Same day courier firm CitySprint quickly identified that it needed bespoke fleet management software to meet its needs.

Its self-employed staff operate more than 2,100 vehicles including small and large vans, motorbikes, smart cars and push bikes.

After taking stock of what it wanted to achieve with its fleet management software, it commissioned iFleet - which is part of WebX Solutions - to create a software package that met those needs.

Kevin Wong (pictured), CitySprint’s national fleet manager, explains: "iFleet originally created our web-based software to primarily act as a document management system.

"We operate 37 service centres nationwide and previously all of our couriers and clients had to either post, fax or scan and then email documentation back to us.

"Our main purpose initially was to streamline this process and ensure that we knew where both the documentation - and whatever it is we were delivering - were at every stage.

"iFleet was able to build this for us from scratch – and from there it became obvious that part and parcel of this process was the effective management of our fleet which is the way it operates today."

Real-time picture

Each courier now has his or her own homepage which not only allows jobs to be distributed while also allowing them to input information that prove everything from duty of care to best practice are consistently being observed.

The fleet management software also enables its service centres to see how many contracts are “active” at any time as well as checking that couriers have filed the requisite documentation upon the completion of a job.

Wong adds: "The software provides us with a real-time picture of what the status of each delivery is and with 37 service centres nationwide it's really important that we have a tool like this.

"But quite apart from this, the system also provide safeguards to ensure that every courier has an appropriate driving licence for their vehicle as well as their MOT and insurance in place.

"We've also adapted it to ensure that it notifies us if - for example - a courier's visa runs out.

"In short, it's intended to provide us with full legal compliance as well as ensuring that we've undertaken our duty of care obligations."

Know what you want to achieve

Wong advises other fleet managers to know precisely what they want to achieve from their fleet management software before approaching a provider.

"It's my impression that a lot of companies have a template in place and they then try and shoehorn your needs into that," he added.

"That might work for some smaller companies - but the software is frequently more likely to work better if it’s bespoke.

"We've also found that there are also many benefits of employing a company with whom you can work closely to ensure that your needs are met.

"And there needs to be flexibility built into this relationship.

"For example, we're just in the process of embracing the iPad revolution - which should mean that all of our couriers can carry out their vehicle inspections using these hand-held devices and this information is then relayed to us using iFleet.

"It's going to streamline our operations even more while simultaneously making life better for both our couriers and our clients."

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