Lift Truck Tips: Prevent maintenance costs with cost avoidance

As the tools to collect and act on fleet maintenance data improve, it seems fair to suggest a given fleet could probably cost less than it does. But, where to start? Will the most savings be found in aging equipment, batteries, impacts and abuse, planned maintenance practices or parts?

“From a customer’s perspective, the biggest bang for the buck is avoidable damage, but another fast-growing area is cost avoidance,” says Bob McGowan, fleet operations manager for Yale Materials Handling. “An example of the difference is any time a service call can be avoided.”

For example, say a service call is entered because a lift truck won’t start. Before the technician arrives, someone else finds that the battery is dead, and it simply needs to be plugged in. “But nobody cancels the call,” McGowan says. “That’s a huge waste of money. We handle about 300,000 calls a year, and anywhere from 8% to 10% of those are avoidable calls.”

To address the problem, McGowan recommends establishing a simple procedure for service calls. An operation might put controls on who is authorized to place a service call, but at the very least McGowan suggests the person who calls should be the person who has already diagnosed the problem. In the event of a quick fix like a new propane tank, the call can be avoided altogether. In addition, the caller should be prepared to provide as much information as they can before a technician is dispatched.

“Say you have a leak,” McGowan says. “The color of the fluid helps the technician identify whether it is oil, hydraulic fluid or coolant. Also, where is the leaking hose? On the mast or underneath? The technician can then bring the right tools and parts to fix it the first time.”

McGowan advises against becoming overly reliant on telematic solutions, which can’t monitor all costs. “Maybe it can automatically enter a service call, and there are plenty of good benefits to that. But, if you look at the components that collect the data, almost all have a wire connected to it. What about hydraulics, mast operation, tire wear, and all the other things not related to what telemetry is measuring?”

In terms of avoidable damage, measuring is only half the battle. The root cause could be the driver, the environment, floors, the warehouse design, a dock plate or other equipment. Customers need to look at avoidable damage, find the problem and find a resolution for the long term, McGowan says. Telemetry can play a big role, he suggests, by pinpointing when, where and who was driving. That data can then be used to educate and empower the driver.

“In the past, the first shift would come in to find a damaged lift truck and second shift would say they didn’t do it,” McGowan says. “If you have high turnover and spend lots on training already, you might accept some avoidable damage if there are no safety concerns and you know it would cost more to implement an enhanced training program. But you need to know the amount, cause and cost of that damage before you can make that decision.”

McGowan suggests many service providers have the records needed to extract the relevant data, and it does not require any large investment to get that information.

Read more Lift Truck Tips columns.