A 'Fleet' Addition To Improve Field Service

Fleet tracking and management solutions are an integral part of the field service technology picture, enabling you to reduce costs and increase revenue.

The fact that service can be a differentiator and a source of revenue for companies, especially when product competition has leveled out, shouldn't be anything new. Service is an area that can be greatly influenced and controlled via information systems. Integrated Solutions has written about hardware and software solutions for managing work orders and optimizing the workforce. We've also written about companies using technology, both back end and field-based, to manage parts in the field to control inventory costs and on-time part delivery. An additional piece of the service puzzle that companies can address, which can contribute to the bottom line, is effectively managing your fleets.

A recent study by AberdeenGroup (Service On The Move, March 2007), shows that companies using fleet management solutions realize benefits such as a 12.2% increase in service profitability, a 13% improvement in vehicle utilization, and a 14.8% decrease in travel time. Additionally, the companies experienced an average annual savings in operating costs of $1,100. Implementing fleet management is obviously a smart move – in the same study, 82% of respondents said fleet management was of importance to a company's operational and financial performance.