Priorities, challenges, concerns: whatever we wish to call the list of to-dos that fleet managers work through day in, day out are never quite completed, but rather only ever seem to lengthen.
Proper vehicle maintenance still firmly belongs on the list, with quite a lot of other tasks associated with a fleet operation (managing vehicles, keeping up with compliance processes connected to it, making sure it is performed for safety purposes etc.), but has more recently taken on an additional role beyond its traditional scope—the mobile maintenance system.
Managing a standard/traditional fleet vehicle maintenance system already requires a good deal of practice (getting the best servicing vendors and resources, establishing regular schedules and complying with them, integrating preventative practices to comply with regulations). But making it mobile, for whatever reason (considerable time savings in having an accessible system from anywhere, compliance reached in an easier way with automation, the need to share with multiple stakeholders such as external maintenance providers the fleet maintenance information, managing fleet maintenance from different areas and so on), might appear quite a challenge at first glance.
Many companies do indeed struggle to externalise their internal process to ensure that maintenance is carried out according to the same best practices rooted in their internal system or to work with a maintenance and servicing provider to guarantee their requirements are met—so what then are the challenges companies particularly struggle with in order to utilise mobile maintenance?
- If companies are not using one yet, getting a mobile maintenance software on the cloud—and literally transposing all the data onto a mobile system—can be seen as difficult if you’re used to manual methods such as spreadsheets or work calendars. (However, if you are resistant to new technology and are reluctant to rely on it for personal reasons, not for other reasons—we can show you how easy and dependable it is!)
- Time is often a factor if you want to externalise maintenance, as there is more to it than simply assigning tasks to an external provider. They should potentially know everything about your vehicles apart from doing what is strictly required according to job specification. Sometimes the challenge is having that knowledge available in order to perform maintenance services.
- Repair of remote assets or vehicles located in different areas might be challenging enough when carried out by an internal provider already, but think about how that would be done by an external provider—the need for a reliable mobile maintenance system able to locate vehicles and record maintenance activity shared with everyone involved is quite obvious.
- Assigning fleet maintenance to an external provider requires that communication is continuous—so we need to be kept up-to-date about costs, interventions and maintenance processes even if we outsource. This is where mobile maintenance systems can help. Ideally, fleet maintenance partners should also retain detailed, comprehensive records, keeping a close eye on what has already been serviced and when routine repairs are needed.
Mobile maintenance software can help you in sharing maintenance knowledge, outsource fleet maintenance or even just communicate any necessary information on your fleet to anyone that potentially needs to know. If you want to learn more about how we can tackle the challenges of mobile fleet maintenance, talk to us. Our integrated maintenance module can definitely be of service—starting with our free trial.
