How To Organize Your Fleet During COVID-19 Pandemic The fleet industry is struggling on budget, owing to the unmatched situation prevailing in the country.
By Vikram Kumar
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The Coronavirus pandemic and continuous lockdowns in the last couple of months across the country has impacted the fleet industry transporting essentials items. These include the transport of medicines, grocery and other indispensable products.
In the last four lockdowns, only a few essential services were allowed to serve, while the unlock 1.0 has come up with few important relaxations to boost the economy of the country.
But, maintenance of the fleet industry still looks a challenge. As a result, there has been a huge decline in the growth of the fleet industry.
The fleet industry is struggling on budget, owing to the unmatched situation prevailing in the country. There are so many liquidity issues and no industry is left out from this havoc.
Amid the pandemic, it has also become difficult for fleet management to connect digitally and guarantee proper maintenance.
While protecting employees and the public is on everyone's priority, it is also challenging for the fleet industry to handle assets remotely, business risks, and monitoring budgets.
At the same time, it is vital to abide by the protocols of the lockdown.
Considering the condition, the fleet industry is required to be extra cautious while performing the task. Having proper fleet maintenance is very essential to keep the system in place.
Here are few tips to manage fleet amid the contagion.
Continuing with documentation
It's significant to continue making logs. Notes should be made on a daily basis, which may help in streamlining the tasks. Also, one can keep track of the task that has been covered and what needs to be taken up. This will ensure an error-free fleet management system. Additionally, it will help in seeing what kind of task was prescribed during the lockdown.
Maintaining sanitation and safety protocols
Social distancing has become a habit today and it's also essentials for the driver to abide by the rules. Safety and sanitization should be the top priority in the pyramid.
The guidelines issued by the government should be followed by the team.
Also, the team should be given proper time to rest. It's important to understand that everyone is under stress due to the ongoing crisis, so are drivers. They should be given sufficient time to relax.
Additionally, drivers must be made to apprehend their obligation. They should also understand that safety and cleanliness both should be prioritized.
Ensuring a tracking system
As people are getting used to social distancing, there is a boom in the e-commerce purchase. This means the fleet system have additional pressure to provide more supplies at the time.
A fleet tracking tool, may be a GPS tracker, should be hence used to allow managers to review the driver's time. However, an overload of work should not be given on one particular driver. It should be properly managed.
Boost precautionary measures
Amid this contagion, some fleets may be experiencing a reduced amount of work, while others may be under huge work pressure. Those with less work can consider this time to improve their precautionary measures. This may ensure proper operation once everything returns to normal.
Monitor expenses and invest in necessities
The team should try to monitor the expenses and operating costs. Also, they should spend on necessities such as oil changes, tire rotation, and other regular maintenance items. This will ensure the quick and safe delivery of items.
Being in touch with drivers
The fleet team should try to remain in communication with the drivers. That will help them in taking decisions. Things are already very chaotic and drivers may face issues while traveling from one zone to another, owing to the cases and the new travel protocols of the new zone.
The team should be in touch to know where drivers are, what load they are taking, who will take the next load and what kind of situations are prevailing in which section. That may help them in determining the time slot too.
