Managing a fleet of vehicles cost-efficiently, adhering to a budget, and providing the services needed are challenging in any industry. But in the public sector, it’s imperative.
Government agencies are always looking to improve efficiency, safety, and cost-effectiveness. Deploying a telematics device enables the monitoring of fleet vehicles to optimize performance and meet these goals.
Telematics device helps solve fleet management challenges
Fleet managers have to monitor vehicle health, schedule maintenance, and balance budgets. It can be difficult to keep everything functioning properly and efficiently. The right telematics can help managers meet this challenge.
Here are a few ways that telematics devices can benefit government entities.
Reducing fuel consumption
Rising fuel prices have stretched budgets thin. In some cases, government entities have had to cut back in other areas just to compensate for high fuel costs. So, finding ways to reduce fuel consumption can help ease budget constraints, and it’s also better for the environment.
Track fuel consumption
Telematics can track fuel consumption and ensure that fleet vehicles are being used efficiently. It can also log driving behavior and indicate when drivers are acting aggressively, such as stomping on the gas pedal or braking unnecessarily and wasting gas. Remediation and education can help employees have better driving habits.
Aggressive driving can cost you as much as an additional dollar for every gallon of fuel. Telematics can also help you spot fuel leaks by alerting you to anomalies when vehicles are parked.
Monitor and reduce idling time
When vehicles idle, they continue to burn fuel. For example, idling a truck for just ten seconds uses more fuel than restarting the engine. Excessive idling time increases energy costs and causes additional engine wear, reducing the lifespan of fleet vehicles. Telematics can track this and alert your staff so you can take action.
You might need to educate drivers or find more efficient routes to reduce time in traffic. Telematics can help you find the optimal routing to reduce idling time.
Equalizing fleet miles to extend vehicle life
Telematics enables you to track miles on every fleet vehicle. This data can be used to even out miles across fleets so you are not over- or under-utilizing cars and trucks. This data can also be used to help justify the replacement of vehicles with low miles that get heavy engine wear.
Creating safer drivers
Fleet vehicles often are treated with less care than personal vehicles. Employees driving government cars or trucks may not worry about hitting potholes or otherwise be as careful with the vehicles. Telematics and cameras can make drivers more aware of safety. Knowing that their data is being recorded, they are more likely to reduce aggressive driving. This helps ensure that drivers are following policies and protocols. Safe driving habits also keep your employees and constituents safe and help mitigate risk and liability.
Monitoring vehicle health
Telematics can monitor vehicles, providing real-time or near-real-time data on engine health, battery voltage, coolant temperature, powertrain, and oxygen sensors. This can help identify potential issues before vehicles break down.
Such monitoring can also be used for predictive maintenance to ensure that fleet vehicles get the service that they need due to vehicle condition, not just based on mileage or calendar tracking.
Increasing security
Asset monitoring through telematics provides greater security because you can track vehicle locations, so you can see if a vehicle goes outside an approved area or is being moved at a time when it’s not supposed to be used. Certain telematics can also alert you to unauthorized entry, such as a door, window, or trunk being opened or broken into.
Telematics and GPS location tracking can even help you find and recover stolen vehicles or see when fuel theft occurs.
Cooperative contracts for government fleet telematics
When it’s time to purchase and install fleet telematics, you want to do so in the most cost-efficient manner. Sourcewell enables government entities to opt in to competitively solicited contracts that leverage the combined purchasing power of public agencies to reduce costs.
For no cost, governmental units can find the telematics that they want, choose cooperative contracts, and contact suppliers directly to get the best pricing. This avoids the notification, solicitation, and review periods that take a significant amount of time, while still complying with government requirements for procurement.
Sourcewell has contracts for multiple telematics providers, and many include installation as part of the agreement.
Strategic sourcing for telematics devices
Sourcewell enables government units to source strategically, leveraging group-buying power for even the smallest purchases. With competitively solicited, awarded contracts, you can procure telematics and other accessories as part of your vehicle fleet at cost-efficient pricing.
Here at Sourcewell, we help public agency buyers procure fleet vehicles faster by fulfilling the time-consuming bid process for them. Through cooperative contracts, we expedite the fleet vehicle procurement process so you can better serve your teams.
Want a faster procurement process? Contact one of our specialists today to buy the fleet solutions you need!
