It’s not just about convenience, noted Larry Fowler, fleet service manager at Dickinson Fleet Services. “Mobile fleet service helps achieve maximum uptime by performing routine maintenance and repairs at fleet locations during the hours that their equipment is available,” he said.
With more than 700 mobile service units at the ready across the country, Dickinson offers on-site preventive maintenance for all makes and models of power units, trailers, converter dollies and auxiliary equipment such as refrigeration units, liftgates and a variety of mounted equipment. The company operates a 24/7 call center where customers can access scheduled and breakdown services.
Mobile maintenance is also proving valuable for Fresh Freight, a Scottsdale, Arizona-based carrier that provides local, regional and national food transportation services.
“We recently began using mobile maintenance through our in-house capabilities for our company fleet,” related Jake Fry, Fresh Freight’s fleet manager. “It’s been a huge boon to our operations because it helps us hedge against low availability of mainstream service providers during peak seasons and when they are experiencing labor shortages. It uses our team to fill gaps when a local provider has a bottleneck.”
Handling preventive maintenance, annual inspections, and miscellaneous services with mobile units and technicians, Fresh Freight’s basic mobile maintenance program provides services for tractors, refrigerated trailers and APUs. In addition to inspections and preventive maintenance, repairs are commonly made to electrical systems, air lines and valves, batteries, bulbs and fuses, and mudflaps. The company also installs electronic logging devices (ELDs).
Behind both the in-house mobile maintenance programs at Fresh Freight, and the service offered by Dickinson Fleet Services, are highly skilled technicians. Fowler referred to them as “the engine of our business.”
“Mobile technicians are some of the most well-rounded in the industry,” Fowler added. “They do not have the luxury of being a specialist. They are experienced and trained in all aspects of truck repair and will see a full variety of issues to address each day.”
Fry said mobile technicians need to have knowledge around the equipment they’re repairing. “Ultimately, though, Fresh Freight’s mobile maintenance design can fit anyone with the right background and the required tools,” he stated.
The company also provides step-by-step guides in printed and video formats for its mobile techs. Currently available guides include instructions for assembling a basic maintenance tool kit, refrigeration unit pre-trip inspections, and PMs for reefers and APUs.
Equally important is the equipment available to a mobile mechanic. The key, according to Fry, is an agnostic mobile service vehicle. At Fresh Freight, for example, mobile maintenance tool kits include basic items necessary to perform most services. There are also parts for common services such as filters and fluids, and frequently replaced items like bulbs and mudflaps.
“The idea is to bring the garage to our customers,” Fowler said. “All of our mobile service units, which are upfitted at the Dickinson Truck Build Center, are equipped with the most up-to-date tools and technology available. The goal is to ensure our technicians are more prepared than anyone to handle the tasks at hand.”
One of those technologies is Dickinson’s proprietary Technician Reporting and Information Tools (TRAIT) software. “Every inspection and repair that we perform is done within the TRAIT ecosystem,” Fowler related. “The field service application gives our maintenance team and our customers real-time visibility and communication with technicians. Those things are essential for ensuring consistent, quality service.”
The success of mobile maintenance services at Dickinson is also measured by the company’s field management team. What Fowler called a unique and key differentiator, the dedicated mobile technician managers conduct regular quality audits and work hand-in-hand with technicians to make improvements whenever they are necessary.
“That activity is driven by Dickinson’s promise of maintenance excellence to our employees and customers,” Fowler stated. “By ensuring safety and quality in everything we do in mobile fleet maintenance and repair, we are committed to providing unmatched customer convenience and service.”
At Fresh Freight, mobile maintenance has more than improved uptime for the fleet; it has also measurably reduced repair expenses.
“We’re finding that mobile maintenance provides significant cost savings,” Fry said. “Completing service items with in-house based mobile technicians compared to using an outside vendor is less expensive for us. Our team saves a significant amount of capital for the company. Year to date in 2021, Fresh Freight has saved more than $10,000 in labor costs with this program.”
