The future of fleet management: autonomy, connectivity, electrification and sharing.
The automotive industry is accelerating towards innovation at an exciting pace, as latest technology and fleet management models promise driving changes for Fleet Managers.
The automotive industry is witnessing a rapid change, driven by external factors that modify the way fleet professionals and corporates manage their vehicles and drivers. With technological advancement and human ingenuity contributing together, the coming years will see a large scale adoption of new ideas and tools which were considered to be futuristic not such a long time back.
Let’s take a closer look at how autonomy, connectivity, electrification and sharing will change fleet management and the role of the new-age Fleet Managers.
1. Autonomy
Self-driving vehicles are yet to hit to the roads but there is no doubt that they are coming. In fact, to some extent, they are already here, and not just in the form of “autopilot” settings. Many cars are now equipped with the technology designed to scan the road ahead and alert or assist the drivers to avoid possible collisions. This is no more limited to premium brands but it has also reached the mass market.
The implications of such technology for fleets are clear: the more advanced autonomous driving technology gets, the lesser chances for human error. Investing in autonomous and semi-autonomous vehicles should then improve fleet safety and reduce the costs of collisions and claims.
As the technology is advancing more and more everyday, a number of unanswered questions have come to attention. Will driverless vehicles be more expensive? Will the reduced risk lower the cost of insurance? Will national regulations and infrastructure evolve to accommodate such technology switch?
Whatever be the answers to these questions, one thing is certain: fleets will find themselves at the forefront of adoption and adaptation.
2. Connectivity
Telematics is boosting further the trend toward more connected cars. How? By tracking locations, speeds and risky behaviors such as sudden acceleration and harsh braking. Such rich datasets can feed predictive analytics. The key takeaways are safety, compliance and capability.
For example, with this data, Fleet Managers can develop safety training programs that are tailored for individual drivers. Telematics can also track worked hours and miles driven by each employees, thus reducing the burden on employees. Productivity can be further enhanced by driver-facing apps that can be accessed through mobile devices.
3. Electrification
Electric vehicles have been in use for decades already, but never in the past have they been so widely available, and in so many markets. Worldwide, the increase of electric cars has been marked by a series of announcements from manufacturers and governments, all indicating a shift away from gasoline and diesel-powered vehicles.
This past year 2018 alone, Volvo, among others, has announced plans to expand its portfolio of electric-powered vehicles. Indeed, they has declared that they will build an electric motor into every vehicle it produces starting in 2019. At the government level, we can take the example of Norway who has announced that all fossil-fueled cars will be banned from its streets by 2025. Will we see the same shift operating in India?
4. Sharing
The car sharing model has evolved to include highly efficient, automated, paperless systems. In response to the growing popularity of those shared fleets, service providers have started to offer systems that use access cards or smartphones to facilitate the pickup and return of vehicles. These advanced solutions are particularly appreciated by large companies that seek to maximize their fleet utilization.
Ride-sharing and pooling reduce the need for corporates to assign one vehicle per employee. Instead, they can now save money by acquiring fewer vehicles to be shared among a pool of employees, for when they really need it. All they have to do is to ensure vehicles are returned to a central facility where they can be cleaned and serviced. If properly managed, shared-fleet can be an efficient complement to leasing and owning, as part of the overall fleet management plan.
The fleet industry is evolving at a fast rate and Fleet Managers are at risk of being left behind if they don’t follow the path.Thankfully, the fleet experts at ALD Automotive are at here to help your corporate.
Contact us to learn how partnering with a fleet management company can keep you and your fleet on the lane of success.