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Mobile maintenance services are part of a growing trend for fleets with high utilization to maximize uptime. The Slick mobile service provides oil changes, tire rotations, fuel, and vehicle cleaning 24 hours a day and doesn\u2019t need much space to do the job. Photo via Flick Bros.<\/em><\/p>\n After losing a truck to engine failure\u00a0when\u00a0its\u00a0fleet\u00a0driver\u00a0didn\u2019t stay\u00a0up-to-date on oil changes,\u00a0Fick Bros.\u00a0started looking into other options\u00a0to keep up\u00a0on\u00a0regular\u00a0vehicle maintenance.<\/p>\n \u201cTrying to manage the fleet and manage maintenance is challenging when you have so many variables,\u201d says\u00a0Dan\u00a0Williams, production manager for Fick Bros., a roofing and exterior remodeling company. \u201cSome trucks stay in the shop at night and other trucks are taken home by drivers.\u201d<\/p>\n Maintaining the vehicles required some effort from drivers. \u201cWe relied on them to take the fleet vehicles to a Jiffy Lube or other service locations\u00a0to get the oil changed and tires rotated, but they weren\u2019t always doing it regularly,\u201d says Williams.<\/p>\n And when the drivers did remember,\u00a0the task\u00a0took\u00a0valuable\u00a0time out of their workday.<\/p>\n Located in Baltimore, Fick Bros. runs a fleet of 13 to 15 vehicles, including cargo vans, pickup trucks, and two-ton dump trucks. Currently, the company\u00a0leases some vehicles from Enterprise Fleet Management and\u00a0purchases one to two new vehicles per year.<\/p>\n Founded in 2017, Slick is a mobile service platform that\u00a0provides\u00a0oil changes, tire rotations, fuel,\u00a0and vehicle cleaning 24 hours a day \u2014 at the customer\u2019s location of choice.<\/p>\n \u201cOur mobile platform connects our maintenance technicians to the end user; it\u2019s like Uber for oil changes,\u201d says Joe Manzari, founder and CEO of Slick, who says while most\u00a0clients are traditional\u00a0commercial\u00a0fleets,\u00a0though\u00a0the company is\u00a0also\u00a0starting\u00a0to\u00a0work with\u00a0ridesharing fleets.\u00a0\u201cRidesharing is based on utilization, and we can get to them quickly for maintenance and cleaning.\u201d<\/p>\n Each of Slick\u2019s\u00a0Chevy Express\u00a0vans are stocked with\u00a0equipment\u00a0for\u00a0oil changes, specialized vacuums for cleaning, and a tire lab with a wheel balancer for rotating tires; the company doesn\u2019t need extra trailers to pull its equipment.<\/p>\n \u201cOur customized vans\u00a0allow us to be more nimble,\u201d says Manzari. \u201cWe can work on vehicles on the side of a road, at a client\u2019s work site,\u00a0or in a parking garage.\u201d<\/p>\n Slick\u00a0follows green principles for each of its services.\u00a0For maintenance, the company has\u00a0a proprietary oil handling system inside its vans that allows technicians to dispense and extract oil without risking a spill. Slick recycles all used oil and filters.<\/p>\n By using Slick for oil changes, fluid top offs, and tire rotations, Fick Bros. is now able to get its vehicles serviced on-site during staff meetings.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s been very convenient\u00a0having Slick technicians come to our office while our drivers are in all-day meetings twice a month,\u201d says Williams. \u201cSlick does a preventive multi-point inspection on our vehicles\u00a0and\u00a0provides us with\u00a0a report of what needs to be repaired. Dropping off the vehicles at a repair shop increased\u00a0our\u00a0vehicle downtime, which is hard for a small fleet\u00a0like us.\u201d<\/p>\n Williams uses vehicle diagnostics information from the vehicles\u2019 telematic system to schedule maintenance.\u00a0Through Slick\u2019s app, Williams enters each vehicle\u2019s number and the date to schedule the services.\u00a0On\u00a0the scheduled date,\u00a0Slick\u00a0technicians\u00a0arrive\u00a0by\u00a06:30 a.m.<\/p>\n Additionally, Slick\u2019s prices are reasonable and\u00a0equivalent\u00a0to going to Jiffy Lube, according to Williams.<\/p>\n \u201cFrom a pricing standpoint, we aren’t really paying a premium (over a service shop),\u201d he says. \u201cPlus, you aren’t paying for the driver to take the truck and wait for it.\u201d<\/p>\n by Amy Hercher<\/a><\/p>\nUber for Oil Changes: How Mobile Maintenance Reduces Downtime<\/h3>\n
Maintenance\u00a0On-Demand<\/h4>\n
Reduced Downtime<\/h4>\n
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