such as replacing a wheel bearing.
Fleet vehicle maintenance also encompasses inspections, servicing, and repairs. When implemented properly, fleet maintenance programs keep fleet managers abreast of the condition of the entire fleet, down to the individual vehicle. This information enables more effective fleet management that benefits all parties involved.
What Are the Benefits of Fleet Vehicle Maintenance?
Increasing efficiency and boosting productivity are just the tip of the iceberg regarding the benefits of fleet vehicle maintenance. These vital practices also enhance vehicle longevity, optimize operational costs, and improve driver safety by minimizing the potential for an accident caused by mechanical failure or malfunction.
Fleet vehicle maintenance also ensures compliance with industry-standard regulations from the following authorities:
- Department of Transportation (DOT)
- Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA)
- Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA)
In addition, fleet vehicle maintenance helps companies avoid downtime, workflow interruptions, and costly delays that can threaten customer relations. The last thing any fleet manager wants is to have to bring a fleet vehicle in for service unexpectedly and risk not making a deadline promised to a customer.
With fleet vehicle maintenance programs in place, fleet owners can avoid the consequences of retasking fleet vehicles based on reactive maintenance.
What Are the Challenges Associated With Maintaining Fleet Vehicles?
Implementing a fleet vehicle maintenance program can help keep your fleet running, but your program may encounter several challenges along the way.
For example, it will take time to effectively and efficiently schedule required maintenance based on driver availability and current workload. Learn from the lessons taught by trial and error, but don’t be afraid to make small sacrifices to ensure the longevity of your fleet and company.
Proper fleet maintenance requires balancing the risks of over-maintaining a vehicle and the revenue loss associated with downtime. Establishing and maintaining a routine or schedule can ameliorate many of these concerns.
Refinements along the way increase the schedule’s efficiency, creating a custom-tailored fleet vehicle maintenance program that meets — and even exceeds — your business's unique demands.
What Types of Fleet Vehicles Require Maintenance?
Fleet vehicles require maintenance in a wide range of industries, from public transportation to construction and commercial use.
Specific maintenance requirements also vary between various types of machinery based on their purpose, operating conditions, and average workload. Here are some examples of fleet vehicles and how maintenance ensures their optimal operation.
Commercial Trucks
Used for freight, logistics, and delivery purposes, commercial trucks traverse the many highways that connect major cities throughout the U.S. Fleet maintenance on these heavy-duty trucks includes inspecting, servicing, and repairing the engine and transmission, tires, brakes, and the trailer itself.
Company Vehicles
Corporate fleets and sales teams rely on company vehicles to transport them to various locations, both nearby and out of state.
Fleet vehicle maintenance for these passenger cars resembles that of your average passenger vehicle — such as battery inspections, oil changes, brake pad and rotor replacements, and interior upkeep — but on an accelerated scale based on the excess mileage these vehicles travel.
Construction and Heavy Equipment
Vehicles used in construction, such as bulldozers, front loaders, and mining trucks, require on-site maintenance of critical components, such as hydraulic and cooling systems. Take a look at this checklist for maintaining a heavy dump truck, for example.
Public and Emergency Vehicles
Buses, fire trucks, and ambulances carry human cargo, but their fleet maintenance needs resemble that of the semis that keep the commercial trucking industry alive.
Common maintenance inspection points include safety equipment — like the sirens and flashing lights used by emergency vehicles — brake and suspension components, and the HVAC system.
How To Implement a Fleet Vehicle Maintenance Program
The benefits of implementing a fleet vehicle maintenance program far outweigh the time and adjustments necessary to fine-tune it. These programs help reduce long-term maintenance costs, unscheduled downtime, and the probability of catastrophic and life-threatening failure.
When implemented properly, fleet vehicle maintenance programs can also scale with a business to continue to serve its fleet.
Developing a fleet vehicle maintenance program begins with determining how you want to structure it, whether that’s based on mileage, time, engine hours, or some other measurement. Mileage and time are common, similar to the age-old “three months or 3,000 miles” motto associated with oil changes.
Once you’ve determined how you’ll gauge when maintenance is necessary, devise a series of checklists that cover monthly, quarterly, biannual, and annual maintenance protocols. For example, company vehicles may undergo a monthly inspection but a quarterly oil change. Tailor these checklists to the timeframe that best suits the maintenance intervals your fleet requires.
Finally, schedule vehicles and record any maintenance performed. Fleet managers can reference this data if necessary and analyze it to inform predictive maintenance procedures they may implement in the future.
Invest in Fleet Management Best Practices
Effectively maintaining a fleet of vehicles requires a detailed and often bespoke maintenance program informed by hands-on experience. Benefit from the expertise and fleet management services Cadence offers to keep your fleet operating at its peak.
Give us a call at 336-629-2061 to learn more about how our dedicated team members deliver value at every turn.
Sources:
HEAVY DUMP TRUCK Preventive Maintenance Checklist | New York Department of Transportation