At Fleet Harmony we are constantly in touch with fleet managers - both our own customers, and some that are not. This is a story about the chain of events that transpired and how we helped.
We had called a fleet manager several times over a period of months and spoke to the manager responsible for fleet maintenance. They were responsible for managing over 150 pieces of equipment.
Every time we would call, he didn’t believe he needed fleet maintenance software. In our discussions, we learned that each time a piece of equipment was serviced or repaired, some basic information was entered into a spreadsheet; a date, a very basic and generalized description of the maintenance, and who requested it. If there was an invoice associated, it was forwarded to the AP department for payment. Most times, but not always, the fleet manager recorded the AP invoice number in the spreadsheet.
Then one day, we called at the exact moment the fleet manager was looking at the maintenance spreadsheet.
The fleet manager had been on vacation for 2 weeks and staff had been maintaining it in their absence. The diligence with which the staff had maintained the spreadsheet was far from what the fleet manager had expected. It was also part of the fleet manager’s job to report each week to the owner on fleet maintenance activities. Obviously, in returning from vacation, the owner was very anxious to get this update. Embarrassed and upset, the fleet manager had to report that what was recorded on the spreadsheets did not give a clear picture of what went on from a fleet maintenance perspective.
Naturally, the owner was not happy; nor was the fleet manager who now had to spend several hours digging into whatever paperwork was available, calling mechanics and drivers in an attempt to piece it all together. We monitored and followed their progress on this for weeks!
However, despite being super busy, the fleet manager took our call and the 15 minutes to go through the software. Within 2 minutes of seeing it, the fleet manager made the comment that if they were using Fleet Harmony, it would have made their job easy that day with no angry boss. Less than 24 hours later, they joined the Fleet Harmony family.
When we called to thank them for their business and to make arrangements to begin the setup, it was learned that through the night, one of their tractors blew an engine and the fleet manager had to once again spend hours digging into paperwork, spreadsheets, and their AP accounting system to determine if any symptoms were noted in past that could have played a role in the blown engine, and if warranty was applicable. The 6 hours that were spent doing research over 2 days could have been accomplished in less than 10 minutes with Fleet Harmony Cloud Fleet Management.
Fleet Harmony Cloud Fleet Management software can make your heavy equipment repair activities be transparent, accurate and consistent. It can save time and money and eliminate hours researching and auditing fleet maintenance, and repair issues that often involves multiple people and occur at the most inconvenient times. It can help your company stay in compliance with the DOT and your insurance company. And finally, because Fleet Harmony fleet maintenance software is accessible from anywhere over the Internet, the fleet manager could have just as easily dealt with a blown engine from Florida, and still enjoy Disney World with his family.
If this story sounds familiar, we would love to hear from you. Take control of your fleet and give us a call toll free at 1-844-527-6669. Don't forget to ask how our software design services can customize the software for you.
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