Back in April 2020, the trucking industry suffered a staggering 8 ,000 job losses due to the ill impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite such a devastating setback, industry players from the ground up tried to get up to their feet and continue operations to avoid crippling the critical supply chain that includes food, medicine, and other things that are needed to help the U.S. economy survive. Adding the fact that truck drivers and other trucking company personnel had to place national interest over their safety and such a gesture becomes nothing short of heroic.
This act of selflessness ultimately led to the U.S. economy gradually bouncing back from the shocking effects of the pandemic. To date, the trucking industry continues to be among the most resilient industries amid the ongoing crisis.
If your company managed to stay operational this far and you’re now planning to expand operations to recover whatever losses you might have incurred, here are seven wise investments that you have to make:
Full-fleet GPS trackers.
While you may have some of your trucks fitted with a Global Positioning System (GPS) device, your entire fleet must get fitted with this technology. Aside from letting you know exactly where your drivers go when they’re transporting cargoes, you’ll also have ready access to critical data that can help you improve workforce management, driver safety, and customer service. You’ll also enjoy significantly lower operational and payroll costs, as well as reduce downtime.
These perks make investing in full-fleet GPS trackers a must for trucking company owners who wish to take their business to greater heights.
Heavy-duty scales.
If your company is heavily reliant on ensuring the accurate weight of transported cargoes, then you must invest in industrial truck scales to achieve just that. Specifically, your truck scales should be fully-compliant with National Type Evaluation Program (NTEP) regulations to guarantee their optimum performance in terms of reliability and accuracy. Some manufacturers sell such NTEP-compliant scales, so be sure to only get yours from them if you wish to get your money’s worth.
Insurance policies.
If you want to expand operations without worrying about financial and legal liabilities should things go south, you must invest in insurance policies for all of your trucks and drivers. Keep in mind that both elements are constantly exposed to all kinds of hazards while on the road, and with a lot of moving parts in the equation, there are plenty of things that could go wrong. With proper and adequate insurance coverage for both vehicles and drivers, you’ll have safety nets in case an accident happened during any of the trips.
Fleet management software.
If you want to improve efficiency with the way you manage your entire fleet of trucks, you should get dedicated fleet management software to help you stay on top of all operational aspects. This special software will give you several benefits, including improved driver safety and vehicle maintenance, lower fuel usage, real-time vehicle tracking, and better efficiency with great cost-cutting due to custom reports. Additionally, this powerful tool will help you satisfy customers better and improve route planning to reduce gas consumption and beat delivery deadlines better.
Accounting suite.
Running a large-scale trucking operations poses wide-ranging bookkeeping challenges that can easily overwhelm any fleet manager or company owner. As such, you should invest in an accounting suite that will help you stay on top of your financial transactions. While your accountant can also do such on your behalf, it’s better to still invest in an accounting suite for ready use when your accountant is not easily reachable.
Fleet fuel cards.
Fuel cards for your entire fleet of trucks? Yes.
Fuel cards not only give you loyalty points that you can use as cash for future gas ups, but they also provide great discounts on lubricants, maintenance services, and the like. Not only that, but you’ll also have access to regular reports on your fleet’s gas transactions for better tracking and decision-making. In short, they’re generally a wise investment to make, especially if you have a large fleet running regularly.
In-house or on-call mechanics.
Your company should never operate without dedicated truck mechanics who can be sprung into action at a moment’s notice. You can either have on-call mechanics for troubleshooting or employ them and house them in your fleet garage for proper truck maintenance. Whichever you think will work best for you, the bottom line is to have such skilled workers to guarantee that your entire fleet is road-worthy during each trip.
These seven investments will surely help you manage your trucking business better and allow it to grow operationally to bring in better profits for your company.
