Volvo details approach to adaptive maintenance through Blue Service Contracts

Volvo Trucks North America first launched its Blue Service Contract offering in 2021, with major selling points for the comprehensive maintenance program that include a 74-point inspection, oil analysis, and regular powertrain, drivetrain, and chassis preventive maintenance that can be bundled with a truck payment.

Some of the key elements of the ecosystem include the Remote Diagnostics, ASIST web-based service platform, and uptime experts at the OEM’s call center.

“At the essence, what the Blue Service Contract is trying to achieve is really to maximize uptime on the vehicle for our customers, as well as reduce the total cost of ownership,” explained Mike Furst, director of service contracts for VTNA.

Benefits of The Blue Service Contract include scheduled repair by Volvo techs with genuine Volvo parts and reduced TCO.

In October, Volvo announced an AI upgrade enabling “adaptive maintenance,” a new strategy for the company using real-time data coming from Volvo Remote Diagnostics to ensure optimal efficiency and uptime. This real-time data collected includes oil sampling, fuel consumption, idle time, overall vehicle performance, and more. But how is adaptive maintenance different from preventive, predictive, or prescriptive maintenance?

As the name suggests, this method allows a fleet to change a vehicle’s maintenance plan based on the latest information and what conditions the truck is facing. Topography and environment are dynamic variables that can affect how long a part lasts, or how long a system can go between services. This doesn’t always mean the data will say a truck needs to come into the shop ahead of schedule. Sometimes, it’s the opposite.

Adaptive maintenance involves the adjustment of service intervals based on the actual use of the truck, as shown through connected vehicle data.

“We find that many fleets are over-maintaining their trucks, which can be costly,” Magnus Gustafson, VP of connected services for VTNA said at the time. “Applying AI to optimize maintenance intervals based on truck specs, operating conditions, and actual use ensures our customers can maximize the uptime of their Volvo trucks.”

In a way, it’s taking the concept of adjusting oil change intervals based on sampling—which keeps fleets from needlessly draining good oil and incurring unnecessary downtime—and extending that idea out to the whole truck.

“Once that base schedule is set and defined by the dealer working with the customer, we're using that real-time truck data that we pull through that telematic gateway back to our servers to adjust the schedule if it needs to be adjusted,” Furst detailed. For example, “if the engine idle time starts to increase over 30%, then we're going to recommend that that truck come in a little bit more frequently to do the PM. So we're using that data to adapt the schedule over the life of the contract.”

A preventive maintenance schedule, meanwhile, follows OEM recommendations and guidelines when it comes to routine service and component replacement. Predictive maintenance also uses AI to review real-time data and DTCs, along with historical data from a large sample of similar assets, but will suggest when a component, like a NOx sensor, is likely to fail. And prescriptive evolves that to recommending how to mitigate the issue—in this case, recommending you change out the sensor.

The human factor

Suggested service doesn’t all come down to numbers and algorithms, though, with human uptime specialists also reviewing the data to assist customers in making the best service decisions for their operation. Earlier this month, Volvo invited members of the trucking press to the Volvo Uptime Center in Greensboro, North Carolina to meet these uptime specialists. Our affiliate FleetOwner sent editor Jeremy Wolfe, who shadowed one of these specialists.

The uptime center specialist took calls from customer fleets and dealers to troubleshoot error codes, coordinate services, and react to breakdowns. Wolfe had an opportunity to see the specialist interface with several databases to identify the specific causes behind a truck model’s error code history, update service logs, and record the details of incoming calls.

FleetOwner editor Jeremy Wolfe had the opportunity to shadow a human uptime specialist and see the interface with several databases to identify the specific causes behind a truck model’s error code history, update service logs, and record the details of incoming calls.

VTNA has around 100 people to support Volvo Action Service operations, with the majority as uptime specialists, Steven Walker, VTNA director of uptime operations, said. The annual call volume is 600,000, with 250,000 inbound and 350,000 outbound calls.

Volvo is also appointing a ‘fleet manager’ to dealers participating in the service contract program. In this role, this manager works with the customer to set a schedule catered to the fleet’s specific needs, and will now incorporate data collected by the AI models to further tailor the program.

“The fleet manager is responsible for tracking and scheduling all service due for trucks under contract,” Furst noted. “Our corporate Uptime Development Managers will review their scorecard/metrics with assigned dealers each month and make recommendations to improve and share best practices learned from other dealers.”

These metrics are measured against dealer standards and include:

· Onboarding of managed customer

· Planning of service events

· Following an effective customer process

· Proactive monitoring of vehicles

· Use of fleet tool

· Implementing & sustaining the Fleet Management process & staffing for your dealership

· Scheduling and preplanning

· PM Execution/Mobile Service

Furst added other metrics including key metrics focus on the percentages of PMs completed on time and over a 24-hour period.

Overall though, “the actual emissions technology is getting more complex. The safety systems on the truck are getting more complex. Technician availability training is becoming increasingly difficult,” Furst noted. “We definitely think the market is shifting in a direction that makes service contracts much more palatable and viable as an option.”