Today s Top Private Fleets Use Fleet Analytics to Outrun the Competition

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1 Today s Top Private Fleets Use Fleet Analytics to Outrun the Competition Private Fleet Analytics: Driving Competitive Advantage with Every Mile Private fleets of all sizes face tremendous pressure to generate value for the companies that run them. To do so, they must determine how to answer this all-important question from a potential customer: Why should I do business with you rather than with your competitor? How can you answer that question and begin outperforming your competitors? The same way today s leading fleets already do: by unleashing the power of fleet analytics. Fleet analytics is the real-time analysis of driver and vehicle data collected by an onboard computer (OBC) and fleet management software, such as Cadec s PowerVue. By analyzing the data and then taking action, fleets the supply chain to which they belong drive competitive advantage. Here s how: Competitive Advantage No.1: Smarter Cabs Enable Smarter Decisions As every fleet manager knows, running even a small fleet requires making dozens of decisions on a moment s notice. Does a driver have available hours to make an unscheduled pickup? Will today s weather or traffic cause delays? What time does a truck need to leave the terminal in order to arrive on schedule? Which vehicles need engine overhauls? Which months are our busiest? What products are our most popular? You can have all the data in the world, but unless you have the right data and the ability to easily access, analyze and act on it you ll have trouble making good decisions. Enter fleet analytics. Fleet analytics puts the right data at your fingertips in dashboards, easy-to-read reports and colorful infographics so you can make timely, well-informed decisions about every aspect of your fleet s operations. To bring fragmented data together in a uniform way, many fleets are turning their cabs into smart hubs, where all the data drivers and fleet managers need is integrated wirelessly with an OBC. This data includes critical information such as traffic alerts, route changes, turn-by-turn directions or last-minute customer requests, all communicated to the driver audibly or on screen in real time. The smart hub also sends two types of data back to fleet managers: Automatically collected data, such as vehicle speed and location Driver-entered data, such as duty status changes and delivery details What s more, the smart hub seamlessly integrates third-party add-on applications such as tire-pressure and temperature monitoring.

2 Critical decision-making capabilities are built right into Cadec s fleet management system, so many decisions can be made without human intervention. For example, when a certain set of conditions are met say a driver exceeds the company-set speed limit or leaves his engine idling too long the system can automatically alert the driver. By automating routine decisions such as these, managers can focus their attention on more strategic issues. And with decisions based on data rather than intuition, companies improve their entire supply chain: from loads to locations, from warehouses to customers. What could be smarter than that? Competitive Advantage No 2: Real-Time in No Time All fleet management systems provide data. Unfortunately, that data is typically a snapshot of the past, which limits its value. For a true competitive advantage, fleets need real-time data rather than near-time data that s so five minutes ago. Real-time data offers a view of the present situation, enabling you to respond immediately to what s happening right now. And while the difference between neartime and real-time may not seem all that important, it can have a big impact on your bottom line. Just ask Valley Proteins, a company that collects and recycles grease and other food industry byproducts that would otherwise lead to environmental contamination. The company operates a private fleet of 450 trucks that serve 20+ states in the southern U.S. A company s ability to respond to an unplanned event, good or bad is a prime indicator of its ability to compete. Bill Gates Valley Proteins dispatches on the fly because that s how customer orders come in: businesses call when they need a pickup. The company previously received near-time data that was 10 to 20 minutes out of date. Ten minutes may not seem like a lot, but the real-time data Valley Proteins now gets from Cadec s PowerVue fleet management software has had a major impact on operations. Thanks to that data, the company can instantly pinpoint each truck s exact location and capacity, match vehicles with new orders, determine optimal routes and shorten response times. Instead of sending vehicles zig-zagging all over the area, Valley Proteins now maintains a solid schedule with both planned and last-minute pickups. As a result, company fuel costs have decreased, unused capacity is at record lows and, most importantly, customer satisfaction ratings are at record highs. Some Cadec users are even creating custom portals to enable them to track exactly where goods are and when they are expected to arrive. This ability results in quicker, more efficient deliveries and leads to increased productivity as it allows employees to work in their store or service station until the exact moment the delivery arrives. Real-time data also makes it possible to immediately notify the warehouse of any missing or damaged goods. The warehouse can immediately process a replacement order, and if critical, send that order out on another truck even before the original one finishes unloading. 2

3 Competitive Advantage No. 3: Increased Safety and Compliance You can t improve what you don t measure. Today s fleet managers have taken this familiar adage to heart by measuring every aspect of driver behavior from speeding to idling, from hard braking to hours of service. While drivers use this data to improve their own behavior, fleet managers use it to improve overall fleet safety and compliance. By taking a close look at high-risk behaviors such as speeding and hard braking, both of which increase the chance of accidents, fleet managers can quickly identify problem drivers and take corrective action. Sometimes that corrective action is as simple as reminding a driver to allow ample distance between vehicles, and sometimes that corrective action results in driver termination. For example, companies can set the maximum number of speeding incidents they will tolerate. When drivers reach that limit, they are automatically terminated. That s exactly what happened to one driver when he returned to the terminal and confessed, I got pulled over for speeding and have to go to court. The company knew immediately what its response would be: Well, you re not only going to court, you re going there without a job. Cadec s PowerVue can even be configured to automatically alert drivers who are speeding or decelerating suddenly. If the driver doesn t correct the problem within a reasonable time, the system alerts management via text, or an alerts panel within the portal. The system can also send dozens of other alerts, including when a driver is close to an hours-of-service violation. For many fleets, especially those with fewer than 25 trucks, even a single hours-of-service such violation can negatively impact CSA scores. A number of other factors, ranging from shifting loads to defective equipment, can also negatively impact CSA scores. Why risk low scores when Cadec can help prevent them? You can t improve what you don t measure. Cadec measures every aspect of driver behavior, enabling drivers to improve their own behavior so fleet managers can concentrate on improving overall fleet performance. Competitive Advantage No. 4: Reduced Fleet Costs Drive Greater Company Profits Reducing fleet costs is key to increasing company profits. It s also key to creating a longterm sustainable competitive advantage. OBCs and their associated fleet management software can help. In fact, according to Aberdeen Group, fleet management systems such as Cadec s PowerVue result in average operating cost savings of $1,100 per vehicle annually. How? PowerVue records speeding, sudden decelerations, mileage, miles per gallon, idle time, unknown and unscheduled stops, late arrivals, out-of-route mileage and more. Fleet managers can then use this data to monitor the performance of each driver and even to compare drivers to one another or to specific cohorts. 3

4 Managers can also reduce costs by identifying and addressing poor driving behaviors. Such behaviors have a big impact on fuel consumption, and with fuel costs accounting for about 30 percent of a fleet s total budget, these behaviors also have big impact on a company s bottom line. Easily correctable with additional training or by reminding drivers of company policy, these behaviors include: Speeding. Every vehicle has an optimal speed at which fuel efficiency is maximized. Every 1 mph above that speed can cut fuel efficiency by nearly 2 percent. Idling. Every hour of idling wastes up to half a gallon of fuel, decreasing fuel efficiency by 1 percent. Poor shifting habits. Both progressive shifting and downshifting can improve fuel efficiency. However, when done improperly or at the wrong RPM, both can quickly kill mpg. Following too close. Tailgating or otherwise following too close to other vehicles can lead to sudden decelerations, which can damage goods and derail customer dissatisfaction. Following too close may also cause drivers to ride their brakes, which increases brake wear and leads to increase maintenance costs. So while you can t change the cost of a gallon of fuel, PowerVue helps you use less of it. With its ability to analyze vehicle data, including RPMs, total miles by vehicle and miles since last service, PowerVue provides vehicle maintenance data that enables you to better manage maintenance costs. The math is simple: more data, less cost, more profit. Competitive Advantage No. 5: Improved Customer Satisfaction According to the National Private Truck Council, a top reason companies operate private fleets is to provide consistent, high-quality customer service. Other top reasons are to control costs and to gain direct control of capacity. With PowerVue, you know where your trucks are and when they re expected to arrive at each customer dock. You also know where they re coming from and where they re going next, making it much easier to accommodate last-minute pickups and deliveries or send out a replacement vehicle for one that is stuck in traffic or on the side of road. This leads to greater customer satisfaction, which means more business. To customers, your drivers represent an important service touch-point. If your driver is perceived as on-time, consistent, responsive and accurate, that s how your company will be perceived. And you can t buy that kind of brand equity. It comes from knowing what your customers expect and then delivering on it again and again. That s just another way that having the right data, when and where you need it, puts you ahead of the competition. 4

5 To learn more about how PowerVue can help you drive competitive advantage with every mile, call CADEC ( ), or visit Competitive Advantage the Data Way Your fleet is a strategic investment in your company s success. Make the most of it today and for the long term by choosing PowerVue, the industry s most comprehensive fleet management system. About Cadec Cadec Global helps companies stay connected to their fleet, ensuring safety and compliance while improving customer service and reducing costs.the company provides the only fleet-management solution that provides true real-time data access for delivery operations. With a rugged on-board computer designed to be the hub of the smart truck and powerful software that enables mobility and integration, Cadec s solution acts as a single interface for all in-cab systems allowing fleet managers to monitor driver actions and vehicle status in real time, 24/7.Learn more at Contact: US Office: Cadec Global, Inc. 645 Harvey Road Manchester, NH Tel: CADEC Fax: [email protected] Copyright: Cadec and PowerVue are trademarks or registered trademarks of Cadec Global. All other trademarks contained herein are the property of their respective owners. 5