Truck downtime disrupts business. Deliveries run late, customers become frustrated, and drivers are left with little they can do to ease the situation. Worse yet, you, the fleet manager, are responsible for both the internal and customer-facing communications amid the chaos. There are some cases in which downtime is inevitable, however, there are many in which it can be reduced or even averted altogether.

1. 5 EASY WAYS TO
AVOID FLEET
DOWNTIME
By: On-site Fleet Service | www.on-sitefleetservice.com

2. Truck downtime disrupts business. Deliveries run late, customers become frustrated, and drivers are
left with little they can do to ease the situation. Worse yet, you, the fleet manager, are responsible for
both the internal and customer-facing communications amid the chaos.
There are some cases in which downtime is inevitable, however, there are many in which it can be
reduced or even averted altogether. Here are a few helpful tips from the truck repair professionals at
On-Site Fleet Service:
OVERVIEW
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3. 1. Keep up on Preventative
Maintenance
There’s much more to keeping a heavy-duty
diesel engine fine-tuned than getting a standard
oil change. Your trucks should be scheduled for
ongoing preventative maintenance to identify
emerging issues before they become culprits of
downtime. A thorough PM checkup can address
dirty air filters, improperly inflated tires, slipping
clutches and many other conditions that could
cause a breakdown if left unfixed.
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4. 2. Schedule Overnight
Repairs
At On-Site, routine repairs—including fluid
changes, front end work, brake work, broken
windshield wipers and more—can usually be
scheduled ahead of time for the overnight
hours. Preventative maintenance is typically an
overnight task as well. This means your
driver(s) can drop off their truck(s) at the end of
the day and pick them up first thing the
following morning, with no downtime at all.
Learn more about overnight truck repair here.
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5. 3. Listen To Your Drivers
Oftentimes, a driver will bring a maintenance
issue to the attention of the fleet manager.
The fleet manager will hold off on repairs,
either to defer the downtime or simply
because they lose track of it on their to-do list.
When a driver notifies you of an issue with
their truck—small as it may be—make the call
to get the vehicle into the shop at a
reasonably convenient time. Otherwise, you
risk abrupt and extended downtime if or when
the issue worsens.
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6. 4. Don’t Wait For A
Breakdown
It’s easy to fall into the “repair by breakdown”
mentality, especially if your trucks rarely have
issues. But, if you truly want to avoid downtime,
you will keep your fleet in top shape with
preventative maintenance and minor repairs. In
other words, be proactive and consistent with
your truck maintenance program. If you wait
until you’re in a bind, downtime becomes more
difficult to avoid.
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7. 5. Build A Relationship
With Your Repair Shop
Our customers tend to stick with us for years
and even decades due to our high level of
service and communication. This allows us
to become familiar with their vehicles,
schedules and business needs. In turn, we’re
able to work around downtime as much as
possible. Schedule your first preventative
maintenance checkup today. We’re
confident that you’ll see why On-Site is the
better choice for truck and bus repair.
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8. ABOUT US
On-Site Fleet Service, Inc. has been in business since 1978 and grown into the largest
non-dealership professional diesel and school bus repair provider in the state of New
Jersey. On-Site offers a complete menu of maintenance programs for school buses,
medium-duty trucks and heavy-duty trucks, including computerized preventive
maintenance, brakes, clutches, engines, transmission rebuilding, and road service. We
can also offer the individual truck owner the type of service and attention that a large
fleet would receive.
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9. CONTACT US
On-Site Fleet Service of East
Brunswick
Address: 36 Edgeboro Rd East
Brunswick, NJ 08816
Phone: 732.651.1010
Email: robf@on-sitefleetservice.com
On-Site Fleet Service of
Kenilworth
Address: 25 Columbus Ave
Kenilworth, NJ 07033
Phone: 908.686.5230
Email: robf@on-sitefleetservice.com
On-Site Fleet Service of
Lakewood
Address: 185 Oberlin Ave N Unit B
Lakewood, NJ 08701
Phone: 732.370.2009
Email: robf@on-sitefleetservice.com
On-Site Fleet Service of
Rutherford
Address: 25 Borough Street
Rutherford, NJ 07070
Phone: 201.438.6900
Email: robf@on-sitefleetservice.com