How GPS Fleet Tracking Helps with Variable Costs

If you’re a fleet manager, you know that operating and managing fleets come with a range of costs. Direct costs are funds that are sent directly to finance and operate the fleet and are closely related to the fleet itself. Under the umbrella of direct costs are fixed direct costs that are consistent month to month and year to year, such as financing the fleet, paying for insurance, paying taxes and other fees, and operating costs including employee wages.

In addition to fixed costs, variable costs compromise a significant portion of funds allocated to fleets. One of the biggest variable costs is fuel prices. Depending on the mileage your fleet puts in month to month, along with the cost of fuel, fuel costs can fluctuate. Other variable costs include maintenance, breakdowns, replacing tires, paying fines, tolls, along with incentives and meal allowances for drivers.

While no fleet costs are negligible, it’s important to recognize the biggest and most important variable costs, namely fuel and maintenance. In this article, we’ll explain how GPS fleet tracking can help to monitor and reduce variable costs for your fleet.

GPS Fleet Tracking and Variable Costs

 One challenge that comes with variable costs is keeping track of them. Because variable costs are not fixed, gathering data and calculating variable costs can be difficult. One simple way to keep track of and forecast variable costs is by using miles traveled. Miles traveled will allow you to calculate fuel costs and regular maintenance costs, including the cost of tires and repairs per mile.

Tracking mileage

The most effective method of keeping track of variable costs, and miles traveled, is by using GPS fleet tracking. GPS fleet tracking can benefit a company’s fleet in several ways. First of all, it automatically logs miles traveled in any vehicle it is installed in. This allows you to easily collect data fleet-wide on how many miles each vehicle travels on any given day, week, or month.

 Tracking fuel efficiency

Furthermore, GPS fleet tracking can help you keep track of fuel management by tracking the fuel spent and mileage of every vehicle, providing you with instant fuel economy data. Additionally, GPS fleet tracking will monitor fuel economy and can alert you when fuel efficiency changes. For example, if a specific vehicle’s mileage starts increasing, then it is a good indicator that the vehicle needs to be serviced.

 Monitoring driver behavior

Another factor that is directly related to fuel efficiency is driver behavior. It’s difficult to know how your drivers are behaving out on the road. Not only does poor driving behavior increase risk and liability, but it also results in poor fuel efficiency. GPS fleet tracking monitors driver behavior by collecting data related to hard accelerations and braking, along with taking hard turns. All of these data will provide you with the necessary information needed to identify poor driving behavior and improve it and in turn increase safety and fuel efficiency.

 Visit our GPS fleet tracking and GPS fleet management pages to learn more!

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