Fleet maintenance and repair is an instrumental part of fleet management, and it has a variety of benefits. You can read about all of the benefits of fleet maintenance in our article, “Top 3 Benefits of a Fleet Maintenance Program,” but one important benefit that we want to focus on is how regularly inspecting your vehicles prevents downtime and keeps your fleet productive. Breakdowns are an enormous inconvenience, no matter when or how they happen, and most fleet managers will do anything they can to avoid them. How does having a fleet maintenance plan and performing regular maintenance inspections prevent unscheduled downtime? Let’s discuss this in further detail.
Prevent Breakdowns
As mentioned, breakdowns are the worst culprit for hindering your business’s productivity and efficiency. Whenever a breakdown occurs, your drivers are put out of work, your customers are left unhappy, and your work gets backed up until you can get the vehicle repaired. Usually, a problem that causes a breakdown requires a new part or significant repair that takes longer than routine maintenance. If you regularly inspect your vehicles and catch problems before they cause a breakdown, you can prevent these breakdowns before they occur, and save your fleet a lot of time and headache.
Less Time-Consuming Repairs
We said earlier that a repair that causes a breakdown often takes more time than one that you catch during routine maintenance. This is true. When you catch a problem during routine maintenance, you can often have your vehicle in and out of the shop in no time, causing fewer delays to your operations. For example, an oil change takes no time at all. But if you don’t change your oil and let your engine get clogged or pistons get worn out, then you have a major repair on your hands and you may have to order parts that can take days or weeks to come. Avoid that entire hassle by doing regular inspections of your vehicles so you always catch issues before they become significant.
Plan Your Repairs
The worst part about breakdowns and significant repairs is when they take a vehicle you need off the road and you are left without the tools you need to do your work. Whenever you perform regular inspections, you know about issues ahead of time and can plan your maintenance around your schedule. This means you can schedule your days so that the missing vehicle does not cause a significant delay to your business’s productivity. You’re at a major advantage when you’re not delayed by vehicle repairs, and your drivers appreciate not having to sit around and then scramble to catch up. Regular inspections are important for keeping your business on a regular schedule.
Make Inspections Easier With Azuga
Azuga can help you digitize your inspection checklists and keep vehicle maintenance logs that tell you your vehicles’ exact history so you never have to wonder what’s going on with your vehicles. With maintenance alerts that tell you when vehicles have issues that need attention, it’s easy to keep up with all of your vehicles’ maintenance needs. Find out what you can do with Azuga’s technology by trying out a free demo today!
