Fuel prices trending up
Fuel prices in the USA are skyrocketing, over the past week an 11% increase was recorded, which is the highest since late July 2008 (1). Increasing oil prices play a leading role in pushing gas prices higher. AAA says that “consumers can expect the current trend at the pump to continue as long as crude prices climb”(2)
Streamlining fuel economy
In an attempt to combat the effects of rising fuel costs a fleet management solution can help businesses easily streamline their fuel efficiency and economy. Fuel economy relates the distance traveled by a vehicle and the amount of fuel consumed, typically measured in MPG (miles per gallon).
Some key factors that impact fuel economy are:
- Driver behavior
- Maintenance
- Vehicle Idle Time
- Poor dispatching
How fleet management solutions can help improve fuel economy
- Monitor and improve driver performance
Aggressive driving (speeding, rapid acceleration, and braking) wastes fuel. It can lower your fuel mileage by roughly 15% to 30% at highway speeds and 10% to 40% in stop-and-go traffic (3). Use fleet management tools to view metrics on how your vehicles are being driven to help encourage a safe and efficient driving environment. Get real-time notifications on unwanted driving behaviors such as speeding, harsh braking, and harsh acceleration.
- Reduce vehicle idle time
Idling for 10 seconds uses more fuel than stopping and starting your engine does (4). GPS fleet management solutions provide reports that capture vehicle idle time and allow you to set up alerts to be notified when a vehicle idling event is triggered. This gives fleet managers the opportunity to engage with drivers that need some extra coaching to help increase efficiency and reduce fuel waste.
- Implement a preventative maintenance schedule
Making sure that your vehicles follow a regular maintenance schedule can help keep fuel costs down over time. autocavoFleet monitors engine health, allows users to set up service reminders based on vehicle usage, receive DTC codes and set up custom notifications to receive alerts when health or service events are triggered.
- Reduce improper use of vehicles
Prevent unnecessary miles added to your vehicles by reducing improper vehicle use. Geofencing features and alerts allow you to define geographic boundaries and receive alerts when a vehicle has entered or left a set location.
- Improve vehicle dispatching
Use real-time GPS tracking to locate your nearest vehicles and assign them to tasks based on their proximity. In addition to saving on fuel this can also help improve your time management.
Improve your fleet operations and fuel economy with autocavoFleet
Track vehicles in the field in real-time, improve fleet operations, and encourage safer driving with autocavo’s flagship product autocavoFleet.
autocavoFleet provides you with insights into driver behavior, vehicle performance, vehicle health status, and maintenance requirements. Managers can leverage this information to create plans to reduce fuel costs as well as internal driver coaching programs to encourage more efficient driving behavior. Find out more about how autocavoFleet can help improve fuel efficiency and operations across your fleet.
