The Fleet Business Authority
Issue link: http://heavydutytrucking.epubxp.com/i/236631
Technology helps fleets reduce their costs per mile W PHOTO COURTESY OF PARAGON SOFTWARE SYSTEMS hether you operate one most cost-effective way," says William rabbit starts and out-of-route miles. truck or 1,000, monitorSalter, president and CEO of Paragon Chris Otey, transportation maning and managing costs is Software Systems. "It helps reduce ager at Goody Goody Liquors, says one of your most impormileage, which cuts fuel costs and can the routing system it recently detant tasks. Fleets have used also help reduce carbon emissions." ployed from Paragon "helped get our technology to help them control costs Routing technology lets LTL carrimileage down when we produce our for some time, but the latest third- or ers "smooth out routes," explains Ken routes every day." The company has fourth-generation systems are 27 retail liquor stores and capable of generating tremensix wholesale locations and dous amounts of information runs a total of 35 trucks out fleets can put to use. of three warehouses. Those "People in the industry trucks deliver to some 600 realize that as much as the restaurant/hotel customers industry runs on diesel fuel, in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area it really runs on informaand are sent out twice each tion," says Tom Flies, chief day. Goody Goody's routoperating officer, Cadec. ing challenge is made more For many trucking comcomplex by state laws that panies, cost per mile has long prohibit transporting liquor been the preferred metric for across county lines. monitoring costs. Generally, The routing software has this metric includes fuel, reduced the fleet's mileage by drivers and maintenance, as about 100 mile a day. It also well as things such as vehicle/ improved efficiency in the Efficient routing that reduces miles helps cut a fleet's ro ting red ces c t trailer depreciation, insurwarehouse by producing load costs per mile. ance, taxes, licenses and other orders so trucks are loaded operational costs. in the order of the stops on Weinberg, vice president and cotheir routes. "Before they would have to Saving fuel founder, Carrier Logistics Inc. He says zigzag across town," he says. Clearly, the largest of these is fuel if an LTL carrier can improve its route Fleets save on fuel not only by cutcosts. Some of the earliest informastructure to save 5 miles per truck per ting down on out-of-route miles and tion technology adopted by fleets day, with 50 trucks on the road, it can better routing, but also by making was designed to reduce fuel cost by save 250 miles a day. "Over a year, then sure they are getting the best price allowing fleets to run more efficiently. you are talking about real savings." possible and the best mpg. It helped reduce non-revenue miles Today's technology also allows fleets You could break the fuel compoand increase revenue-generating miles to consider other factors that might nent down to purchasing optimizafor long-haul operations, and helped affect a route, such as traffic or weather, tion and consumption, says James determine more productive routes in and adjust routes on the fly, according Langley, vice president business LTL or local delivery operations. to Daniel Valentine, product marketanalytics with TMW Systems. From the local delivery side, ing manager at NexTraq. And they can Fleets can use fuel optimization advanced routing technology "allows monitor driver behavior that affects fuel technology to get the best network [fleet managers] to do things in the mileage, such as hard braking, jackprice for fuel over a route. They also use Jim Beach • Technology Editor 38 HDT • JANUARY 2014 www.truckinginfo.com