MTR Fleet Services

ABOUT MTR FLEET SERVICES

MTR Fleet Services got on the road in 2003, after President & CEO Jason Martin left his job at a big truck dealership in Atlanta. MTR has grown steadily since then, and now repairs trucks, motorhomes, forklifts, and other heavy-duty vehicles in the greater Atlanta area. They’ve got a 1200 square foot, 9-bay shop in Cumming, as well as five mobile mechanics.

WHAT DID MTR FLEET SERVICES NEED?

MTR looked to Fullbay as a potential replacement for the complicated, difficult-to-use management system it depended on at the time. It also hoped Fullbay could take on more administrative services, thus helping Jason fully shift from a mechanic to a businessman. Oh, some extra revenue wouldn’t hurt, either.

Trying to enter a part in was an act of Congress for a parts person.

CHALLENGE #1: HELD BACK BY AN OUTDATED SYSTEM

MTR already had a shop management software that it had been using for years. It got the job done, but its format was confusing and non-intuitive, making it tough to learn about and use, even for seasoned techs. Entering parts required “an act of Congress” and more steps than the macarena. More worryingly, the software did not play nicely with mobile – you had to be in the shop and on a powerful computer to make it work.

CHALLENGE #2: GOING FROM MECHANIC TO BUSINESSMAN

Repairing a diesel truck and running a business demands wildly different skill sets. Jason had worked on trucks for years, and now he had to master running a business on the fly. He wasn’t only overseeing his mechanics and other staff. He had to learn the laws of his city and state, figure out insurance, and take a crash course in taxes. Clients were thrilled with the work, but inefficiencies led to losing money in parts, service, and other areas. Jason knew he needed to implement a better system.

On top of that, Jason spent long hours at the shop – and then brought the shop home with him in the form of nightly catching up on paperwork. His wife eventually left her job to work with him, but even by splitting duties, they both spent a great deal of time taking care of administration. Between the shop and their two young children, they were stretched thin on time.

ENTER FULLBAY

Fullbay wasn’t just easy to use. It lopped hours off how much time he and his techs spent crawling through paperwork, and gave him the information he needed to grow the shop properly. For the first time, he could see what was going on at any given moment: from pulling reports on how parts were selling to seeing exactly how many hours his techs were logging each week, he knew exactly where his crew’s hours were being spent and how much income they were bringing in.

FREEDOM FROM THE SHOP

Unlike MTR’s old software, Fullbay lives in the cloud; there’s no need to be in the shop to use it. Jason can keep an eye on things from anywhere; all he needs to do is log in to see what everyone is working on and what jobs are clocked into. “If I choose not to be there, I don’t have to be,” he adds – a vast improvement over taking home even more work after spending 12 hours a day in the shop.

“It’s total access. It’s been a game-changer.”

TECHNICIAN EFFICIENCY

Once the entire shop switched over to Fullbay, technician efficiency shot upward. It’s easy to see where techs are on any particular job, as well as how long it’s taken them to get there. They also have a set amount of hours to complete each job, which puts the impetus on the tech to complete things on time.

Fullbay also reports on how many billed hours MTR has for the week. Like many shops, they have a baseline of billable hours they must meet to maintain healthy finances, and service writers can step up their efforts if they notice the shop is behind.

In addition, the software takes over many of the administrative issues that can eat into a tech’s time. Rather than waste time digging through a parts room or rummaging through paperwork, a tech knows immediately what parts he needs to complete a job and whether they’re in stock or need to be ordered.

PREVENTIVE MAINTENANCE = HAPPY CUSTOMERS

MTR does a lot of preventive maintenance for its fleet customers. This kind of steady work is a win-win for fleets and shops; the former keeps their trucks operating in great shape and protects their bottom line from a lot of shocking repairs, and the latter is often considered “bread and butter” income.

Fullbay makes it a snap to keep up with PMs, and MTR has put this feature to work. When a truck comes up due for service, MTR can call the owner or fleet manager and set up a time to either dispatch a mobile unit or bring the vehicle into the shop. No paperwork, no fuss.

AN IMPROVED BOTTOM LINE

Fullbay has given MTR a clearer picture of what’s going on around the shop, and that extra visibility has increased revenue. When people can see what they are doing and where they need to be, hours-wise, Jason says, “They know what is expected of them.”

It’s also stripped away many of the distractions of managing a business, leaving MTR’s techs to focus on the great work they do. We look forward to helping them grow even more!

Fullbay has made a huge impact on my business, my bottom line, and every aspect of what we are doing.