9 ways to make data

1 Decide what you’re going to track. Are you going to include terminal-bound pieces like forklifts, or just road-going trucks?

2 Sort data by vehicle type and/or application. It doesn’t make sense to compare the cost of, say, engine maintenance in a class-2 service vehicle with that of a class-7 dump truck. Same with the way vehicles are used. Take a pair of identical class-7 dump trucks. One operates in a moderate climate, is never fully loaded, runs short trips, and idles a lot. The other operates in sub-zero temperatures four months a year, is always loaded, runs long trips, and rarely idles. Same spec, but they demand different reporting groups.

3 Decide how best to measure costs: per-mile, per-hour, or another measurement?
4Use consistent reporting codes. The industry’s most widely used parts coding system is VMRS (Vehicle Maintenance Reporting Standards). Every part you buy, stock, and use should have the appropriate VMRS code attached to it when it’s entered into your reporting system.

5 Standardize practices at multiple shops. How you repair and handle parts inventory at different facilities should be as consistent as possible. It’ll add validity to your numbers.
6 Try to maintain common vehicle specs. As well as keeping parts inventories down, it’ll make your reporting task that much easier.

7 Once you’ve set up your reporting system, you can start work on developing baselines and benchmarks. This builds on point No. 2. These baselines should be specific to a vehicle type and application. So if you have, say, a fleet of 25 utility trucks, a fleet of 10 dump trucks, and a fleet of 40 pickups, you’d have separate baselines for each of those groups of vehicles.

Keeping the data separate will make it easier to see trends. If you lump it all together and work with “fleet averages,” you’re doomed to making bad decisions about particular vehicles.

8 Download your data and put it to work. Some fleets will sit down with drivers immediately after a trip and review any problem areas, nipping any bad driving habits in the bud before they end up costing a lot of money. How a truck is driven has more impact on your biggest operating costs (fuel and tires) than anything you do to change the equipment.

9 At some point, you have to turn off the computer and walk around the shop floor. It’s probably the best place to spot a trend or understand the cause of a problem with parts or people.