FLEET MANAGEMENT
USING TECHNOLOGY
TO PROTECT YOUR
MOST VALUABLE ASSET
By Tom Scahill, Business Area Director, ANZ, Field
Service Management, Transport and Logistics
Divisions, Trimble
For government departments
operating fleets, there is no more
valuable asset than the drivers
that make up their mobile workforce. Being out on the road can
be a dangerous work environment and fleet managers have
a duty of care to ensure they are
providing drivers with the equipment and conditions they need
to operate safely and efficiently.
Fleet operators need to be
thinking about effective strategies to ensure the safety of
field workers and to guarantee
due diligence by company directors and managers in order
to meet compliance regulations
in accordance with Occupational Health and Safety laws.
Among these strategies is the
introduction of technology
and field service management
solutions to provide realtime insight into each driver’s
location, time on duty and
driving performance.
By closely monitoring the
movements of each driver within
a fleet, and in particular their
driving behaviour, businesses
can identify when drivers are
more likely to be a risk to
themselves and others on the
road to decrease the likelihood
of accidents occurring.
A recent study1 conducted
by Trimble’s Field Service
Management Division found
that 72 percent of organisations
rely on two-way communication
technology to ensure the safety
of their mobile workforce as it
enables them to stay connected
with their drivers and remain
abreast of any issues that arise
while they were on the move.
To gain greater insight in to your mobile
workforce environment, fleet managers can
utilise field service management technology
to implement and monitor policies around
mobile workforce safety, tracking employee
driving behaviour in real-time, monitoring fleet
conditions and enabling proactive steps to
remedy hazards.
Of greatest concern for fleet managers is how
to be made aware of any drivers carrying out
reckless manoeuvres such as hard braking, rapid
acceleration, hard turns and excessive speeding.
These driving practices can impact the bottom
line, both through associated costs and the
potential to be detrimental to a government,
department or agency’s reputation.
Not only does aggressive driving behaviour
contribute to excessive fuel use, higher vehicle
maintenance expenses, it also increases the
likelihood of drivers being involved in an
accident. An accident is the worst case scenario
for fleet managers, which would not only result
in further vehicle repair costs but also staff being
unable to work due to injury.
Governments with sizeable mobile workforces
and numerous vehicles can incur substantial
operating costs and a sizable carbon footprint,
especially from fuel use. With increasing concerns
about the environment and fuel costs continually
rising, keeping emissions and costs down is an
ongoing concern to fleets.
Driving style is the highest contributing factor
for excessive fuel use, with the most common
aggressive driving behaviour – speeding –
accounting for the largest percentage of fuel
wasted during driving.
Through field service management solutions,
drivers can be made aware of their driving
behaviour in real-time through audible and visual
alerts to drivers when their actions are outside
set guidelines for safe driving. Fleet managers
can also pinpoint vehicle locations at a specific
time to respond to unsafe driving complaints and
traffic incident claims.
Govlink Issue 2 2013
By tracking driver performance, managers can
follow specific behaviour trends over time and
identify areas where drivers require training. As
well as accurately measuring and mitigating risks,
drivers can be rewarded for safe driving practices
leading to greater work satisfaction.
As all officers of a corporation are potentially liable
for safety breaches carried out by their workers
under Occupational Health and Safety laws, if they
are found to have not exercised due diligence, it
is more important than ever for a clearly-defined
safety strategy to be implemented to ensure they
are compliant with the new legislation and think
about the risk profile of their fleets.
What also comes with compliance and better
management of operational risks, which includes
work-related road risks, is that unquestionable
reduction in operating expenses, which has a
positive impact on productivity, profit and growth
capability.
Despite the many benefits, the survey found
that only 32 percent of fleets are currently
running field service management technology
to monitor driver behaviour. Forty-two percent
of respondents also identified that the current
technology systems in place to monitor driver
safety were in need of updating, and was a major
focus for future investments in technology.
Government fleets can create programs that bring
together various safety-related communications,
incentives and training to promote a safe driving
culture, by investing in technology to connect the
vehicle with the operations centre. Investing in such
culture can pay off threefold: it helps drivers to
stay safe, it reduces crash costs, and minimises risk.
There is also the added benefit of enhancing the
public image by promoting a safe driving culture.
1. Trimble Field Service Management, 2013, ‘The Road
Ahead Report: The Future of Field Service Delivery
in Australia’, Sydney.
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