Using data to drive UK fleet decarbonisation

Industry is also following through – we’re seeing matured technologies, meanwhile consumers are showing an increased demand for sustainable solutions. All of this is progress but to quicken this impact we need to see the wide-scale adoption of lower- and zero-carbon alternatives.²

So, how do we act quicker? Decarbonisation is, in fact, a complex process with business, operational and regional needs to consider. And we need to rely upon data to unravel the complexities on our journey to net zero.

What can give you the most accurate picture of the operational needs of your vehicle? Its data. With vehicles becoming increasingly connected, a vehicle’s data can offer businesses a detailed picture of their requirements.

However, data collection isn’t enough, it must be used by businesses effectively.

Do you know your vehicle truth?

There’s no shortage of vehicle data, in fact there’s an abundance. Geotab, a leading telematics provider, processes more than 75 billion data points across commercial fleets every day.³ While fleets want more from their data, combining and examining this data is a significant challenge. Ineffective gathering and leveraging of data are seen as one of the biggest barriers to digitalisation by 15% of delivery fleets, 13% of professional fleets and 10% of operational fleets.⁴

Amidst this deluge of data, the first step is for fleet managers to seek their ‘vehicle truth’ and the reality of the road.² Vehicle truth is an understanding of what’s happening across operations and using this knowledge to make improvements such as boosting efficiency, lowering costs and reducing emissions.²

Telematics data – which can tell us about activities ranging from monitoring speed, idling, fuel use, low tyre pressure, and more – can help model vehicle maintenance costs or improve fuel efficiency through driving habits.⁵ When combined with other relevant data sources from mobile payment solutions as well as internal operations and finance systems, this can help inform decision making.

For example, Geotab data found that on average, 81% of medium-duty trucks drive less than 150 miles a day, while 58% of heavy-duty trucks drive less than 200 miles a day –making them more suitable for electrification.⁶

There’s real value which can be extracted from these insights as long as businesses know how this data can be transformed into ‘actionable’ insights. Depending on the size or complexity of the business, fleet managers can seek support from a trusted partner like Shell to better understand their data to generate the insights that enable them to take action now.

Extracting value from data on the road to decarbonisation

A classic and well publicised concern on the road to decarbonisation is CO₂ emissions. CO₂ benchmarking can tell us a variety of things about emissions, fuel economy, output, data and challenges that need to be solved by comparing similar fleets. A fleet manager can compare:²

1. Which vehicles emit emissions.
2. The emissions output of different powertrains.
3. Average fuel economy across fleets.
4. How to unlock insights with data.
5. Challenges we need to solve.

As the industry proactively moves away from CO₂ reliance_, smart preparation is needed when planning electric vehicle suitability. Electric vehicle suitability assessments (EVSA) can help us:²

1. Identify EV candidates with real-world driving data.
2. Explore best-fit model options.
3. Manage forecast and comparisons to create a business case.

Where it’s not yet feasible to electrify a fleet’s vehicles, businesses can bridge the gap with lower-carbon alternatives such as renewable diesel or renewable resources such as organic waste to create a 100% biofuel.²

Accelerating forward

In the UK, we’re definitely moving towards intelligence that can help us reduce fleet carbon emissions and the total cost of mobility, as well as meet environmental regulations. We’re also moving towards this while improving efficiency, safety and security.⁷

I believe the most successful way UK fleets can achieve net zero is to ensure a smooth and well-managed transition. To accomplish this, fleet managers can use data to build a sensible and truthful decarbonisation roadmap.²

While there is definitely pressure on us all to reach net zero, this is also a time where we have many options, and our data should shed light on the most suitable option. There may even need to be a combination of options used depending on where our fleet managers are in their transition.

Amidst the discussion, let’s use data effectively to remember there’s more than one route to decarbonisation.

Find out more by downloading the full ‘Decoding fleet decarbonisation: How to use data to choose the right energy solutions and accelerate your net-zero journey’ report for free: https://www.shell.com/business-customers/shell-fleet-solutions/accelerate-to-zero-shell-fleet-solutions-consultancy/decoding-decarbonisation-report.html#iframe=L2xpbmtlZGluX2dsb2JhbF9mb3JtX3Byb2Q

¹ _{Make Britain a clean energy superpower. July 2024. Available at: https://labour.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Make-Britain-a-Clean-Energy-Superpower.pdf (PDF)}

² _{Decoding fleet decarbonisation. Shell. July 2024.}

³ _{Geotab Industry Survey: 87% of transportation fleets anticipate rising business costs this year.” 2024.}

⁴ _{Kantar study – Based on a study conducted by Kantar commissioned by Shell Fleet Solutions. Research conducted in 2022 amongst 742 businesses - sample of decision makers for Delivery, Operational, Professional & Aggregator Fleets across US, Singapore, Malaysia, Germany, Poland and Netherlands. * Referring to functional needs among fleet decision makers.}

⁵ _{What is telematics? Available at: https://www.geotab.com/blog/what-is-telematics/}

. Accessed June 2024.

⁶ _{Global demand for connected vehicle data grows Geotab’s subscriptions to 4 million.” 2023.}

⁷ _{Shell Fleet Insights in collaboration with LEVL. Available at: https://www.shell.co.uk/business/mobility/shell-fleet-solutions/medium-large-fleet/shell-fleet-insights.html. Accessed June 2024.}