Managing and growing a fleet comes with a number of challenges. When a fleet is smaller, you can handle dispatch, fleet compliance, expenses, and communication pretty easily. But as you grow and add drivers, more preferred carriers, and deal with more customers those tasks get more complicated.
Fortunately, many of the solutions can be handled through a centralized, cloud-based Transportation Management System that will help make your fleet management operate more efficiently, thus making scaling and growth possible.
Here are some of the things Sylectus TMS can handle for you.
Dispatch with Confidence
First, you can dispatch your drivers with confidence. From the time a customer places an order, you will be able to see what loads you have heading where, and plan and route your fleet accordingly.
This helps your fleet avoid some potentially costly pitfalls, including:
One of the most important things you can do for your fleet is to make it more efficient through the ability to dispatch drivers confidently. At the same time, you also need to think about compliance.
Manage Fleet Compliance
In more places than ever, including recently in Canada, Electronic Logging Devices or ELDs make compliance even easier but also make it more likely that any driver violating the Hours of Service (HOS) rules there will get caught. The same is true in the United States and other countries around the world.
The more sophisticated these systems get, the more important driver monitoring systems become. They also have other benefits, including better safety, training, and accident reduction.
Besides driver management, there are other fleet compliance issues a transportation management system can help with as well. They include vehicle maintenance schedules, vehicle inspection schedules, and even the movement of a vehicle in and out of service.
From vehicles to your drivers, being in line with legal requirements is vital to running a successful and profitable business.
Monitor and Control Expenses
Accounting is not the favorite topic of most fleet managers, but it’s one that needs to be addressed as fleet management gets more complicated. A cloud-based TMS allows you to import your data to accounting tools which can help with the management of billing and invoicing along with several other accounting features.
You can also manage deductions and advances, driver settlements, and even integrate and manage fuel cards. All your income and expenses can be managed in a single space with things like document imaging.
One of the biggest advantages of a comprehensive TMS is the ability to create custom reports so you can see where you can create greater efficiency and increase your fleet management capability.
Simplify and Automate Communication
Of course, one of the greatest challenges is the need to communicate with and coordinate the efforts of more people. But a transportation management system helps you do this through tools like email automation.
For example:
- A customer visits a custom online portal, entering their load needs and timeline.
- An automated email informs them their information has been received.
- Your dispatch team receives another email, alerting them to the order. The job can even be automatically dispatched to preferred carriers or added to a load board.
- The order is scheduled, and the customer receives an email with the details they need about pick-up and transport timelines.
Drivers, preferred carriers, and others can all log in through online portals that allow them to perform a variety of tasks that result in automated responses, communications, and more. Essentially, the chatter is kept to a needed minimum while systems work for you in the background.
The best part about an automated system is that it works for you 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, without the need for round-the-clock staffing.
Learn how ITDS, a transportation services company, was able to experience double-digit growth and keep up with customer demand without adding additional staffing. Download the case study.
Your Fleet Needs Sylectus
If you want to grow your fleet, you need to be able to dispatch your drivers with confidence, remain in compliance at all times, monitor and control your expenses, and simplify and automate communication. You’ll keep your drivers, customers, and preferred carriers happy while maintaining a positive ROI.
The simplest way to do that is with a cloud-based comprehensive TMS like Sylectus. With our Alliance Virtual Fleet or Alliance PRO plans, we’re sure to be able to meet your unique needs at a price you can afford.
Check out Sylectus today. And make fleet management and growth the easiest it has ever been.
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