Table of Contents
Overview
Maintaining your vehicles on time is one of the best methods for avoiding unplanned repairs and reducing the total cost of ownership.
Planning is straightforward when maintenance is scheduled with Service Reminders on a time-based interval (for example "Every 6 months") because you have an actual, anticipated due date to put on the calendar.
However, many maintenance schedules are based on vehicle utilization, using a meter interval (for example, "Every 5,000 miles"). Since vehicles are utilized at different rates, this makes it very difficult to predict WHEN a vehicle will reach a certain due meter.
Fleetio's Service Reminder Forecasting uses a vehicle's Average Usage per Day to project how long it will take for the vehicle to reach the anticipated due meter. In this way, Fleetio can predict the due date for a meter-tracked service, helping you plan your maintenance calendar.
The Forecasting Formula
First, Fleetio uses the Average Usage per Day to project the vehicle's likely meter today - its projected current meter reading.
Then, Fleetio takes the difference between the due meter and the projected current meter reading to determine how many days from today it will take to reach that due meter.
The forecasted due date is today, plus the number of days to reach the due meter.
- projected current meter reading = number of days since last valid meter entry x Average Usage per Day
- meter until due = due meter - projected current meter reading
- forecasted due date = today + (meter until due / Average Usage per Day)
IMPORTANT: Since the Forecasting formula is based on both the Average Usage per Day and the most recent Meter Entry, you can improve Forecasting accuracy with regular meter updates.
Example Forecasting Calculation
- Vehicle's most recent Meter Entry was 85,035 on September 24th, 47 days ago
- Average Usage per Day in Vehicle Settings is 94 miles per day
- Oil Change Service Reminder interval is every 5,000 miles and it was last completed at 85,015 miles, so it is next due at 90,015
- Oil Change Service Reminder Due Soon threshold is 2 weeks
Today is November 10th. The most recent Meter Entry of 85,035 was 47 days ago.
If no further meter updates were recorded, that meter data would grow stale. Without Service Reminder Forecasting enabled, Fleetio would not know if or when the vehicle is getting close to needing service. With Service Reminder Forecasting enabled, Fleetio can predict when the vehicle will hit 90,015.
The Average Usage per Day in this vehicle's settings is 94 miles per day. Fleetio projects that today's meter is likely 85,035 + (47 x 94 miles per day) = 89,453 miles.
Therefore, the vehicle probably has another 552 miles to go before it hits 90,015 miles, and at 94 miles per day, this will be about four days from now (today ÷ 4 days at 94 miles per day = 552 miles).
Today is within the two week threshold, so the service reminder is flagged as "Due Soon."
Fleetio displays these attributes on the Service Reminder.
If you hover over the due date and time remaining, Fleetio displays a full breakdown of the service forecast for that reminder.
Enable Service Reminder Forecasting
Service Reminder Forecasting can be enabled on the Service Reminders list, or from your Account Settings.
Service Reminders List
Select Service Reminders from the Reminders section of the left sidebar menu.
If you haven't enabled forecasting, select the Enable Forecasting link to enable it.
If you have already enabled forecasting, select the More Actions menu, then Forecasting Settings.
Account Settings
- Go to your Account Menu and select Settings.
- In the Settings sidebar, click Service Reminder Settings in the Reminders section.
- Check the box to turn on Forecasting.
NOTE: Service Reminders for Forecasting can only be enabled/disabled on the account level through Account Settings. Service Reminders for Forecasting cannot be enabled/disabled on an individual Service Reminder.
"Due Soon Notification" for Forecasted Service Reminders
"Due Soon" notifications for forecasted reminders rely on the Meter Due Soon Threshold to determine when to notify you of an upcoming service. When Fleetio predicts the vehicle's meter is within the threshold, it sends you a notification.
Hover over the forecasting mileage on any Service Reminder to see the formula breakdown for the vehicle.
Group Due Service by Week or by Month
It can be difficult to predict and plan for preventative maintenance when using only meter readings as maintenance triggers. As a result, some weeks may be slow while others are slammed. Service Reminder Forecasting allows you to plan more effectively and improve productivity. Because a forecasted due date is calculated for each service reminder, these projected due dates can be grouped on a calendar. If weeks ahead are busy, bring some vehicles in ahead of time to even out the workload.
Service Reminders can be viewed as one complete list or by week or month using the Group drop-down menu. Weeks or Months with NO forecasted due dates will still be shown but with a message.
FAQs
How is service forecasted if it's based on multiple meters or time?
Behind the scenes, Fleetio calculates a due date based on each of the reminder intervals. For example, in the case of a service due every 5,000 miles, 200 hours, or 3 months; Fleetio will calculate three possible dates when the service will become due. Two possible due dates are calculated using the Average Usage per Day when Fleetio expects the vehicle to reach its next due values for mileage and hours. The third due date is the date calculated from the "every 3 months" interval. The forecasted due date displayed in Fleetio is the earliest of all these dates.
Why does Fleetio say my service is overdue when it actually isn't?
If a vehicle hasn't received a meter entry recently, there are two possibilities for the vehicle: either the vehicle is still operating normally but not receiving meter entries, or it is not operating at all. Fleetio makes the assumption that the vehicle is still being operated despite not receiving any meter entries. If you receive a Service Reminder notification based on a forecast that is incorrect, simply enter a new meter entry for the vehicle. Fleetio will calculate a new due date based on the current meter entry and the updated Average Usage per Day.
Does forecasting still work if I manually override the due meter on my Service Reminder?
Yes! Service Reminder Forecasting simply tries to predict when the vehicle's reminder will be due, so it doesn't matter whether the reminder's "next due" meter is based on the Service Reminder meter interval or has been set manually by a user.
More Resources
Check out these Fleetio Blog articles for information, including a comparison of different approaches for Preventative Maintenance scheduling.
