Delays in delivering products in any business are costly, more so when your forte is moving items from one place to another. Late deliveries caused by breakdowns, loss of fuel or unnoticed damage adds to your company’s expenses while subtracting from your potential profits, as you have to fix damaged trucks.
Dr Diesel agrees that most of the delays on your company’s end are preventable, with immediate repairs or regular maintenance of your fleet. The potential problems that might affect your fleet are avoidable, if you determine what they are.
Fuel Problems
There are ways to diagnose a fuel problem before it gets worse, but once your truck is on the road, it is difficult to fix, especially if the driver lacks the skills and experience to make repairs.
A truck may stop in the middle of the road with no repair shop or gas station in sight. Fuel problems stall a delivery and will keep a deliverable in transit longer than it should, leading to a delay and additional expenses for repair and towing.
Breakdowns in Transit
There are companies that push their fleet to its breaking point just to save money and maximise profits. Such practices lead to broken brakes, suspension, engines or other truck parts during a delivery.
These truck breakdowns delay the delivery process.For every minute that your truck is late, it creates a domino effect to other aspects of workflow, such as customer service, and inflow and outflow of other deliverables. If a truck is beyond repair, replace it with a new one to avoid future breakdowns.
Poorly Maintained Truck
A poorly maintained fleet vehicle is just as bad as having a broken one. These trucks saddle you with additional expenses because of frequent repairs and parts replacement. They also cause delays because of inefficiency and potential breakdowns on the road. Regular maintenance makes sure that your trucks are in top condition before they leave for a delivery.
Preventative measures, such as regular maintenance, replacement of old trucks and immediate repairs reduce the costly effects of delays on your delivery company.