On top of that, some 26% of the 700 transportation executives and managers polled by Fleet Advantage – with 45% of them operations comprised of 200 or more tractors – said that data analysis is lowering their operating costs by $4,000 annually per truck.
“The movement toward comprehensive business intelligence speaks volumes about this industry’s thirst to truly leverage and maximize the technologically advanced trucks on the roads today,” noted Jim Griffin, Fleet Advantage’s chief technical officer in a statement.
“It’s notable that we’ve evolved from focusing on routes almost entirely to now analyzing every facet of truck performance to identify where improvements can be made for the bottom line,” he added.
Other findings from the firm’s survey include:
- Some 80% of fleet executives now say they analyze a variety of truck performance data, using metrics such as: idling and time in gears; tapping into engine ECM data; plus accessing routing and logistics information.
- Some 25% of those polled said the most impact from data analysis so far has been on managing fuel costs.
- Another 19% of those surveyed also point to service and maintenance and driver behavior improvements as key areas now being impacted by data analysis.
- In the next five years, 87% of those fleet professionals expect data analytics to play a key role in managing fuel costs and truck performance, or feel data will drive their entire business operations in all areas.
