Accounting for fuel and lubricants consumption is an important task for efficient fleet management and cost savings.
Various methods can be used to record fuel consumption. One of the most common methods is to keep a fuel log for each vehicle. This logbook records all refueling and fuel discharges, and calculates the fuel consumption per 100 km or per 1 hour of operation. It is also possible to use modern GPS/GLONASS systems of fuel consumption accounting, which are installed on vehicles. These systems allow you to track fuel consumption in real time, as well as receive information about the location of the vehicle and its movement.
Fuel and lubricants consumption in vehicle fleets can reach up to 60% of the total costs of companies. Therefore, it is very important for the management of enterprises to establish control over the movement of fuel
To account for fuel consumption it is necessary to use special software tools. They allow to automate the processes of accounting for fuel consumption, calculation of fuel consumption for each kilometer of travel, optimization of transport resources, etc. Also, these programs allow you to track fuel consumption on each vehicle, to identify inefficient fuel use and safety violations. Such programs allow to optimize fuel costs and thus save the company's money. Thus, when using an automatic fuel consumption accounting system, it is possible to quickly and effectively track and control fuel consumption on a given vehicle.
Every fleet owner wants to put fuel management in order. In the course of the company's work such problems arise as:
- Real consumption of fuel and lubricants exceeds the norms
- Drivers are draining fuel
- Cashing out money from fuel cards at gas stations
- Use of company vehicles for personal purposes
- Real consumption of fuel and lubricants exceeds the norms
- Drivers are draining fuel
- Cashing out money from fuel cards at gas stations
- Use of company vehicles for personal purposes
Telematic system of fuel metering control
Today telematic system is the most accurate tool for controlling the consumption of liquid petroleum products. For example, the program service MONTRANS.ONLINE round the clock in real time via GLONASS/GPS channels provides data on the volume of fuel in the tanks of each vehicle of the company. Digital fuel level sensors (FLS) have an error of up to 1%. Thus, the devices show the presence of gasoline or diesel fuel with an accuracy of 100-500 milliliters.
Dmitry Glukhov, Key Account Manager of MONTRANS Group of Companies: “FLS is one of the main elements of the satellite transportation monitoring system. Sensor readings are integrated into the automated fleet management program. MONTRANS.ONLINE today is the most effective way of fuel accounting at enterprises of any sphere of activity. Cloud service makes the movement of fuel in the fleet transparent, relieving the headache of the business owner. The monitoring service prevents attempts of draining and helps to reduce fuel purchase costs. Total savings can reach up to 30%”.
For example, Nova LLC is engaged in the construction of trunk pipelines and oil and gas field facilities. The company has a fleet of 1,600 vehicles. As a result of the introduction of the Fuel Balance module from MONTRANS into the company's management system, savings on fuel and lubricants exceeded 500 million rubles for the year.
In transportation companies that have their own filling stations, the installation of fuel metering systems (FMS) is relevant. This digital module has become the latest automatic system for dispensing and controlling fuel and lubricants. FMS collects, stores and transmits data on the full cycle of fuel movement in the fleet, starting with fuel shipment from the factory, subsequent transportation, discharge into stationary storage tanks, pumping into fuel tankers and dispensing of petroleum products to each unit of machinery. This approach completely eliminates the misuse of gasoline and diesel, as the FMS identifies the driver and the vehicle before refueling. The controller can be installed on any fuel storage tank. At the request of fleet management, a daily or shift limit of fuel dispensing can be defined for each vehicle. As a result, the driver will not be able to get more gasoline than the norm. The practice of using the fuel accounting controller shows that fuel and lubricants saving reaches up to 30%, and the controller itself pays for itself in 3 months.
The MONTRANS.ONLINE digital fuel accounting system also saves managers from paperwork and reduces the time required to process fuel consumption figures. As another plus - the data from the monitoring system are reliable and accurate, as the influence of human factor was excluded when receiving them. Modern software has changed the functionality of fleet departments, relieved specialists of routine work and increased the overall economic efficiency of companies.
Regardless of the method chosen, it is important to regularly analyze fuel consumption records and use this information to optimize fleet performance and reduce costs.