If your work or business involves mobile assets you should READ THIS.
I’ve owned and operated mobile assets – cars, trucks, machinery. And both of us know there’s one inescapable reality they have in common:
Fuel.
I know… It’s the one expense you ALWAYS want to be cheaper. But it’s never cheap enough, even if you bulk-buy it. And even if you run just a handful of vehicles or machines.
Here’s something I want to share with you. It’s an observation I made some years ago:
The FUEL line-item in most company spreadsheets does a funny thing.
This funny thing affects financial controllers, company directors, and procurement managers. It also affected me. And it’s this:
FUEL makes them look at their other expenses to find cost savings.
Why?
Because they think there isn’t much they can do about the cost of fuel.
I shared this belief, too. But I was wrong.
There is.
And step one is to reframe your approach to it.
You might not be able to buy your fuel any cheaper – but you can use the data it produces to find savings.
This was a revelation for me. And, as always, the answer was in the data.
If you capture and record these figures…
– The distance your company vehicles travel
– The hours your machinery run
– Where you purchase your fuel
– Who operates your vehicles and machinery
– And a few others
… then you have the groundwork to SAVE A LOT OF MONEY.
You see, the rate your organisation uses fuel is determined by these example factors (there are more). And each of them sparks some important questions you NEED to ask:
– The size of the vehicle or machine: Is it too big? Too small?
– The type of fuel it uses: Is it low-octane petrol? High-octane petrol? Diesel? LPG? Electric?
– How it’s operated: Have the operators been trained in its correct use? Is your machinery suffering from rough usage? Have your heavy truck fleet drivers been trained in optimal driving techniques?
– When it’s operated: Is it being used outside of work hours – when it shouldn’t be?
– Why it’s operated: Did your crew NEED to use a backhoe when a trench digger on a half-day rental would have been cheaper and quicker?
It all comes down to data from questions like these. I want to help you – and I implore you to ask these questions.
What’s more, if you record some basic usage details it won’t take long for this to emerge:
Your fuel-saving story.
My clients find these savings every day – and for some of them they run to six figures, and more. Helping them plug these cash holes brings me joy.
But don’t fall for this trap:
Years of experience have shown me that buying smaller machines, cheaper tools, or larger or smaller vehicles won’t fix your fuel cost issues. They create new problems. Expensive problems.
And I don’t want you to trip over that wire.
Because running businesses and plant operations can be stressful enough.
Your fuel savings are already on the table. You should be pocketing them. And you can grab them with your data.
Just get in touch with me. I can show you how to use your data to get the Return on Investment (ROI) you need. After all, every fuel-saving advantage should convert to cash, not gas.
See you next week for a new topic: maintenance.
Stay safe.
Grant Andrews
Managing Director
Uniqco
