Technology, Schmecknology
If these statistics are right, too many fleets are still in the Dark Ages.
DOUG CONDRA
EDITORIAL DIRECTOR/PUBLISHER
How many times have we heard it: Technology represents change for the better. Technology leads the trucking industry's rush to ultimate efficiency. Technology rules the world.
Maybe so. But it sure looks like this emperor needs some clothes.
Consider the results of a Georgia Tech survey of motor carrier costs, and planning and operating methods. It found that the majority of fleets—both large and small—still plan their routing and loading manually "with very limited use of available information and decision technologies."
The survey found that over half the fleets use manual processes for route planning (72%), dispatching (65%) and tracking (61%).
And the shortfall doesn't just apply to logistics. Maintenance consultant Charles Arsenault says 79% of carriers do not use basic maintenance management software. Most keep their records on file cards; some keep no records at all.
In the Georgia Tech survey, carriers ranked customer service and route efficiency/cost savings as their number one and two most important planning issues. Two-thirds of them said better logistics planning would save them from 6% to 30% in costs, and acknowledged that software represents the best method of improvement.
Pretty ironic. All those carriers actually recognize the fact that information technology could substantially reduce their costs and improve their service. But they aren't using it.
Harvey Donaldson, director of Georgia Tech's Logistics Institute, concludes: "They are reluctant to adopt available technologies because of concerns about the associated costs and complexity."
Arsenault says in the maintenance area, the average fleet takes 94 days to make a software installation decision, and in 80% of the cases no action is taken. I wouldn't be surprised if those numbers applied to logistics, too.
Does initial cost really play that big a role in these non-decisions? After all, used right, the stuff will probably more than pay for itself.
Fear of the unknown raises its ugly head here, and is probably a bigger reason fleet execs shy away from taking the IT plunge. But it doesn't have to be that way.
As a manager, you don't have to be a techno-weenie too. Nobody should expect you to understand everything about every program. You hire people for that.
If you're IT-shy, there's plenty of information available to bring you up to speed on the programs that could help you in all aspects of your operation. Our monthly IT Solutions section (page 68) is a good place to start.
Anything that can improve your service and cut your costs by up to 30% deserves a look.
