Reconciling your fuel usage is mission-critical, if you’re in the fueling or transportation business. Fuel costs represent such a significant percentage of your budget, you literally cannot afford to have even small amounts go astray. And if they do, you need to know why, so you can take corrective measures. A fuel management system can help you perform fuel reconciliation, to protect your bottom line and your peace of mind.
Reconciliation that relies on manually-collected data can be incomplete or just plain wrong. That leaves you wide open to misinterpretation that could negatively impact your budgeting and day-to-day management. The time you spend is wasted if you don’t have complete, accurate information to work with.
An automated fuel management system enables you to collect detailed data such as odometer and chronometer readings consistently, reliably and accurately, putting the information you need to evaluate fuel usage right at your fingertips. And that puts you in control of your fuel assets.
When you add Syn-Tech’s FuelMaster Automotive Information Modules, or AIM2, the fueling process becomes completely hands-free. AIM2 uses RFID-based nozzle-to-vehicle communication that initiates the fueling and information-gathering process upon contact and halts the process if the contact is broken. That eliminates the possibility of mistaken dispensing or theft, so you have even fewer reconciliation issues.
Fuel-specific statistics and other reporting data are collected automatically and uploaded in real time, during each dispensing event. You can capture information such as:
- Vehicle ID
- Authorized fuel type
- Quantity limitations
- Run and idle times
- Engine error codes
- Service hours to date and hours or miles to next scheduled maintenance
- Travel direction
- Fueling site ID
Automation ensures consistency, accuracy and completeness that make reconciliation a snap. It also saves time for busy drivers, and eliminates administrative time re-entering data, trying to read illegible handwriting or carbon copies or tracking down and correcting mistakes.
You always know what’s happening with your fuel, instead of wondering where it’s going and what that’s costing you. Real time visibility gives a huge boost to your operation’s overall performance, enabling you to stay on schedule with maintenance and detect impending mechanical or other problems early. Averting problems before they crop up saves on unnecessary repairs, wasted time, etc.
A fuel management system is more than a reconciliation tool.
A fuel management system helps you do exactly what the name implies. It’s equally valuable whether your operation includes one fueling location or many, a few vehicles or a large fleet. Whether you’re public or private. Whether you’re fueling cars, trucks, boats, buses or aircraft. Reliable reconciliation is just one way it helps your operation be more productive and more profitable.
The more you know, the better you can manage your fueling operation. Using a fuel management system puts you in the know. And it can save you money, too. More – and more accurate — information helps create historical perspective. You can plot trends for each vehicle. And you can track your fleet as a whole, to see the big picture. You can analyze dispensing, usage and maintenance procedures as well as costs, to identify further opportunities to increase fuel efficiency and other savings.
Armed with a tight grip on fuel costs, you may even be able to negotiate better pricing.
You’re always in compliance, ready for regulatory reporting, audits, etc. And using a fuel management system ensures you’re meeting environmental standards that apply to fuel dispensing operations, so you can be a “green” member of the community.
An automated fuel management system can give you greater visibility into virtually every aspect of your fueling operation, making it a sound investment for far more than performing fuel reconciliation. Using a fuel management system, you can ensure product deliveries are correct, knowledgeably manage your fuel inventory and accurately reconcile usage.
You’ll know you’re getting what you pay for, and you can stop paying for unnecessary losses. That protects your investment and your budget.
Photo Credit: Sardonic G via Flickr