As the world goes in and out of lockdown restrictions to support the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, the transportation and logistics industry has become a lifeline for many. For those self-isolating, home deliveries have made it possible to get the essential items they need while staying safe. For businesses that have had to close their premises, launching home delivery services has opened up new opportunities and a way to keep operations going.

This increase in demand is only one of the many new challenges facing organisations, though. In terms of fleet management, they also need to consider how to keep drivers and customers safe and how to maintain their vehicles and control fuel costs. This applies across a variety of businesses in different sectors, such as car rental and leasing, utilities and field maintenance companies, construction and retail.

Managing your fleet remotely

Digital fleet management solutions can help you keep on top of it all by giving you a complete view of the status of your vehicles at the click of a button.

This way you can control costs, reduce risk, improve productivity and ensure your fleets comply with the latest regulations, whether you’re operating cars, vans or lorries. Using connected devices combined with dedicated and customisable web portals lets businesses monitor and enhance safety through in-vehicle driver feedback. They can also increase the performance and security of their drivers and goods through location tracking and maintenance alerts.

Leveraging the last mile

When it comes to perishable items, such solutions offer visibility that goes much further than productivity and maintenance. It’s about quality control. A platform such as our cold chain solution allows businesses to control the temperature inside the van and even the exposure to light, making it ideal for transporting food and medicine.

Take for instance temperature-sensitive medicines, like some vaccines, which need to be kept at a particular temperature during transport. With cold chain, you can be confident of knowing whether the right temperature has been maintained throughout the journey and can react proactively in real time to fix any potential issues.

This also means you’re able to reduce spoilage far more effectively than when with traditional methods.

Customer experience

And let’s not forget the most important element in all of this – the customer.

With GPS location updates, you can support productivity and quality control, improving interactions with both your customers and employees. For example, the customer can be kept informed about their delivery, while anonymised data can provide traffic updates to drivers and suggest new, better routes. This keeps the customer happy and can, in turn, help reduce vehicle mileage and fuel consumption.

In the long term, businesses can also look at electric vehicles. As sustainability becomes an increasingly essential part of the business model, it’s time to ensure you’re playing your part and are ready for the future.

Learn more about how the digitisation of your fleet can help you and your business.

- Graziano Mangiarotti: Head of Product Management & Quality, Vodafone Automotive