11th April, 2024
Fuel costs make up around 60% of a company’s operating budget, totaling thousands of USD per year. So, how do you ensure these costs are reasonable and not just wasteful or due to theft? One potential solution is fleet management software.
Fleet management software provides various tools to monitor fuel consumption and prevent unnecessary expenses. Among them is the integration of eco-driving techniques, which are driving methods aimed at saving fuel and ensuring safety on the road. A driver behavior monitoring solution oversees the integration of these techniques.
We’ve put together a list of eco-friendly driving tips that you can start using now to cut down on fuel expenses. Let’s take a closer look at each tip.
Tip 1: Prioritize gentle acceleration
Gentle acceleration reduces fuel consumption in several ways:
- Reduced engine strain: Gentle acceleration places less strain on the engine, allowing it to operate more efficiently and consume less fuel.
- Less braking: When you accelerate smoothly, you don’t have to brake as often. This means you spend less fuel because you don’t need to speed up again after braking.
Statistics show that gentle acceleration and braking can improve vehicle fuel economy by 15%–30% at highway speeds and 10%–40% in stop-and-go traffic.
To adopt this eco-driving tip, telematics systems suggest:
- Real-time monitoring: Fleet managers monitor driving behavior in real-time and track acceleration patterns as they occur.
- Instant alerts: Telematics systems detect sudden bursts of acceleration or instances of aggressive driving and promptly contact and notify drivers.
- Data analysis: Telematics systems analyze driving data over time to identify trends and patterns.
- Targeted training: In cases of repeated incidents, fleet managers provide targeted training to drivers to promote responsible driving habits.
These strategies work through trackers that gather Eco Driving data and send it to a telematics platform. The platform then analyzes the data, gives scores, and suggests improvements.
Tip 2: Leverage steady speed
Smooth acceleration becomes much more achievable if your drivers are motivated to maintain a steady speed. Conversely, drivers who accelerate aggressively may find it challenging to keep a steady speed due to frequent fluctuations.
To avoid this, ensure that drivers reach and maintain their desired speed without sudden bursts or fluctuations. There are several ways to achieve this:
- Real-time monitoring tracks vehicle speed and sends instant notifications to drivers if they exceed predefined speed thresholds.
- Performance reporting enables fleet managers to evaluate drivers over time.
- If erratic driving is a consistent problem, the company may provide targeted coaching to promote the adoption of eco-frinedly driving techniques.
Tip 3: Optimize routes
Effective route planning is a highly efficient driving technique to save fuel. If you examine where most of your fuel is lost, it’s likely during a traffic jam, on a poorly planned delivery route, or when drivers take detours to avoid road repairs or other issues.
Optimized routes spare your drivers from spending long hours in traffic and frequent stops and starts that waste fuel. Route planning optimization is one of the most effective ways to enhance the overall efficiency of a commercial fleet and particularly save fuel. Optimizing your routes can cut fuel costs by up to 20%.
Telematics is ideal for route optimization. It not only tracks drivers on the map but also integrates with other data sources such as traffic, weather, and news. As a result, it constructs practical, real-time optimized routes that reduce fuel consumption and ensure better driver conditions.
Tip 4: Reduce idle time
The longer a vehicle idle, the more fuel it burns without moving. One of the most effective ways to avoid idling is to motivate drivers to turn off the engine when the vehicle stays still for a while.
Implementing a driver behavior monitoring system into your fleet management creates more chances that drivers will follow this simple eco-driving tip. It also helps position yourself as a sustainable company and attract customers who share these values.
So, how can a driving behavior monitoring system help you in this case?
- Monitoring engine status in real-time
- Detecting long idling periods
- Sending alerts to a driver to shut down their engine during long stops
- Creating policies to reduce idle time
On top of decreasing fuel consumption, you will support environmental sustainability and comply with green rules that are becoming more and more strict.
Tip 5: Manage vehicle weight
Excess weight can affect fuel consumption. Not only does it strain the vehicle’s engine, but it also demands extra fuel because it has to move the additional weight.
Handling the problem of excess weight doesn’t mean leaving vehicles with little load and making them return for another load again and again. In fact, redistributing loads among fleet vehicles can lead to better results in terms of time and money.
Avoid overloading by:
- Checking vehicle capacity: Keep an eye on how much weight each vehicle carries.
- Improving loading techniques: Ensure that drivers know how to load vehicles efficiently and avoid carrying extra items.
- Tracking vehicle weight: Use telematics to monitor the parameter in real-time and send alerts if vehicles are overloaded.
When managers see what driving technique can save fuel and how much extra weight costs fleets in fuel, taking control of this parameter becomes easier.
Conclusion
Reducing fuel consumption in commercial fleets is the number one goal of most fleet managers – and why wouldn’t it be? Fuel consumption is one of the most significant expenses in every fleet’s budget. That’s why it requires extra monitoring and control. But there are different ways to cut down fuel costs. Start by integrating eco-friendly driving tips before proceeding with advanced analytics and predictive algorithms.
Most importantly, ensure you train your drivers in these tips. They are your greatest allies. The better you communicate, explaining the downsides of habits like acceleration or idling, and motivate them to adopt these techniques, the more likely they’ll integrate them into their work.
And remember, which driving technique can help you save fuel, should always be a top consideration in your fleet operation standards.