Knowing that something is wrong, you quickly check the fleet management overview. Yes, there it is: On a critical project with tight deadlines, your excavator has stopped working. To stay on schedule, it needs to be up and running immediately. You dig into the machine log to check what is wrong and scroll through the chat between the service technician and the operator. Even though the breakdown is a setback, it looks as if they have things under control. You take a deep breath and get another cup of coffee.

Whether you are a fleet manager or a site manager, your job is to streamline the execution of projects, prevent delays and downtime and make sure operators, machines and materials are available.

Soeren Brogaard, CCO, Trackunit

Say Goodbye to Spreadsheets

Whether you are a fleet manager or a site manager, your job is to streamline the execution of projects, prevent delays and downtime and make sure operators, machines and materials are available. Using new digital tools instead of numerous spreadsheets in various versions, the analysis part has become much easier. This leaves the fleet or site manager with the responsibility of staying updated and making decisions based on this insight. McKinsey Global Institute has researched exactly on this topic and published „Reinventing Construction: A route to higher productivity.” The report states: „In the future, new forms of digital collaboration, notably the Internet of Things (IoT) and advanced analysis, will combine to enable tracking of equipment and materials and therefore greater transparency.”

The report supports the fact that in recent years, fleet management has changed from a hands-on approach to an overview management style with the ability to predict and prevent issues – and to make the right decisions based on data, not on a gut feeling.

Say Hello to Better Management

Likewise the „Digitalising the Construction Sector“ report from Committee For European Construction Equipment suggests „… the increased ability to collect, analyze, integrate and use data derived from several sources (i.e. geographic information systems, cyber-physical systems on construction equipment, weather data, drone aerial photography systems, mobile devices and tablets) contributes to a higher level of transparency between actors thus leading to a substantial improvement in the management of construction sites thanks to closer collaboration.“

The ability to collect and analyze data from several sources provides a better foundation for good decisions – and also paves the way for better management of work sites. The same report looks at new business models based on the value of data. These business models are about new and improved services, increased abilities to fulfill customers‘ expectations, and new forms of collaboration for mutual benefit – coming from digital solutions based on facts and data.

… the increased ability to collect, analyze, integrate and use data derived from several sources … contributes to a higher level of transparency between actors thus leading to a substantial improvement in the management of construction sites thanks to closer collaboration.

The „Digitalising the Construction Sector“ report from CECE

For a fleet manager, the keyword is „analysis.“ Not exactly the analysis itself but the ability to see complex correlations and their implications presented operationally, providing a solid foundation for strategic and everyday decisions. This is where digital fleet management makes sense – and profit.

Transparency – not complexity – is a key enabler for a new digital era in construction.