DC Velocity - June 2014

4 DC VELOCITY JUNE 2014 www.dcvelocity.com inbound

How much money could be saved if every commercial fleet in the United States and Canada implemented fleet optimization software? A whole lot: The annual savings in fuel use alone could exceed $2 billion, and an average

20-percent decline in drivers’ hours on the road could produce a whopping

$35 billion reduction in payroll costs—more than $14,000 per vehicle.

These are just two examples of the eye-popping numbers in the first “FleetBeat” report produced by Fleetmatics, a developer of on-board telematics solutions that provide visibility into vehicle location, fuel use, speed, and mileage. The report estimates the impact, by market segment, that fleet management software could have on such areas as fleet utilization, service/delivery stop performance, service radius, fuel consumption, and payroll, if every fleet of five or more vehicles used this type of technology and achieved the same results as Fleetmatics’ optimized customers.

The numbers cited above are somewhat skewed, since they include everything from the local plumber driving a Dodge van around town to heavy-duty highway trucks. And, of course, as a vendor of optimization software, Fleetmatics has an obvious stake in the findings. But the detailed report is carefully researched, and the benchmarks are based on five years of data from customers and third-party sources, including research firms and federal governments. Here are just a few samples of the average improvements Fleetmatics says have been achieved in for-hire trucking and “specialty” transport, which includes private fleets:

; Overall service delivery performance (from inception of the technology to the present). Local and longer-haul for-hire trucking: 21 percent; specialty transport: 8 percent

; Service radius increase. For-hire trucking (local): 102 miles; for-hire trucking (except local): 146 miles; specialty transport: 103 miles

; Payroll reductions due to decrease in payroll hours. For-hire trucking (local): $20,005 annually; for-hire trucking (except local): $20,005; specialty transport: $16,236

The full report is available free at www.fleetmatics.com/fleetbeatreport.

What if everyone used fleet telematics?

The topic of forklift safety got some serious attention on Capitol Hill earlier this month. On June 10, members of the Industrial Truck Association (ITA), which represents lift truck manufacturers and suppliers of component parts and accessories, took part in the first-ever National Forklift Safety Day. The daylong program provided an opportunity for manufacturers to educate customers, policymak-ers, and government officials about safe forklift operating practices. In addition to attending presentations by ITA officers and industry experts, forklift makers met with members of Congress to discuss regulatory issues as well as trade initiatives, such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership, that could help U.S. lift truck manufacturers boost their exports.

Washington, D.C.-based ITA advances engineering and safety practices, disseminates statistical marketplace information, and holds industry forums, among other activities.

ITA sponsors first National Forklift Safety Day

Each month, we publish news briefs about the many ways companies in our field engage in community service. Most of the programs are local, but a few are global in scope. One of those is Delivering Better Lives (DBL), the charitable foundation of UTi Worldwide Inc., a nonasset-based provider of global supply chain services and solutions. DBL focuses on providing facilities that support education, health services, housing, and other community needs in the 59 countries where UTi has its own operations. The foundation supports such projects as schools in Zimbabwe, Bangladesh, and Cambodia; orphanages in China, Chile, and Colombia; and a cancer hospice in Peru, among many others.

The annual DBL Global Walkathon is the foundation’s major fundraiser. During the last two weeks of May, UTi employees held walkathons and similar events to raise money. Past events have included speed skating in the Netherlands and a swim across the Bosporus Strait in Turkey. Funds raised during this year’s event will go toward the construction of a shelter for young people in Argentina.

While UTi pays for all administrative activities and provides much of the funding, Delivering Better Lives does accept donations. For more information, go to www.deliv-eringbetterlives.org.