Vehicle and service management solutions offer immediate relief

"I can't keep track of it all any more! When will there be an app for this?" The junior manager at a medium-sized haulier showed me a mountain of paperwork during my last customer visit. The pile included maintenance documents for his trailer fleet, workshop receipts, spare parts invoices and much more besides. "Vehicle admin costs me time and energy," he explained, "and it ties up valuable staff that I would rather use more profitably." His fleet includes curtainsiders of different ages from a range of manufacturers. Cost pressures compel him to extract the maximum mileage from the trailers, and he frequently steps in to drive himself when drivers are unavailable due to illness or holidays. There is precious little time for administration, and even less for performing long-term cost analyses. His father used to replace the trailers with new vehicles after around five years, but this is no longer possible due to today's economic challenges.

For a long time, trailer maintenance was more of a side issue for haulage companies – the tractor unit was lovingly cared for and looked after, and the trailer simply rolled along behind it. This is now changing, especially as the costs for workshops and spare parts for trailers are rising. Most vehicle operators can only estimate, rather than accurately plan, the final cost of trailers, even if they meticulously file and document all receipts. In his mid-thirties, the young manager has grown up in the haulage business, but also belongs to the smartphone generation. So his ears pricked up when I mentioned the new intelligent iC Plus running gear generation from BPW, which includes telematics as standard. This connectivity allows for straightforward, digital maintenance management. The transport telematics portal cargofleet 3 from our subsidiary idem telematics GmbH keeps a maintenance calendar, sends reminders of upcoming appointments via email and records maintenance work in a digital vehicle file. The maintenance schedules for numerous BPW running gear systems and running gear components are already stored, while other existing vehicles and components can be added individually. And not only that – with just a few clicks in cargofleet 3, you can easily track the trailer's location, check its load capacity and assess the condition of safety-critical components. "It's a fantastic feature that we'll definitely consider for our next trailer. But is there more to it? I want to refocus on my core responsibilities."

Here, too, there is a solution that greatly relieves vehicle operators and ensures that costs can be planned – BPW handles all necessary maintenance and wear-related repairs to the trailer for a flat-rate fee. The maintenance contract can cover the entire trailer running gear, everything underneath the chassis, or even the whole trailer, including the superstructure, depending on your preferences and needs. Even refrigerated boxes and special bodies can be included – regardless of the manufacturer. BPW also offers the maintenance contract if the running gear is not provided by BPW. A Europe-wide breakdown service is always included, and the term and service range can be customised. 

For our junior manager, this was the solution that quickly won over his seniors – a fixed monthly rate for all vehicles ensures planning capability, makes actual costs fully transparent for the first time, and supports informed business decisions. Now, there is just one point of contact for all service issues related to the entire trailer fleet, which significantly reduces administrative tasks, as invoice checking, filing and workshop hassle are a thing of the past. BPW even sends email reminders when maintenance is due. This brings the vehicle population to a consistent level, regardless of different manufacturers and types of running gear. In addition, maintenance and wear-related repairs for the entire fleet are fully documented and can be viewed online by customers at any time.

Operators of specialist vehicles have been benefiting from the maintenance contract for some time now. This is hardly surprising, given that the vehicles are expensive, have long service lives, and inadequate maintenance poses significant risks in terms of cost and safety. Additionally, a significant amount of paperwork is required before any special transport operation can proceed. That said, a noticeable shift is taking place. An increasing number of vehicle operators in the standard segment, including those with curtainsiders or closed box semi-trailers, are opting for BPW's maintenance contract. Why? Simply because it proves to be cost-effective and significantly simplifies everyday operations.