{"id":4870,"date":"2020-03-31T16:46:01","date_gmt":"2020-03-31T14:46:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/?p=4870"},"modified":"2020-03-31T16:46:01","modified_gmt":"2020-03-31T14:46:01","slug":"10-takeaways-from-the-coronavirus-fleets-roundtable","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/2020\/03\/31\/10-takeaways-from-the-coronavirus-fleets-roundtable\/","title":{"rendered":"10 Takeaways from the Coronavirus & Fleets Roundtable"},"content":{"rendered":"

10 Takeaways from the Coronavirus & Fleets Roundtable<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n
\n

On March 23, Government Fleet<\/em> hosted a roundtable for public sector fleet managers to discuss the coronavirus. About 10 public fleet professionals from various states gathered to talk about changes to their operation and to learn from each other. Here are some takeaways from the discussion:<\/span><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. \n
    Make your own cleaners.<\/strong><\/span><\/h5>\n

    Cleaners and disinfectants are in short supply, and fleet managers wanting to keep their employees safe have resorted to making their own. These include bleach with water, peroxide, and a 70% isopropyl alcohol and water solution. One fleet purchased sprayers to disinfect vehicles with this alcohol solution \u2014 although a disinfectant company is on hand to take over biohazard cleaning in case a driver tests positive for the virus. When diluting alcohol, check to see what the solution is beforehand to make sure you end up with a 70% solution. Also, make sure these cleaners, as well as those used by anxious drivers, are safe for vehicles \u2014 ammonia-based cleaners can damage the displays on in-vehicle terminals. Another fleet is offering cleaning supplies to all fleet drivers to come and pick up. And whether it\u2019s the driver or a technician cleaning out vehicles after use, make sure that person knows the procedures and is protected as well.<\/span><\/li>\n

  2. \n
    Consider UV lights for decontamination<\/strong>.<\/span><\/h5>\n

    UV lights are used in ambulances to decontaminate the vehicle, and fleet managers can consider these for decontaminating other vehicles as well.<\/span><\/li>\n

  3. \n
    Stock up on parts.<\/strong><\/span><\/h5>\n

    Make sure your parts room is full of commonly used parts. One fleet manager was notified that a bus manufacturer had shut down and parts would be limited \u2014 if those are no\u00a0longer being delivered, unrepaired buses might end up being parked. It may be harder to get parts for older, specialty vehicles as companies temporarily shut down. Stock up on tires as well, as some tire manufacturers have also closed. Unfortunately, fleet managers will have to make an educated guess as to what parts to stockpile.<\/span><\/li>\n

  4. \n
    Have staff members work on certifications while at home.<\/strong><\/span><\/h5>\n

    After staff members prepared vehicles for use, one fleet manager sent his crews home to study for their certifications, including ASE and CAFM certifications. Each staff member is expected to provide certificates of course completion to justify their paid time. In the meantime, there are additional pool cars to be checked out in the event of wrecks and if vehicles are taken out of service. Preventive maintenance was delayed for the rest of the fleet during this time, and the fleet manager is in to fix vehicles in need of repair.<\/span><\/li>\n

  5. \n
    Reduce your motor pool size<\/strong>.<\/span><\/h5>\n

    The fewer vehicles in rotation, the better. Encourage drivers to use their personal vehicles;\u00a0work-from-home policies and teleconferences should make this easier to do.<\/span><\/li>\n

  6. \n
    Talk to other fleet managers for resources and to vet companies. <\/strong><\/span><\/h5>\n

    Have good contracts in place for sourcing supplies and equipment. Know that it may take longer to get certain supplies than usual. And if using a new vendor, make sure the company is legitimate before ordering anything \u2014 work with your procurement teams to ensure that products meet the agency\u2019s standards and specifications. Talk to other fleet managers about reputable vendors and consider sharing resources or even parts with local government fleets if possible.<\/span><\/li>\n

  7. \n
    Your cleaning company may not have a COVID-19 virus protocol<\/strong>.<\/span><\/h5>\n

    One fleet manager said that while his agency uses a specific company for biohazard cleanup, this company won\u2019t come if it\u2019s for a coronavirus-related cleanup because it doesn\u2019t have the protocols to handle it. Until the company figures this out, any vehicles suspected of contamination are parked and quarantined.\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n

  8. \n
    Practice social distancing at work.<\/strong><\/span><\/h5>\n

    Make sure that employees keep six feet between each other on the shop floor, which may not be difficult if technicians stay in their own work bays. Employees can wear gloves and are encouraged to wipe down shared workstations, and one fleet operation is asking for a doctor\u2019s note before employees can return to work after a sickness. However, take into consideration that HIPPA Privacy Rules prevent supervisors from divulging medical information about employees; talk to Human Resources about what you can and can\u2019t say about an employee who might have the virus.<\/span><\/li>\n

  9. \n
    Protect drivers at fuel sites too.<\/strong><\/span><\/h5>\n

    While fleet managers are understandably concerned about vehicle contamination, they should also consider contamination at fuel sites, where everyone is touching dispensers and displays. Fleet managers can consider issuing gloves \u2014 both latex and non-latex \u2014 or encourage drivers to use paper towels when touching dispensers.<\/span><\/li>\n

  10. \n
    No concerns about fuel supply yet.<\/strong><\/span><\/h5>\n

    Refineries and fuel providers are considered essential or critical, according to the Department of Homeland Security, so fleet managers probably do not need to worry about fuel supply. Additionally, lower utilization means fleet operations are going through less fuel now. However, one fleet manager was concerned that alternative fuels such as ethanol, renewable diesel, and biodiesel may be tough to get.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/div>\n

    \n

    Author<\/h4>\n
    \n
    \"Thi<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
    \n
    \n
    Thi Dao<\/a><\/h5>\n

    Executive Editor<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

    \n

    Thi is the executive editor of Government Fleet magazine. She is interested in maintenance management and alternative fuels.<\/p>\n

    View Bio<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

     <\/p>\n

    Source:\u00a0 https:\/\/www.government-fleet.com<\/a><\/p>\n

    FLEET MANAGEMENT AUDIT<\/strong><\/h3>\n

    Fleet management is the use of a set of vehicles in order to provide services to a third-party, or to perform a task for our organization, in the most efficient and productive manner with a determined level of service and cost.<\/p>\n

    Fleet management activities are shown in the following graph 1:<\/p>\n

    \"fleet<\/p>\n

    Graph 1: fleet management activities<\/p>\n

    The proposal audit analyses and assesses all fleet management activities shown in the graph 1, and its main goals are:<\/p>\n

      \n
    • Know the overall status of the fleet management activities<\/li>\n
    • Provide the analysis, the assessment, the advice, the suggestions and the actions to take in order to cut costs and increase the efficiency and efficacy of the fleet management\u00a0 activities<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

      With the information obtained, we\u2019ll elaborate a report that holds the overall status of the fleet management as well as the suggestions, recommendations and the measures to take in order to cut costs and optimize the fleet management activities.<\/p>\n

      CLICK ON THE FOLLOWING LINK TO DOWNLOAD THE PROPOSED FLEET MANAGEMENT AUDIT:<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

      10 Takeaways from the Coronavirus & Fleets Roundtable On March 23, Government Fleet hosted a roundtable for public sector fleet managers to discuss the coronavirus. About 10 public fleet professionals from various states gathered to talk about changes to their operation and to learn from each other. Here are some takeaways from the discussion: Make…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":4871,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[18],"tags":[302],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4870"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4870"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4870\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4872,"href":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4870\/revisions\/4872"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4871"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4870"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4870"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4870"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}