Venson publishes guide for fleets upsizing to HGVs

Venson Automotive Solutions is helping fleet managers fully prepare for the acquisition and operation of larger vehicles with its free White Paper ‘Operating Commercial Vehicles Beyond 3.5t GVW’.

The company says many businesses are looking to streamline their fleets by running a smaller number of vehicles by upsizing to larger vans and trucks. This increases efficiency, cuts costs, and reduces carbon emissions.  

Upsizing involves many additional operational changes for a business, however. For example, new licencing, training and insurance requirements, specific journey planning needs and adequate physical space for storage and manoeuvring.

Danielle Tilley, business development director for Venson, said: “Following a challenging 12 months, and with the future remaining uncertain, businesses of all sizes are looking at ways to increase efficiency and reduce costs to maintain profitability and continue trading successfully post-Covid. But fleet managers must not rush into upsizing without proper consideration and preparation.

“Clearly, larger vehicles require more space for storage, but they also require significantly more space in which to manoeuvre, so access and turning space on site must be sufficient. Of course, it is not just at the business premises where size matters – the usual and most direct route may be inaccessible to large trucks, so we recommend fleets of larger vehicles invest in dedicated truck satnav systems to avoid potential issues.”

Larger vehicles and their contents are also a bigger draw for criminals, so site security must be increased alongside the relevant insurance.

The Road Haulage Association (RHA) recently reported that “more than half of all stolen trucks are taken from their owners’ own premises. It is for this reason that secure premises are vital in the fight against theft”. The RHA suggests that businesses consider “perimeter protection, controlled site access, surveillance/alarm systems and key security” when planning their new protection and processes.

Tilley added: “Preparation is key in making any big business decision or shift in processes, and upsizing a fleet is no different. To ensure the change increases efficiency and reduces costs rather than bringing added complication and unexpected resource requirements, businesses should take time to carry out the necessary research so they can upsize seamlessly and successfully support their organisation going forward.”

Venson Automotive Solutions white paper, Operating Commercial Vehicles Beyond 3.5t GVW covers the three major areas of the upsizing process, Personnel considerations, Preparing your business and Vehicles, and includes a handy expansion planning checklist for fleet managers.  

The Operating Commercial Vehicles Beyond 3.5t GVW whitepaper can be downloaded at https://www.venson.com/Media/WhitePapers.