Car fleet management – what is it?
CFM (car fleet management) undoubtedly affects the profitability and safety of the entire organization. The term refers to the comprehensive management of company vehicle fleets, taking into account the planning, monitoring, and optimization of all operations related to vehicle use.
What does this mean in practice? Car fleet management includes activities such as:
- monitoring the technical condition of vehicles,
- planning inspections and repairs,
- controlling operating costs,
- managing refueling and driver behavior,
- analyzing data related to fleet usage.
Car fleet management – elements of fleet management
The goal of CFM is to keep the vehicle fleet in a condition that ensures safe, efficient, and cost-effective operation. Effective fleet management reduces the costs associated with maintaining the fleet and ensures compliance with applicable regulations. It is undoubtedly a multidimensional process involving many elements. The most important include:
- vehicle records and monitoring – controlling the number of vehicles, their mileage, and repair history, as well as tracking their real-time location,
- controlling expenses related to fuel, servicing, spare parts, leasing, and insurance,
- creating maintenance schedules to minimize the risk of costly breakdowns and unplanned downtime,
- reporting and analytics related to fuel consumption, incidents on the road, trip efficiency, and vehicle maintenance costs.
Car fleet management – the role of modern systems
Advanced IT tools support effective car fleet management by integrating data originating from vehicles, drivers, fuel stations, and service providers. As a result, managing the fleet becomes easier and more efficient. One of the solutions used in the automotive industry is SAP Fleet Management. It is a module of the SAP S/4HANA system that serves as a central platform for fleet management. It enables:
- analyzing operating costs,
- recording fuel and spare part consumption,
- managing vehicle records,
- planning inspections,
- generating reports,
- integrations with telematics, service centers, and external providers.
SAP Fleet Management is an invaluable support in making decisions related to purchasing vehicles, their use, resale, or retirement. It also enables comparing car models in terms of profitability. The solution provides convenient access to dashboards with repair histories, driver performance, and CO2 emissions. It is an excellent fit for companies with large vehicle fleets that are looking for ways to connect fleet management with other business processes.
Car fleet management – benefits
SAP Fleet Management ensures a high level of data security, process automation, and full integration with other areas of the company’s operations. The solution can be accessed through SAP Fiori. Its implementation helps reduce fleet operating costs, but not only that. It also supports the objective of standardizing and automating processes related to fleet management. As a result, breakdowns become less frequent, driver safety increases, along with settlement accuracy and trip efficiency. The solution’s advanced features and its integration with other SAP modules make it possible to build a stable, secure, and cost-effective fleet model aligned with today’s market challenges.
Car fleet management offers much more than vehicle monitoring, and the benefits of implementing SAP Fleet Management are undoubtedly significant. To ensure a smooth implementation process, it is worth securing the support of a trusted implementation partner.
