4 Fleet Management Mistakes Driving Up Your Paving Project Costs (and How to Fix Them)

Some fleet management costs are out of your control. Fuel prices immediately come to mind. But wasting fuel while idling? There’s something you can do about that. Don’t overlook these common problems that fleet managers for paving companies are faced with — they are easy to fix.

1. Sending too many vehicles to a job

Having every truck and paving machine required to complete a job on site at the same time is not efficient. It causes job site jams and leaves vehicles idling excessively while they wait. This, in turn, wears the engine prematurely and wastes fuel. The U.S. The Department of Energy reports that 6 billion gallons of fuel are wasted annually from light- and heavy-duty vehicles idling.

Instead, use fleet management software that utilizes real-time data to optimize and auto-assign equipment schedules. Having the correct paving equipment available at a specified time reduces idling and unessential fuel consumption. It is also a good idea to train equipment operators to shut off their vehicles when not in use for longer than a minute, as this uses less fuel than idling.

2. Inefficient route planning

Another waste of fuel stems from route inefficiencies. Planning the route manually doesn’t take factors like vehicle location, traffic, and weather into consideration. Speeding is another route inefficiency that increases fuel consumption, and could result in an accident or other costly problems.  

Fleet managers should use technology to automate route planning, which will improve vehicle performance and limit downtime. Tracking driver behavior using technology and implementing incentive programs to reward them for safe driving can also be effective. Incentive programs may also increase driver retention and reduce insurance premiums.

3. Pushing equipment limits

Rough terrain, non-stop usage, and driver behavior push paving vehicles and equipment to the limit — or beyond it to the breaking point. Unplanned repairs are among the highest fleet management costs in construction. Breakdowns on the job also lead to costly downtime.

Scheduling and performing regular preventative maintenance significantly reduces the likelihood of unplanned repairs. This improves the accuracy of job and equipment costing, leading to more profitable paving projects. Using telematics to monitor and adjust driver behavior also helps decrease unplanned repairs.

4. Using OEM telematics

Fleet management for paving companies involves a variety of vehicles from multiple manufacturers; few managers are truly brand-loyal. And while most manufacturers outfit their paving equipment with GPS or telematics, the data for each is accessed on different platforms and is often measured differently. Analyzing the data is like comparing apples to oranges, and optimizing an entire fleet is virtually impossible.

Using a third-party fleet management system with telematics is a more effective way to manage your resources and optimize workflow. Telematics gather real-time data including vehicle location, idle time, driver behavior, engine diagnostics, and maintenance schedules, enabling fleet managers to optimize resources more effectively. 

FleetWatcher by AlignOps collects and reports the data consistently for each piece of equipment within a single platform, making comparisons straightforward. Schedule a demo to learn more about how FleetWatch can reduce your paving project costs.