Does your business rely on travel? If so, fuel management is key to running a successful operation. It involves focusing on ways to improve fuel use, lower costs as well as reducing harm to the environment.
This is especially important for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), who need to protect their bottom line and stay as efficient as possible. Read on to discover the fundamentals of fuel management, potential strategies and how to put these into action.
Understanding the basics of fuel management
Fuel management is about how to track and control how much fuel a vehicle or vehicles use. This includes carefully watching fuel purchases and finding ways to reduce consumption. By keeping an eye on fuel usage, businesses can better learn what affects their fuel costs.
Many things can impact fuel consumption – from driving habits to how well the vehicle is maintained, engine power and the routes taken. For example, fast driving, speeding and idling the engine can unnecessarily increase fuel use. To help improve efficiency, regular vehicle maintenance, like checking tyre pressure and tuning the engine, can boost power and performance.
The importance of efficient fuel use for SMEs
For SMEs, using fuel efficiently is not just about the environment, it’s an essential part of running their business. Fuel costs are often among the biggest expenditures, especially for those that revolve around transportation and logistics. When business optimise their fuel consumption, they can cut down their operating costs considerably and make more profit.
Being smart about fuel usage can also give you a competitive edge. Reducing costs in this area means you can offer better prices for goods and services. In a tough market, saving even a little on fuel can lead to big savings so you can reinvest in growth or improve other parts of the business.
Besides saving money, using fuel efficiently supports a focus on corporate social responsibility and sustainability. By using less fuel, SMEs help lower greenhouse gas emissions and support a cleaner environment.
Strategies for optimising fuel consumption
Optimising fuel consumption doesn’t have to cost the earth. You can use simple and effective strategies to make a big difference.
1. Fuel-efficient driving
Encouraging your employees to drive in a fuel-efficient way can instantly reduce fuel wastage and overconsumption. These are a few simple strategies you can start following right away:
- Accelerating smoothly
- Looking ahead to avoid sharp braking
- Following the speed limits
- Avoiding idling the engine
- Planning routes to reduce mileage
- Using GPS to avoid wrong-turns
2. Training staff
Teams need to be as invested as business owners when it comes to reducing fuel consumption. Running staff training is a great way to create a fuel-efficient culture in your organisation. Educating your staff on why it matters and how they can help will mean they’re more likely to support your efforts. You could also consider a scheme where you reward drivers who meet targets and drive most efficiently.
3. Leveraging the benefits of fuel cards
Managing fuel costs is the bane of every fleet manager. But it doesn't have to be a constant source of stress. One effective solution is using fuel cards. Fuel cards are specifically designed to streamline fuel purchasing and management, offering several advantages over traditional payment methods:
- Quick and easy payment
- Simplified admin
- Cost savings
- Easier accounting
- Reduced risk of fraud
Being able to track your team’s expenditure is another helpful way to improve fuel management. You can keep an eye on how regularly they fill up, where they refuel and if they use their card for any other purchases like oil, AdBlue or the car wash.
How fuelGenie supports SMEs
fuelGenie
fuelGenie fuel cards offer business owners and their drivers a host of fuel management benefits. fuelGenie is our free fuel card which uses only the low-cost network of supermarket petrol stations at Tesco, Morrisons and Sainsbury’s. This restriction automatically helps to keep fuel costs down as supermarkets are on average over 3p per litre cheaper*.
fuelGenie also offers online or app-based account management so you can check your account, make changes and organise your expenses with ease. There’s less risk of fraud as the cards are linked to either a specific person or vehicle registration which means they can only be used by authorised persons.
fuelGenie+
fuelGenie+ is our alternative solution which costs just 50p a month per card. This fuel card has all the same benefits of fuelGenie plus a few added extras. It leverages the low-cost supermarket locations as well as most Shell garages, making it easier to find more places to refuel. This option has the added benefit of some sites which accommodate larger vehicles and are open 24 hours.
Conclusion
Efficient fuel management is important for any business, improving how you work and helping you save money. By encouraging fuel-efficient driving, training staff on good practices and using fuel cards, you can lower fuel usage and keep operations strong during tough times. Adopting these strategies means SMEs can handle challenges more effectively and sustainably in today's competitive market.
