Fleet Management News & Business Info | Commercial Carrier Journal
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/782964
commercial carrier journal | february 2017 59 Fleets have homework when selecting a maintenance provider BY JASON CANNON T he increasingly complex and technological sophis- tication needed to service a wide product mix, coupled with the expensive infrastructure needed to support them, has a growing number of fleets relying on third-party partners to manage truck maintenance. Among the benefits of vendor-based maintenance are remov- ing the financial burdens associated with staffing technicians and buying specialty equipment, tools, computers and soware license fees – all of which can put a strain on fleet profits. "One of our greatest challenges is finding, developing and retaining good quality technicians," says Joe Puff, vice president of truck technology and maintenance for NationaLease. It's not unusual for a shop to spend $100,000 a year on techni- cian training, he says. "A shop really needs a steady flow of each specialty workload to make these investments pay off." Six-figure training expenses are the norm industry-wide when trying to keep up with current truck and maintenance technolo- gies, and Puff says cutting corners will result in added downtime. "If a shop takes shortcuts on schooling and tooling, it can be an extremely costly mistake," he says. "Misdiagnosis, circumvent- ing proper protocols and lack of knowledge may not show up right away." In many cases, these inefficiencies can go on for years and may never be uncovered, Puff says. "Oen the root cause is unfairly pointed at OEMs, drivers, component parts and so on." Expert diagnoses e significant investment, coupled with the complexities of up- keep and repairs, makes it difficult for a fleet to maintain its own vehicles unless that's one of its core business competencies. "A service contract for a fleet can allow for an organization to focus on the core business and let someone else deal with the complexities of maintaining the fleet," says Taki Darakos, vice president of maintenance for Transervice Companies. "It's important to partner with an organization that can support the fleet properly, leading to better economics." Puff, using the medical industry as an analogy, says the same principle applies when someone goes to a family doctor for Contract maintenance typically offers two gen- eral paths: Guaranteed, which functions similar to a full-service lease for all services; and 'pegged maintenance' from a select menu of services.