There is a direct correlation between procuring replacement parts and managing downtime. Far too often shop technicians or managers do not properly strategize how and when they receive replacement parts. The fact is this: A well-managed parts inventory can go a long way in helping your fleet prevent downtime and save money. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
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Because the first thing any fleet manager or shop technician\nwill tell you is that when you have a truck out of service and do not have the\nparts available to fix it, it can be very frustrating. You need to make sure\nyou are properly maintaining your parts inventory and planning properly for\npreventative maintenance. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Utilize Proper Coding<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Parts availability is a critical factor in an efficient\nservice value chain. It really is the only way to effectively prevent delays\nand unnecessary downtime. Because when it comes to your parts inventory, it\nreally is all about having the right part at the right time. If your fleet has\na good parts vendor who gets you parts when you need them, that\u2019s great. But\nnot all fleets have that kind of access to a parts vendor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Vehicle maintenance reporting and coding represents a great\nway to identify which parts you need to keep in your inventory and which parts\nare needed on an as-is basis. By using a comprehensive coding system, you can\ntrack the parts you need and understand the trends driving your parts usage. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Establishing a universal coding system will allow you to\nbetter track which parts you are using the most as well as which parts you have\ntoo much of. And considering many OEMs, industry suppliers, and computers all\nuse codes to track items in their databases, using them to keep track of your\nparts inventory is a logical solution. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Your best bet is to go with what is provided in the ATA\u2019s Technology & Maintenance Council handbook, otherwise known as VMRS codes.<\/a> Considering everyone else uses VMRS coding, implementing the TMC codes at your shop certainly would not do harm. In the end, utilizing a coding system is about staying organized. If you don\u2019t want to get caught with excessive downtime because your parts flow is out of whack, expect a lot more calls from the front office. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Future Tech and Parts Inventory<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Nearly every aspect of the trucking industry has been transformed through technology. Trucking companies now have more options than ever before. Whether you want to decrease the amounts of crashes or downtime that occurs on your watch, advanced technological solutions have been in the market for quite a long time. From QR codes to smartphone apps, you can track your parts inventory in ways never imaginable even ten years ago. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Many parts vendors have set up or are working on Android and iOS apps so that shop technicians or managers can conveniently track their parts inventory from the palm of their hand. Whether the shop process uses a list by bin, part number range, or specific part type, generally these software systems are modular and can be highly customized. In some cases, you can set up filters and parts inventory trees to better keep track of quantity variances and uncounted or missing parts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n [wp_ad_camp_2] <\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n If you are already using a fleet management or telematics\nsolution, you may want to inquire with your vendor to see if they have a parts\nmanagement add-on available. If so, you can conveniently integrate it with your\ncurrent system without suffering from interoperability problems. If your\ncurrent system does not offer an inventory management solution, it may be to\nyour benefit to upgrade to another system so that you don\u2019t have problems\nintegrating your processes over the long term. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Trends on system and component service life and failures\nbased on telematics data can be used to determine upcoming parts needs. And\nwhen you know that a vehicle or group of vehicles or other assets or equipment\nwas all placed into service at the same time, you\u2019ll operate more efficiently\nand cost effectively. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Analyze Your Service Events Record<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Ask just about any fleet manager out there and they will likely\nbe able to tell you down to the last dollar what they spend on maintenance or\nrepairs. Yet far too often they do not make the correlation between service\nevents and parts availability. The best way to plan for your future parts needs\nis to take a dive into your shop repair histories so that you can get a bird\u2019s\neye view into how the fleet spends money. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Allocating funds properly for the fleet is not easy when you\nhave a shop, back office, truck drivers, and operations to manage. Fortunately,\nif you properly size your parts inventory, you won\u2019t have to worry about\nguessing whether you are allocating funds properly. When you take the guesswork\nout of budget allocation, costs will drop, and money will be spent more\neffectively.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Using event reports will help you determine if you need to\nboost inventory for certain parts categories, order special equipment, budget\nfor extra technicians, or add to the training budget based on the types of\nrepairs being done. And if you are using an integrated system, all this\ninformation can be combined with other department budgets to get a holistic\nview of fleet operations. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Get Help from Your Parts Suppliers<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Don\u2019t ever be too shy to rely on your parts suppliers to\nmake sure you have the right inventory. Your vendors can help you quite a bit\nmore than you realize. A good parts supplier can use information on past parts\npurchases to predict future parts needs and make recommendations on stocking\nlevels. Bar codes can facilitate the parts management process and give parts\nsuppliers better information on which parts are moving and which aren\u2019t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When you work with a reliable distributor, they have people\non staff whose sole purpose it is to help fleets create effective solutions for\ntheir inventory supply chain. By taking advantage of their knowledge, you can\nlearn what combination of parts will give you better results, longer\ndurability, or faster response times. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Parts vendors are also well versed on how to find value for\nthe fleets they work for. Remember, managing your inventory properly isn\u2019t\nabout just finding the cheapest part. The right parts supplier is an important\nelement to good inventory management strategy. They should go out of their way\nto advise fleets on what to look for and when. <\/p>\n\n\n\n When you are on the lookout for a new parts supplier, look\nfor distributors whose counter staff is knowledgeable and experienced. In\naddition, the distributor should be able to tell the fleet if the part is in\nstock and how long it will take to arrive at the fleet\u2019s location once it is\npurchased.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The key is to not get caught up trying to source parts from\nall over the place just to save a quick buck. If you want to play the game of\npricing everything out and sourcing from five different places, in the end you\nmay end up with more downtime than you reckoned for. This is the type of\nsituation that will hit your bottom line. Even though you are winning the price\nbattle on sourcing parts, you are going to lose money on the time it takes you\nto fix trucks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The most important aspect of ensuring your parts supply\nchain stays sound is to ensure you have nurtured a solid relationship with a\nreliable and dependable distributor and the network they use. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Work Together and Integrate Processes<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Fleets should also look at ways to integrate their systems\nmore tightly with those of their primary parts suppliers. When you come\ntogether, the parts get to you quicker, easier, and you save more money in the\nlong run. Whether it is tying the systems together electronically or\ncollaborating with the distributor to make the transfer of parts more fluid,\nthese kinds of collaborations only help you both over the long run. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Have you heard of the vendor-managed inventory system? Vendor-managed inventory, or VMI, is one form of collaboration among trucking companies and their parts suppliers. VMI has been successful between manufacturers and distributors and dealers and has allowed them to improve fill rates to customers. In the modern age<\/a>, there is no reason why trucking companies and their parts suppliers cannot integrate closely with each other. <\/p>\n\n\n\n [wp_ad_camp_2] <\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n In the end, the most important thing is the data and information you generate. Trucking companies<\/a> must maintain quality data in terms of parts numbers and VMRS codes. You must diligently stay on top of ensuring the information you generate is accurate, because ultimately without good data, all the benefits of analytics is lost.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"