Fleet managers see it all. No matter the size of the trucking company, they are the ones creating the processes and procedures, fixing vehicles, and keeping trucks on the road. They do the job that ensures freight gets moved from one place to the next. They manage many thousands of trucks across the country.
Still, without a keen eye and proper accounting techniques, technicians can easily lose their way on keeping track of fleet maintenance data. Budget items might begin to run together, making it harder and harder to distinguish between budgeted maintenance costs and costs that came as the result of accidents and fleet abuse. This creates a struggle to isolate the sources of those unbudgeted, non-routine costs.
Fortunately, there are a lot of tools available designed to help fleet managers and technicians properly manage data and plan maintenance routines. Technicians know that a lot of their time is spent on things that aren’t considered routine maintenance. In many cases, they have no idea what the costs are, but they need to get a handle on them because they probably didn’t budget for those types of unexpected costs. Let’s dig deeper into how they can do that.
Where is Fleet Maintenance Data Located?
This is the point when many decide to implement a fleet management software system, which opens the door to a whole new world of maintenance data they couldn’t access before. This data allows technicians and managers to institute a pre-existing system of maintenance standards that they can use to categorize the fleet’s expenses (both planned and unplanned), streamline work orders for vehicle service, and better understand the overall health of the fleet’s assets and bottom line.
Even better, fleet management systems provide trucking companies with a way to better store, organize and act on the maintenance data that is constantly generated. With the combination of ELDs, telematics, and fleet management systems, trucking companies have more options than ever before to generate and act on pertinent data.
Managers and technicians from trucking companies big and small experience the pitfalls of data gaps in a fleet operation. In fact, many fleets have trouble effectively anticipating fleet costs and capturing valuable information from a vehicle service that could help them better prepare for future budgeting of time, money, and resources.
Luckily, there are a variety of solutions available to fleets looking to optimize their maintenance process and better utilize data to inform solutions. These systems are specifically designed to give fleet technicians better insight into their maintenance process. There are two primary structures for maintenance data — VMRS and Telematics. And fleet managers can combine the two to get a complete look at the maintenance costs and issues in their fleet. There are a lot of technologies available to make fleets better. Are you using them?
A Closer Look at Vehicle Maintenance Reporting Standards
Vehicle Maintenance Reporting Standards™️ (VMRS) is the standardized catalog of maintenance reporting. It is an established coding convention that provides a universal line of communication between fleet managers, technicians, OEMs, and those responsible for purchasing or maintaining equipment and more. Without it, the lines of communication between all levels of front-line techs, managers, and truck drivers would be far more blurred.
The VMRS system has been around since the ‘70s. All those many years ago, it was created by the ATA’s Technology and Maintenance Council and was first adopted by heavy-duty trucking fleets. Over time, however, its usage has expanded to include all classes of vehicles across multiple industries. New codes are being added all the time to support new innovations, like battery-electric powertrains.
But why is VMRS so important from a maintenance perspective? Well, it is important because it can be used as a maintenance predictor for your operation. Utilizing VMRS will keep everybody – from repair techs to accounting and management – on the same page about maintenance. And because it standardizes maintenance records, VMRS provides consistency across the fleet when integrated with a comprehensive and interoperable fleet management software system. In the end, the more consistent your fleet data is, the more accurate your reporting will be.
VMRS Provides Excellent Ease of Use
While VMRS has historically been used by large fleets, many small fleets and fleet managers in other industries are realizing the benefits of utilizing the VMRS system. The latest version, version 2.0, has been updated to include construction, transit, and off-highway industries, making the system even more accessible and inclusive to fleets of all sizes. Fleet managers across the country realize it is a much better way to standardize maintenance records. Implementing VMRS is an excellent way to ensure your maintenance records are consistent and scalable, even as you grow your fleet or replace existing vehicles.
Here are a few ways V M R S can positively impact your fleet. First, it is universal and easy to use. It was specifically designed for accuracy, efficiency, and effectiveness. It makes it simple to convey accurate information from mechanics to management, all the way up and down the employee line. And it can be easily integrated into a fleet management software for easy reporting.
Second, it’s cost effective. Fleets do not need to implement any fancy software systems or purchase licenses to use it. Because it already exists — and because many fleet management systems accommodate it — VMRS doesn’t require any significant investment to get started. It is very plug-and-play, regardless of what systems you currently use.
And because VMRS has been in continuous use for over 50 years, and is managed by the ATA, technicians won’t have to constantly research or update their analytics or reporting systems. It truly is a universal system designed with the end user in mind.
Save Both Money and Time
The good news for your back-office accounting department? The VMRS system is budget and accounting friendly. Technicians can use VRMS as a means for budget prep and forecasting. The data captured can be used to buttress decision making on technician staffing, inventory increases and other financial considerations, as well as helping mechanics plan for future resources on certain maintenance events to keep them as cost efficient as possible.
VMRS also provides a detailed record of past services. And it can be used to identify where your maintenance dollars are being spent. It can also be factored into any total cost of ownership (TCO) calculations you must make. The code structure also means that you have a consistent system for reporting that can be easily relayed to accounting.
Utilizing VMRS can improve performance across your entire fleet. How? Well, by using VMRS, fleet managers and technicians can shed light on many different areas of the operation, whether in maintenance or otherwise. In addition to maintenance data, VMRS insights can be used to support other areas of fleet management, like ensuring warranty adherence and keeping up with government reporting regulations and compliance.
The fleet maintenance data you gain using VMRS can help give you in-depth insights into things like predictive maintenance, route and schedule optimization, cargo capacity and placement optimization, truck driver coaching, and so much more. It can even be scaled based on the information you want to include or exclude. It is a very flexible system.
How Does the VMRS System Work?
VMRS utilizes an alphanumeric system and is designed to give you a quick, shorthand indication of what you need to know with as few characters as possible. This alphanumeric system is referred to as “Code Keys”.
Technicians have the option to string Code Keys together to achieve greater specificity. According to the ATA’s Technology & Maintenance Council, “VMRS can be used at any level, from total operating systems down to the individual part level. The level of coding used is entirely up to the user. No matter which level the user selects, the data collected can be compared directly to data collected by others at the same or higher VMRS coding level.”
On their own, the above codes offer very little information in the way of work performed or actual maintenance needs. Additional Code Keys indicate reasons for repair, work accomplished and more. These codes are especially useful for technicians, who can save time and more accurately report work orders, faults, and repairs. There are plenty of other codes for identification, such as asset vocation and body type, repair site, repair priority and more.
If you’re looking for a system that allows you to leverage your maintenance data in new and robust ways, consider utilizing a VMRS-based system. When you integrate telematics devices with the ease of use of VMRS, you get unparalleled insight into your fleet that spreadsheets alone can’t accomplish.