Think it's hard to make sure you get your trusty old heap to the quickie lube every 5,000 miles? Imagine life for fleet managers, who handle hundreds of trucks, delivery vans, city vehicles, cop cars, rental cars or corporate fleet cars. Staying on top of fuel pricing, maintenance and vehicle location is round-the-clock work. Enter fleet management solutions.
Acquiring fleet management software is a big step towards bringing order to the chaos, plus it can handle billing, driver contracting, human resources and technical aspects using truck maintenance software. In this guide to fleet management software, you'll find tips on:
1. Selecting from all-purpose fleet management software tools
2. Choosing fleet maintenance software
3. Fleet management systems with GPS tracking
4. Trucking company fleet management systems and truck maintenance software
Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done
Choosing general use fleet management software
Whether you are tracking a half-dozen dump trucks or 10,000 delivery vans, the work can in any case quickly overwhelm. Look for fleet management systems that can not only track vehicles and fuel card usage but also driver payments and benefits and repair work as needed.
I recommend: Some vendors of robust fleet management software include
Chevin Fleet Solutions,
Arsenault Associates,
RTA Fleet,
Fleetmate, and
@Road. See additional fleet software vendors at the directory on
fleet management systems at Business.com.
Consider stand-alone fleet maintenance management software
Most fleet management solution suites offer fleet maintenance software tracking modules as well. But it's worth considering stand-alone fleet maintenance software if that's all you need or if a fleet management software suite falls short on the detail offered by fleet maintenance software.
I recommend: Take a look at fleet maintenance software from
Tatems and
Collective Data.
Servassist Online offers model-specific automotive service and fleet maintenance software for scheduling. Business.com has a specific directory page on
fleet maintenance software.
A fleet management solution puts the pieces on the board
Thanks to global positioning satellites and the rapidity (and increasing accuracy) of Web mapping, fleet software can put your finger on a given truck or van any second of the day, using GSP-enabled fleet management software.
I recommend: So much for the three-hour driver's lunch. Seriously, your insurer will be pleased, as will the company lawyer and, of course, the boss. Driver been too long at the wheel? Find him and get him off the road. See GPS-enabled fleet management systems from
NavTrak,
Data Trax,
Astral by Borg Solutions,
Trimble, and
GPS Fleet Solutions. There are more resources on buying a
fleet management system at Business.com.
For truck fleet management, a fleet management solution is highly specialized
Unlike most car fleets, over-the-road trucking companies manage a much higher level of insurance, tax, and fuel and safety overhead, not to mention regulation by a federal safety agency. A decent fleet management system is a must here.
I recommend: As a result, trucking fleet managment software is a bit more complex. Consider trucking fleet management solutions and truck maintenance software from
Axon,
Strategy Live,
ProMiles,
Prophesy,
Dr. Dispatch, and
Tailwind Systems.
Tips & Tactics
Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide
- Get enough fleet management software to make a difference. Maintenance tracking is nice, but your insurance agent and accounting departments probably want a lot more from fleet management software. It may well be worth investing in more robust fleet management solutions.
- Fleet management software these days comes in two basic flavors: Web-enabled or Web only. A Web enabled fleet management system presumes your data is in one place, while "Web only" hosts data elsewhere but increases the ability to share that data. Both types of fleet software have strengths and weaknesses to consider.
- Fleet management system or fleet maintenance systems not enough? Fleet growing too fast? There's a growing business in fleet management solutions -- essentially outsourcing the job to consolidators who cut costs by managing dozens of fleets at once over fleet maintenance management software.
The official source of Fleet Management Software is
the Fleet Management Software page at Business.com
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