Fleet Management News & Business Info | Commercial Carrier Journal
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Equipment: Maintenance Software Smart Shops Maintenance technology is transforming fleet repair forever by Jack Roberts W hen Jerry Simmons joined Florida-based refuse hauler Advanced Disposal Services two years ago as a fleet manager, the shop's preventive maintenance schedules still were being written down on a whiteboard in the bay. Today, the company is a client of fleet maintenance software provider Arsenault Associates, and Simmons says the change has been dramatic. "With the board, things were always falling through the cracks," Simmons says. "But today, I know at the beginning of each week what my PM schedule looks like at a glance. At the same time, I can deal with unscheduled repairs more quickly and effectively, and I can track anything unusual going on. If we're getting a high volume of component failures, I can take steps to fix it on our end, or I can contact the OEM and let them know they've got an issue they need to resolve." Smart shops are not coming; they are already here. And if a fleet's technicians still are flipping through maintenance books to verify repair procedures or huddling around an old green-screen computer to find a part, that fleet is blowing precious man-hours and money in wasted time and inefficient operations. Moreover, it's likely the fleet is operating in an information void, with little or no captured data on repairs, vehicle histories and warranty information – to name a few vital statistics. Not taking the plunge Corporate culture notoriously is hard to change, and nowhere in the fleet dynamic is the old "we've always done it that way" attitude more firmly ingrained than in the shop. An Arsenaultsponsored survey found that one-third of fleets still are using no computer-based technology in their maintenance practices. But shop and repair technology is an incredibly powerful tool that can transform a fleet's maintenance department – with benefits that can trickle down through every of aspect of a fleet's operation. Thanks to major advances in handheld and wireless technology, today's smart shops begin compiling data before an ailing rig even pulls into the yard. "Some companies are implementing not just technology tools, but capturing workflow practices and methods, evaluating how technicians and managers are spending their time and taking steps to optimize both cost and productivity," says Bob Hausler, Arsenault's vice president of marketing and technology. Even better, these new systems can be installed quickly, have fast learning curves for both technicians and managers alike and can yield quick ROI times. And beyond simple payoff on the technology investment, shop technology systems can help fleets spec smarter and more productive vehicles at purchase time, influence driver behavior to boost fuel Two years ago, preventive maintenance schedules for Florida refuse hauler Advanced Disposal Services still were being written down on a whiteboard in the bay. Today, the fleet is a client of fleet maintenance software provider Arsenault Associates. commercial carrier journal CCJ_0213_EquipFeature.indd 45 | february 2013 45 1/23/13 8:34 AM