The Future of Fleet

Over the past decade, technology has developed more rapidly and broadly then ever expected. With the ubiquity of mobile devices, cloud-based software, and real-time connectivity, tech has become an essential part of our lives, including our work as fleet managers. Vehicle technology has progressed from simple GPS trackers to devices that can track driver behavior, monitor engine diagnostics, and redirect vehicles in dangerous situations.

With the rapid advancement of technology in our industry, it’s important to stay up-to-date on recent developments and the future of vehicle tech. Your fleet’s survival depends on your ability to lead it into the future, so you need to remain informed on updates and possibilities, which may not be as far away as you think.

1. An Abundance of Data

As technology has offered more insights into fleet operations, driver performance, and vehicle health, fleet managers have been able to use this information to improve their practices and decrease costs. As technology continues to develop and offer more data, fleet managers will soon run into a new issue – how to decide which data is the most important and insightful. Telematics data is designed to help fleets improve, but too much data can hinder the creation and implementation of effective solutions. Despite these issues, fleet data is the key to keeping drivers safe and implementing better practices. As the industry begins to experience an abundance of data, fleet leaders will have to learn to focus on the outliers and use them to create actionable solutions.

2. In-Vehicle Safety Features

We see it in TV ads every day. New vehicles include safety features that can keep you in your lane, help you avoid rear-end collisions, and audibly alert you about blind-spot dangers. Increasing vehicle safety to reduce the number of collisions, injuries, and fatalities is a top priority for anyone in the vehicle industry, so we are sure to see more of these features in the future.

Replacing your fleet vehicles every time a new safety feature debuts is impractical, however, so fleet managers need to rely on telematics data to improve safety with the vehicles you already have. In fact, as we’ve seen in recent years, telematics are providing an effective defense against dangerous driving and vehicle accidents. Some insurance companies are even offering plans that decrease costs if telematics devices are used. Every vehicle may one day offer full safety features, but until then, telematics are a necessity.

3. Mobility Revolution

With advent of self-driving cars and ride-sharing, the automotive industry is no longer only about vehicles. As this “Mobility Revolution” changes the fleet industry, we have to prepare for the effects it will bring. For some fleets, this has introduced the concept of vehicle-sharing within the company to minimize expenses. Technology and vehicles as we know them will continue to evolve, so we have to be ready to meet these changes.