Market Trends

June 15, 2011

If you want to green your fleet by reducing emissions, you need to decrease fuel consumption. Up to 30 percent of a vehicle's fuel efficiency is impacted by driver behavior. The way an employee drives make a big difference in the volume of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions emitted by a company vehicle. Every unnecessary gallon of diesel burned creates 22.1 lbs. of CO2. The quickest way to reduce fuel consumption is to modify employee driving behavior.

Tags: Sustainability, Driver Behavior, Fuel Efficiency, Mike Antich, Antich

May 31, 2011

I foresee fleet procurement patterns changing due to impending federal-mandated corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) standards in 2016 and 2025. Government CAFE mandates for higher fuel economy, coupled with higher fuel prices, will change the vehicle portfolio mix offered by many OEMs, which in turn will ultimately change the asset composition of tomorrow’s fleets.

Tags: fleet procurement, Gasoline-Electric Hybrids, Antich, CAFE Standards

May 9, 2011

My takeaway from last April’s NAFA I&E Conference was the extent to which fleet managers are being stretched to their limits. The catalyst has been the recent economic downturn, which decimated what little staff may have been at the disposal of many fleet managers. Time constraints have caused a fleet manager’s daily activity to be a "juggling act," which has devolved into “crisis management” of putting out an endless stream of "fires."

Tags: Fleet Management, role of the fleet manager, burnout, Antich, Mike Antich

April 26, 2011

Fleet vehicles are vulnerable to order-to-delivery (OTD) delays because most fleet orders are concentrated among a handful of models. There are four components to the OTD cycle: ordering, scheduling, production, and delivery.The weak link is the delivery component. For the past 10 years, the nationwide rail car shortage has been a factor in fleet delivery delays. This promises to continue to be the case for the foreseeable future. Here's why.

Tags: order to delivery times, Antich, Mike Antich

April 18, 2011

Nearly all fleet-related costs, both fixed and operating, are influenced by when a vehicle is replaced. Today’s exceptionally strong wholesale market caused by the shortage of used vehicles offers commercial fleet managers an “out-of-the box opportunity” to short cycle vehicles. A shorter 24-month replacement cycle will maximize resale values, reduce operating costs and downtime, increase negotiating leverage with OEMs, and improve driver morale,

Tags: Used Vehicles, fleet depreciation, Short Cycling, Antich, Mike Antich

April 1, 2011

Senior management at many U.S. companies continues to support corporate sustainability and green fleet initiatives. In the past, “green” was difficult to “pencil out” when calculating vehicle lifecycle costs, but those days appear to be ending.

Tags: total cost of ownership, green fleet, Antich

March 11, 2011

Expungement is a legal procedure to remove driving infractions from an individual's motor vehicle record. Fleet managers report MVR expungements are occurring with greater frequency -- more so in some jurisdictions than others. The most notorious is Puerto Rico, but there has also been an increase in expungements of DUIs and speeding tickets in other jurisdictions, such as Illinois and Pennsylvania. Fleet managers need to be aware of the negligent entrustment ramifications.

Tags: MVR, MVR expungement, Antich

February 15, 2011

Vehicle violations represent 1-3 percent of total fleet costs and vary by fleet depending on the cities and states where vehicles operate.

February 8, 2011

There are a number of professional women’s associations. Why not an association for women in fleet? This was the thought that struck Carolyn Edwards, director of operations, vehicle acquisition for LeasePlan USA. Since then, four founding members have joined the group. They are Gayle Pratt of Ecolab, Sue Miller of McDonald’s Corp., Ginny Liddle of Terracon, and Christy Coyte of Johnson Controls, Inc. The group is looking for your feedback.

Tags: women in fleet, Antich

January 28, 2011

The proposed rulemaking would amend the federal motor vehicle safety standards requiring OEMs to install speed limiters on trucks with a GVWR greater than 26,000 lbs. An electronic control module (ECM) would limit the maximum speed to no more than 68 mph. Many independent truckers, the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA), and the Truckload Carriers Association (TCA) are opposed to the rulemaking.

Tags: Speed limit, Trucks, NHTSA, Antich

December 28, 2010

The Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010 (H.R. 4853) was signed into law by President Obama on Dec. 17, 2010. The legislation includes an extension of the Small Business Jobs and Credit Act of 2010's "bonus depreciation" allowance through the end of 2011, and increases that amount from 50 percent to100 percent. Here's what it means to fleets.

Tags: Depreciation, Legislation, Taxes, Antich

December 13, 2010

Concern about vicarious liability lawsuits resulting from the public release of Comprehensive Safety Analysis (CSA) 2010 data prompted a legal motion to be filed on Nov. 29 with the U.S. Court of Appeals by three trucking associations, representing 3,000 privately owned fleets. The motion seeks a permanent injuction to the public release of CSA 2010 data with percentile ranking by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA).

Tags: FMCSA, Legislation, CSA 2010, Antich

November 9, 2010

Despite a slow economy, many companies (especially multi-nationals) remain fully committed to achieving self-imposed sustainability targets, which invariably include their fleet operations. However, many fleet programs place a greater focus on modifying the "asset" versus modifying driver behavior.

Tags: Sustainability, Driver Behavior, Antich

November 1, 2010

Operating costs will trend higher in the 2011 calendar-year, primarily due to an incremental increase in fuel prices, which represent the largest fleet operating expense category. Another factor contributing to upward pressure on operating expenses will be higher maintenance costs, primarily due to extended replacement cycling. Beyond 2011, fleet acquisition costs are anticipated increase to meet higher CAFE requirements.

Tags: Operating Costs, Fuel Spend, Forecast

October 26, 2010

Fleet managers try to minimize the number of out-of-stock purchases. But there are instances when these purchases can't be avoided, such as accident replacement and unanticipated new hires. However, the downsized dealer network has caused searches for out-of-stock vehicles to become more difficult and time-consuming. With OEM production reduced to match demand, fleets attempting to purchase out-of-stock are increasingly competing with retail customers. Is this the new reality?

Tags: replacement vehicles, Antich

October 11, 2010

SafeStat has been replaced by Comprehensive Safety Analysis (CSA) 2010, which applies to all truck fleets that operate interstate and require a US DOT number. All vehicles that operate interstate with a 10,001-lb. combined GVWR or greater are covered by CSA 2010. This regulatory enforcement change will create a monumental sea change in how truck fleets manage drivers, their fleet operations, and remain DOT compliant.

Tags: DOT, FMCSA, Compliance, CSA 2010, Antich

September 29, 2010

Multiple factors increased fleet order-to-delivery times, such as quality holds, massive recalls, the Cash for Clunkers program, GM & Chrysler’s emergence from bankruptcy, and the decision to build to demand, not to capacity. This data is based on a survey, which tracked deliveries of 159,349 new vehicles in the 2010 model-year, representing 86 models.

Tags: Antich, order to delivery times

September 13, 2010

A growing number of drivers view the company vehicle as a perk rather than a tool to perform their job. This view is more pronounced in certain generational groups. I speak with many fleet managers and can attest that most echo the belief that attitudes about company vehicles differ by the age of the driver. Many fleet managers believe younger workers have an entitlement attitude. However, these entitlement attitudes appear on both sides of the generational divide.

Tags: Antich

August 20, 2010

Do you really know who is driving your company-provided vehicles? Often the "at-work" persona of an employee is not the true indicator of their behavior when no one is watching. Recently, someone forwarded me a link to a chat room for pharmaceutical reps. I did a search of posts that included the phrase "company car" and, in short order, I was shocked at some of the comments written about their use of company cars and how drivers play "the system" to their advantage.

Tags: Personal Use, Reimbursement, Driver Safety, Company Vehicle, Antich

August 13, 2010

First-year 50-percent depreciation, known as bonus depreciation, expired Jan. 1, 2010. An amendment to retroactively extend bonus depreciation through the end of calendar-year 2010 has been added as an amendment to H.R. 5297. Bonus depreciation has been benefical to commercial fleets, especially those with long-life assets. As an industry, we need to urge members of Congress to pass H.R. 5297. But this is easier said than done due to the many other contentious issues in the bill.

Tags: Depreciation, Legislation

July 27, 2010

The EPA mandated the use of ULSD, effective June 1, 2006. Since then, there has been an uptick in reports of fuel-related problems, such as corrosion in storage tanks and dispensing systems, onboard vehicle fuel tank corrosion, clogged filters, and seal and gasket deterioration. What has the industry scratching its "collective head" is the chronological correlation between the uptick in fuel-related problems and the introduction of ULSD. Is there a connection between the two?

Tags: Corrosion, Ultra Low Sulfur Diesel