By Marc Sibbald – Director IPWEA FLEET
There's More To Fleet Management Than Electricity
The cool weather has arrived in Australia and New Zealand, so it’s a good time to think about batteries. I know this isn’t high on the list of priorities for a Fleet Manager, however breakdowns and unscheduled maintenance increase at this time of the year and the most common cause is battery failure which can be avoided with a good preventative maintenance program.
Preventative maintenance compliance, Whole of Life Costs (WOLC) calculations and fleet management KPIs aren’t the most exciting topics to pick for this column when electric vehicles and fleet EV transitions are everywhere. But I was reminded by the IPWEA Fleet Council members earlier this month that, “there’s still a lot of fleet management stuff to do that doesn’t involve electricity.”
This is an important point to remember as we approach the end of the financial year. The last three years has seen significant changes to the financial aspects of running a fleet. Prior to COVID, budgets were stagnant with low inflation and predictable expenditure patterns. This is no longer the case so capital and operational budgets need to be regularly reviewed.
At the recent Fleet Management Training Day in Newcastle, the volatility in supply and pricing was a hot topic during the sessions on WOLC and Fleet Management KPIs. Attendees acknowledged the relaxed approach to these fleet management fundamentals needed to change, and that getting the basics right would help them prepare for the next period of fleet electrification.
IPWEA Fleet also introduced a new training program at the Newcastle event to help Fleet Managers develop transition plans to adopt low and zero emission vehicles. Based around the Plant and Vehicle Management Manual (PVMM), the training module provides a template for an EV Transition Plan, and guides attendees through the process of collecting the data (internal and external) to complete the plan.
I look forward to discussing these issues, and sharing the new training module, with attendees at the other Fleet Management Training Days being held around the country.