Fleet Europe 65 by Nexus Communication

september 2013 - # 65

NEXUS COMMUNICATION - FLEET EUROPE #65 - periodic magazine - september 2013 - Deposit Office LiĂ¨ge X

Management

Case Study: Christy Coyte Meyer Johnson Controls

DOSSIER

LCV Management A fresh view on the LCV situation in Europe: new products, trends, taxation and best practices.

Management

Business

Scope

The emerging discipline of supply risk management

Tesla Motors starts fleet expansion in Europe

Premium car brands turn to car sharing

Fleet Europe and its partners welcome you to the Fleet Europe Forum & Awards 2013 november 21, 2013 in prague www.fleeteurope.com/events

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On November 21, 2013, Fleet Europe welcomes you at the Fleet Europe Forum & Awards 2013 in Prague. The central theme of the Fleet Europe Forum this year is ‘The 2014 Outlook for International Fleet Management’. We will have an update on the needs and requirements of the international fleet community and take a look how the fleet industry is developing its products and services to make sure that further professionalism in our business can be aligned with corporate strategies. As we are in Prague this year, we will also have a special focus on optimized fleet management in the Eastern Europe region. Of course we will not only look at the future. Sometimes it is necessary to understand the past to be able to prepare the future. And that is exactly what we want to do, together with industry executives, international opinion leaders, and important fleet customers. In the evening we will once again organize the unique Fleet Europe Awards ceremony to recognise the professional achievements of the finest fleet managers throughout Europe. In total there are seven Award categories.

EDITORIAL

Three of a Kind by Fleet Europe

And as good things always come in threes, there is a new IFMI Expert Session on November 20, 2013. This dedicated fleet management training session for international fleet clients will look in depth into the successful integration of Eastern Europe within international fleet management. So, three good reasons to join us. Don’t let this opportunity pass you by, but register today and join over 500 of your peers for this unparalleled opportunity to reach and hear from top level decision makers. All information on the IFMI Expert Session, the Fleet Europe Forum, and the Fleet Europe Awards can be found online at www.fleeteurope.com We look forward to seeing you there!

Steven Schoefs, Chief Editor sschoefs@nexuscommunication.be Twitter : @StevenSchoefs

Three fleet management events, just one location.

Fleet Europe events not to be missed ! Global Fleet Management Conference 2013

Fleet Europe Forum 2013

September 30 & October 1, 2013 – Phoenix, USA

November 21, 2013 – Prague, Czech Republic

Join the first ever conference for global fleet executives in

The Fleet Europe Forum gathers more than 500 European and

Phoenix Arizona on September 30 & October 1, 2013. With

international fleet decision makers around the theme “2014 Outlook

expert speakers, case studies, global fleet developments and

for International Fleet Management”. You will learn from key-note

trends. All information and registration details can be found on

speakers, discuss with peers and share best practices with the fleet

www.globalfleetconference.com. (see also page 42)

community. You can find all necessary information and registration details on www.fleeteurope.com/events.(see also page 39)

IFMI Expert Session November 20, 2013 – Prague, Czech Republic

Fleet Europe Awards 2013

This dedicated training session for international fleet managers will

November 21, 2013 – Prague, Czech Republic

be organized in combination with the Fleet Europe Forum & Awards

The Fleet Europe Awards are recognizing the achievements of the

2013, on November 20 in Prague. This session is focusing on “The

fleet industry. With prizes in seven Award categories this is the

Integration of Eastern Europe your international fleet management

fleet event of the year. Visit www.fleeteurope.com/events for more

policy”. More information about this expert session can be found on

information and all registration details.

www.fleeteurope.com/ifmi.

FLEET EUROPE # 65

P.3

CONTENT

I DOSSIER I

dossier I LCV Management in Europe Managing Light Commercial Vehicles in your fleet: new products, trends, taxation, developments and best practises.

Whoever said : It is just a Van? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P.09 The European LCV Market: Implications for economic recovery. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P.10 The compact LCVs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P.14 The medium-sized LCVs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P.18 The large LCVs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P.20 The Pick-ups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P.24 LCV equipment & fittings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P.26 LCV Taxation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P.30 LCVs & Driver behaviour . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P.32 LCVs & Safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P.34 Looking at tge future of LCVs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P.35 15 LCV Management Tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P.36

I MANAGEMENT I News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P.38 Join the Fleet Europe Forum 2013 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P.39 Case Study: Johnson Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P.40 Don’t miss the Global Fleet Management Conference . . . . P.42 Procurement: Supply Risk Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P.44

management I

Global Fleet Management Conference 2013 Join the first Global Fleet Management Conference in Phoenix, Arizona.

Fleet industry news . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P.46 Electrify your fleet with BMW i3. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P.48 Interview: Ian Hucker (Opel/Vauxhall) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P.49 Advertorial: 50 Years of LeasePlan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P.50 Interview: Peter Grøftehauge (Autorola) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P.52 Interview: Bryan Batista (Tesla Motors) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P.54

Scope

BUSINESS 50 Years of LeasePlan

I BUSINESS I

Car Sharing, premium mobility

COLOPHON

I SCOPE I News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P.56 Premium OEMs turn to car sharing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P.57

Steven Schoefs - Chief Editor - Fleet Europe (sschoefs@nexuscommunication.be)

Contributors: Tim Harrup, Frank Jacobs, Paul Herremans

Caroline Thonnon - Head of Business Development & Global Fleet Leader (cthonnon@nexuscommunication.be)

David Baudeweyns - International Sales & Business Development (dbaudeweyns@nexuscommunication.be) Romina De Gregorio - Internal Sales & Operations (rdegregorio@nexuscommunication.be) Vanessa Digneffe - Internal Sales Support vdigneffe@nexuscommunication.be

Special thanks to: Hervé Legenvre (EIPM), Bart Vanham (RBR PwC), Professor Peter NC Cooke (University of Buckingham)

Layout: Un pas plus loin - info@unpasplusloin.com

EDITOR

Thierry Degives, Managing Partner at Nexus Communication SA, Parc Artisanal 11-13, 4671 Barchon (Belgium) T. : +32 4 387 87 94 - Fax : +32 4 387 90 63 - www.nexuscommunication.be

Kathleen Hubert - Head of Marketing & Smart Mobility Management Leader (khubert@nexuscommunication.be)

FLEET EUROPE

Jonathan Green - Chief Editor Smart Mobility Management jgreen@nexuscommunication.be

Reproduction rights (texts, advertisements, pictures) reserved for all countries. Received documents will not be returned. By submitting them, the author implicitly authorizes their publication.

Pierre-Yves Simon - IT & Web Manager (pysimon@nexuscommunication.be)

www.fleeteurope.com - www.fleeteurope.com/shop

FLEET EUROPE # 65

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dossier

I LCV Management in Europe

Whoever said ‘It’s just a van?’

ight Commercial Vehicles – LCV’s for short – the poor relation of the company fleet? Maybe a long time ago, but not any more. Manufacturers are bringing out ever more sophisticated models, recognising that driver satisfaction and safety count here too. The market in Europe is performing in the same way as the car market – generally down a little compared to 2012 (by a touch under 5% over the first half year) but flourishing in the only market to buck the trend in cars – the UK. And the European Parliament and Commission are taking a keen interest – reducing the 2020 average CO2 emissions level to 147 grams per km – from 180 grams in 2012!

DOSSIER from p. 9 to p. 37

In this special LCV Management dossier, we take a closer look at the new models on the market, trends and developments in equipment and safety, and we speak and listen to some of the fleet experts in the field. ■ Steven Schoefs

FLEET EUROPE # 65

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dossier I LCV Management in EuropeLCV Management

The European LCV Market: Implications for Recovery The European Union, and particularly the Eurozone is in a poor shape economically; there could be unintended consequences emerging as the economies start to recover â&#x20AC;&#x201C; one of them is the used LCV â&#x20AC;&#x201C; a product critical for SMEs and economic recovery.

The speed of the economic recovery of the Eurozone can be linked to the availability of used LCVs.

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dossier I LCV Management in Europe

here are few signs of Eurozone recovery as might be judged from Figure 1. To speed return to economic equilibrium and growth the catchword for the foreseeable future for much of the Eurozone is ‘austerity’.

transport. In many markets there is an underlying philosophy of ‘the role of the new LCV market is to provide used LCVs for SMEs.

a new vehicle. Conventional wisdom suggests buying a younger, lower mileage used LCV – but at a significantly lower price than a new unit is a preferred strategy. The LCV is a workhorse rather than as a style or fashion statement as may be the case with a car.

Relatively few SMEs, unless they have a specific requirement for an adapted LCV, will, by choice, acquire

Used cars tend to be bought by private buyers. Younger used LCVs, are however the lifeblood of SMEs, family firms and startup companies. The LCV, may pass through several business users’ ownership until it is finally scrapped. The used LCV may be used for mobility or as a toolbox across its life, but it has many different lives – glamour is rarely one of them.

Figure 1. Eurozone GDP Growth Year on Year 5.0 4.0

3.8

3.2

3.0 2.0 1.0

3.0

2.2 1.7

2.0

1.4

0.9 0.7 0.4

0.0

-0.5

-1.0

-2.0

The European LCV Market The chart in Figure 2 shows European New LCV sales over the past few years with the Buckingham Automotive sales forecasts for the next couple of years. The clear picture is the evidence how the market crashed in

-3.0 -4.0 -4.4

-5.0

2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 Source: Eurostat / Capital Economics

The Special Case of the LCV The LCV market differs from the car market in that access to used LCVs is critical for SMEs to source their

Figure 2. European New LCV Sales 2.22

2.25 2.07 2.01

2.00

2.09 1.99

1.83 1.75 1.66 Million units

Recovery rates will vary but there are many complex relationships contributing to recovery - the level of integration within the Eurozone, corporate discipline, governments’ appetite for austerity, unemployment and willingness to be unpopular. Equally, the willingness, or otherwise, of the Troika to bail out individual states may be important. Further decline in some states is anticipated.

1.54 1.50

1.41

1.55

1.54

1.50 1.42

1.25

1.00 2 0 0 3 2 0 0 4 2 0 0 5 2 0 0 6 2 0 0 7 2 0 0 8 2 0 0 9 2 0 1 0 2 0 1 1 2 0 1 2 2 0 1 3 2 0 1 4 2015

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dossier I LCV Management in Europe

Used LCVs, like a vintage wine, cannot be created overnight

2008 and continued to fall still further afterwards. Market change was pretty dramatic as shown by the chart. Post 2009 there was a small upturn broadly in line with the economic bounce-back shown earlier in these notes, but sales have slipped back again given the eurocrisis and even the relatively optimistic Buckingham forecasts show a slow and tortuous recovery.

While all of the major markets have slipped, there have been different rates of decline – note the dip everywhere in 2009 and the somewhat different patterns thereafter. A further market abnormality is the relative rate of change of sales in the newest EU member states which are examined in the full Occasional Paper.

The causes of the drop in sales are principally driven by individual national economies and the overall figures show some markets have done relatively better than others. The chart in Figure 3 shows how sales have dipped in some of the major EU markets over the last few years.

The burst of LCV sales through to 2007 shown in Figure 2 might, arguably, be claimed to have been driven with the widespread availability of finance under very generous terms as well as the relative strength of the euro.

The most problematic major European market has been Spain as illustrated in Figure 3, but the other major markets have suffered too.

Such credit driven growth, longer term probably was, and certainly

500 461

Thousand units

419

333 297

323

318

296 250 200 150

202 177

214

274 231

333

243

209 194

287

276

222 186

381

373 322

260 223 224

198

166

239

222

176 171

219 213

234

186

107

100

197

172

177 116

104 76

50 0

2 0 0 3

2 0 0 4 France

2 0 0 5

2 0 0 6 Germany

Source: ACEA

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2 0 0 7

2 0 0 8 Italy

The paradigm in Figure 4 illustrates the concept. The space below the dotted line indicates the loss of new LCV sales and, assuming historically supply and demand balanced each other, it represents the ‘Used LCV Supply Gap’ – units which it would be reasonable to expect SMEs and other players to seek to acquire to continue their businesses.

427

416

386

380

350 300

459

439 407

400

A Black Hole for Recovery? The Buckingham Automotive Team has spent a lot of time examining the phenomenon of ‘lost sales and the aftermarket’. Quite simply, the loss of new LCV sales means that over time there will be a serious supply shortage in terms of used LCVs coming to market.

Maybe the dotted line should, that is an academic argument which does not detract from the overall thesis.

Figure 3. EU Major Markets; New LCV sales

450

now is unsustainable. Post the banking crisis, by and large member states have reined back their spending to a longer term sustainable business growth.

2 0 0 9 Spain

2 0 1 0

2 0 1 1

2 0 1 2

United Kingdom

For the overall EU market, the Buckingham Automotive team predict a potential shortage well in excess of half a million units – if not more – depending on the speed and rate of sales recovery. Buckingham estimate it could take close to ten years for the implications of the current drop in LCVs to work through the system and return to the historic norm. By then the whole business model may well have changed significantly, new issues arisen and the base figure lifted.

dossier I LCV Management in Europe

Figure 4. EU New LCV Sales Deficit versus Potential Demand 2.22

2.25 2.07

2.09

2.01

2.00

1.99 Supply Gap

1.83

Million units

1.75

1.66 1.54

1.54

1.50 1.41

The overall message is ‘greater productivity and utilisation from the available LCV parc and that may in turn lead to a change in the provision of LCVs for rental, with dealers as well as specialist rental providers expanding. Equally, provision of rental as demand may be at shorter notice, we may find a requirement for additional electronic management and booking services.

1.25

1.00

2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012

Source: ACEA / Buckingham

Potential Resolutions to the Supply Shortage Without registering unrealistic numbers of new LCVs at uneconomic prices, the problem, the Black Hole, identified in the foregoing paragraphs may invite a number of possible strategies to be considered and some implemented. The checklist below highlights some actions which might be taken to ease the situation as economies begin to recover and demand for LCV capacity increases. It is unlikely that any of the individual suggestions contain the magic ‘silver bullet’ but between them a mix of actions may offer some mitigation or at least form the basis for discussion as economies start to recover; • LCV users review overall transport requirements and practices; how has business demand changed and what steps can be taken to modify LCV transport requirements? • Seek to acquire additional new LCVs – assuming the OEMs have the capacity to produce them and

funds are available to support the higher prices. • Acquire more older units, although these will be in sport supply and prices may be higher, There is a clear role for dealers to refurbish older used LCVs for the market. • Provision for funding at attractive rates to enable LCV users to update their requirements, even at a premium price.

Conclusions When economic recovery starts in the EU, there is likely to be a shortage of new and used LCVs to satisfy demand. The imbalance in supply and demand will take up to ten years to flush right through the system. It is important that the industry, both the OEMs’ and fleet users overall are aware of the principal issues. Awareness of the potential issues can lead to transitional strategies to be developed to avoid the Black Hole. The speed of economic recovery could, indirectly, be linked to the availability of used LCVs. ■ Professor Peter N C Cooke Professor of Automotive Management University of Buckingham Ref – Fleet Europe LCV – June 2013

• Used LCV specialists establishing sustainable supply chains with major new LCV operators and those used LCV providers establishing a more sophisticated understanding of their client requirements. • Look to use shared transport capacity – use delivery services or in some cases introduce cars instead of LCVs if that is practical. • Rent LCV capacity rather than buy units. Rent only on the days required rather than have units standing idle.

Read the complete paper The article is a précis of the White Clarke Automotive Solutions paper on strategic Issues in Fleet & LCV Management, “The European LCV Market; A Looming Black Hole?” The full paper is free to download on http://www.whiteclarkegroup. com/news/view/the_european_ lcv_market_a_looming_black_ hole

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dossier I LCV Management in Europe

The Compact LCV: Urban ants Long thought of as cumbersome, rather ungainly vehicles, LCVs are increasingly seen as compact, even stylish. They make it easier to get around town - while giving a shine to the brand image of the company!

f course we all need space for delivering packages or transporting tools, but we don’t generally want to spend the whole day at the wheel of a “vulgar” van while doing so. At least, that’s the idea behind the Mini, which is making its grand entrance in the delivery vehicle market with the Clubvan. This two-seater model is derived from the little Clubman station wagon and offers up to 860 litres of volume (and 500kg load). Although it’s a utility vehicle, the Clubvan is still essentially a Mini, offering a range of personalisation options (sporting interior, leather seats, aluminium wheel rims up to 17 inches). In the Diesel version, the Cooper D, the Clubvan utility vehicle also offers mixed consumption, with 3.9 L/100km (103g of Co2/km), which will be of interest to this segment.

and is accessible via the back of the vehicle. The utility version is still available with the two different electric engines from the classic Twizy (45km/hr or 80km/hr) and retails from less than €9,000. In actual use it has a range of between 50 and 80km. If you prefer more traditional coachwork but are particularly looking for a compact van to reduce your purchase and running costs, the range available is pretty wide – considerably more so today than ten years ago. You can choose between the professional versions (two-seaters and separation grille) of classic run-arounds, like the Ford Fiesta Van, for example, and the compact LCVs (Citroën Nemo, Peugeot Bipper, Fiat Fiorino, Kangoo Express Compact etc). Although the former offer better driving pleasure, the latter outclass them considerably as regards loading volume (on average, around 2.5m3), in spite of being only slightly larger.

The compact LCV market is particularly prevalent in the fleets of public services, postal services, the police, etc.

Reducing costs Not quite original enough for your business? Perhaps Renault has the solution with the Twizy Cargo, a utility version of its original electric vehicle, half-way between the worlds of the car and the scooter. The back seat of the classic version has gone, making room for a boot that can accommodate 180 L (75kg load). The sealed boot can be locked with the contact key

In the size just mentioned, the choice is becoming even greater with the arrival of Asian in addition to European manufacturers, who are still the leaders in utility vehicles in the 4-metre range. In this superior segment, we can also see a gradual increase in the number of 100% electric vans, with the PSA range (Citroën Jumper and Peugeot Partner) being added to that of Renault (Kangoo ZE) – an interesting solution for companies with vans that have to make regular rounds and return to the depot at night. ■ Jean-François Christiaens

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dossier I LCV Management in Europe

1. Renault Kangoo In addition to a remodelled front, a three-seater version and the arrival of new extras (extended grip, R-Link connected multimedia system etc), the Kangoo benefits from a facelift offering Stop&Start and reduced emissions. The result: 110g of C02/km for the 1.5 dCi 110. 2. Mercedes Citan Mercedes is extending its range of vans, thanks to its collaboration with Renault. The new Citan looks a bit like a redesigned Renault Kangoo. The only technical differences between these two models are in the modifications made to the driving software and the type of shock absorber. 3. Peugeot Partner Electric Like the thermal versions, the new Berlingo Electric offers two coachwork versions: normal and long (4.38 and 4.63 metres). This frees up a loading volume of 3.3m3 or 3.7m3 – even up to 4.1m3 if the front passenger seat is lowered. The battery pack, located under the loading floor, gives it a theoretical range of 170km.

5. Ford Fiesta Van Like the saloon version, the Ford Fiesta Van has been given a new look. On the practical side, the usable volume is still 1m3 and the CO2 emissions start at under 90g of CO2/km (87g), with 95hp for the 1.6 TDCi. 6. Ford Transit Connect Just a little more patience is needed: the Transit Connect will be in the showrooms at the end of the year. Available in two wheelbase versions, it will offer a loading volume of between 2.9m3 and 3.6m3. There will be three types – a van, a double-cabin van or a Combi. NB: the excellent three-cylinder petrol Ecoboost 1.0 L will be available in the catalogue. 7. Nissan NV 200 It will shortly be Nissan’s turn to join the electric adventure with this compact NV 200 van. An e-NV 200, benefitting from the technology of their own LEAF saloon, is currently being researched. Its electric 109hp engine with 280 Nm of torque should give it a top speed of 145km/hr, and its lithium-ion batteries a range of 175km.

4. Fiat Doblò Fiat’s Doblò range now has an XL version. As its name implies, it offers a record loading volume of 5m3 (or even 5.4m3 if the front passenger seat is lowered) and has no trouble carrying up to… 1,000kg of merchandise! These values are normally found in the next category up. 3

4 6

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dossier I LCV Management in Europe

The medium-sized LCV: Quality and practicality While waiting for its competitors to introduce their latest innovations, Ford’s new Transit Custom is taking advantage of the situation to leap ahead with its advanced equipment. Is this a model that will inspire a new generation of more refined delivery vans?

amed “International Van of the Year 2013”, Ford’s Transit Custom has no intention of making life easy for its competitors. Apart from its style, which is much less cube-shaped than in the past, it sports many features that are new to the category of the onetonne commercial vehicle. Top in safety First, the loading volume. In spite of its smarter appearance, the new Transit is still very spacious, offering 6m3 of usable volume with the short wheelbase version and up to 6.8m3 with the long version. But its safety equipment puts it head and shoulders above its former competitors. Taking on board some of the electronic equipment in passenger vehicles in the Ford range, the Transit Custom emits a warning signal if the van inadvertently changes lane, has a system for detecting when the driv-

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er falls asleep, and offers “intelligent” headlights. And if the worst still comes to the worst, the Transit can issue an automatic emergency call with GPS location in the event of an accident.

The motto here is: transport as much as possible for as little as possible.

Competing models, based on a much older design, can’t currently match the new Transit in this regard - all the more since the comfort features are following the same pattern. So it is, for example, that the catalogue includes a reversing camera with screen built

into the central rear-view mirror, or the SYNC info-entertainment system with voice control. However, equipment like this should be seen in competitor vans in due course, as and when they are updated. Such features are still rare among commercial vehicles, but are becoming widespread among various groups of passenger automobiles. Having said that, we mustn’t forget the loading volume, the safety and comfort features, the reduction in running costs and CO2 emissions. Once again, the Transit stands apart from current models. The 2.2-litre Duratorq TDCi engine available in 100hp, 125hp and 155hp has Stop&Start and an average CO2 emission rate of 174g/km. Even better is the Econetic version, which has extra features such as acceleration control and a device limiting the speed to 110km/ hr, making it possible to reduce the emission rate to 159g/km on the 100hp version – a benchmark in the sector that competitors will very soon be racing to equal! ■ Jean-François Christiaens

dossier I LCV Management in Europe

1. Toyota ProAce The Toyota ProAce has joined the already extensive family of PSA/Fiat triples (Peugeot Expert, Citroën Jumpy and Fiat Scudo). This last model, which is distinguished solely by its Toyota logo on the radiator grill, is the first stage in the collaboration agreement signed by PSA and Toyota in July 2012 for commercial vehicles.

2. Fiat Scudo In order to look like its big brother Scudo, Fiat’s medium Scudo van has been given a new silver radiator grill. The interior presentation has also changed with the appearance of a dark grey dashboard. Three usable volumes are available: 5, 6 and 7m3. 3. Citroën Jumpy Because of its optional rear pneumatic suspension, the Citroën Jumpy can lower its loading height to a mere 49cm. In addition, its total height can then drop below 1.9 metres to facilitate access to underground car parks.

4. Ford Transit Custom The new Transit is a text book example of optimising the loading volume, safety, driving comfort and reduction of running costs. 5. Renault Trafic Launched in 2000, the Renault Trafic II is one of the oldest models still available in the catalogue. However, Renault have announced the arrival of a new generation for next year. The production of this next generation will be moved to France, the current Trafic being assembled in the UK and Spain. 6. Hyundai H1 Van The 2013 versions of the Hyundai H1 Van sport a new radiator grill and redesigned bumpers. The structure has also been reinforced and all the versions now have two airbags as standard and an ESP system with anti-rollover protection.

7. Volkswagen Transporter In the recent BlueMotion version, Volkswagen’s Transporter is going for sobriety. Its 2.0 TDI 114 hp has low tracking resistance tyres, Stop&Start and energy recuperation during braking, with fuel consumption of 6.3 L/100km (166g of Co2/km). 8. Mercedes Vito The Mercedes Vito comes in two wheelbases, three lengths and two roof heights. This gives it up to 7.4m³ of loading space. This practical vehicle can hold up to three Europallets and 1.345kg of useful load.

9. Opel Vivaro Twin brother of the Renault Trafic, the appealing Opel Vivaro shares the same original design.

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The Large LCVs: Volume in stock Just below mini-trucks, we find large vans, all offering more loading volume while smartening up their appearance. The number of alliances between manufacturers will provide us with an interesting game of musical chairs when it comes to updating existing models.

he number of collaborations in the field of commercial vehicles will soon be profoundly changing the landscape for large delivery vans. For example, Volkswagen have let it be known that they didn’t want to continue their partnership with Mercedes in the future. However, it was by following the lines of the Mercedes Sprinter that Volkswagen’s Crafters were born. In 2016, Volkswagen might be benefiting from having the presence of truck manufacturer MAN in its pocket, producing a new Crafter in the MAN factories. This is a situation that should push the collaboration between Mercedes and Renault towards the large van segment. In all probability, the future German Sprinter could well be produced in partnership with Renault. That would work out well: following the rapprochement between PSA and American group General Motors, it seems clear that Renault will no longer be able to rely on its previous partner (Opel) to share the costs of its forthcoming Master in future.

should enable French group PSA to develop a new range of vans for 2017. Extra-European partnerships This game of musical chairs that will fashion the future of commercial vehicles for the next decade is highly strategic. In a European market in crisis, the volume of commercial vehicles still continues to slump (down 12.5% in 2012). Falling below 1,700,000 units, the European commercial vehicle market is increasingly forcing manufacturers to collaborate in order to lower costs. But additionally, and especially, it is forcing them to find partners outside Europe to ensure sales volumes in markets with a big potential for growth, like the USA, China, Brazil or South Africa. For example, Renault has just started manufacturing its facelifted Master in Brazil. The Curitiba factory will enable the French manufacturer gradually to market the latest generation of its large van in various countries in South America.

The number of collaborations will soon be profoundly changing the landscape for large delivery vans.

There is similar disruption at Fiat. Now that they have the Chrysler group to help them to expand distribution of their large van into the USA, the Italian manufacturer has decided not to extend its agreement with French group PSA for the development of commercial vehicles. However, the partnership negotiated with Toyota and signed last year in quite a hurry

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In the meantime, the relationships need to be cemented. Thus, manufacturers are getting down to perfecting their existing models by focusing mainly on their carbon emissions. ■ Jean-François Christiaens

www.kia.com

EvEry FlEEt nEEds a Flagship.

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international Car Of The Year 2013 7-year warranty* fuel consumption from 4.9 l/100 km Up to 177 pS with only 119 g CO2/km**

The Kia OpTima: BOrn TO lead The Kia fleeT. With its bold looks, the Kia Optima has received several design awards. Its convincing high-quality materials and state-ofthe-art technology make the interior of the Kia Optima a real comfort zone for its passengers. Besides diesel and petrol engine options, the Kia Optima offers a hybrid powertrain with surprisingly low CO2 emissions of only 119 g/km, which makes it the first D-segment petrol hybrid launched in Europe. But ultimate peace of mind for fleet customers derives from its 7-year warranty – just like any other Kia fleet member. Simply put, it runs in the family. Meet a different kind of fleet: www.kia.com/eu/fleet

* The Kia 7-year/150,000 km new car warranty. Valid in all EU member states (plus Norway, Switzerland, Iceland and Gibraltar), subject to local terms and conditions. Fuel consumption (l/100 km)/CO2 (g/km): urban from 5.7/138 to 10.3/239, extra-urban from 4.4/116 to 6.1/142, combined from 4.9/119 to 7.6/177. ** For Kia Optima Hybrid.

dossier I LCV Management in Europe

1. Renault Master The Renault Master will inaugurate two new engines in 2013: the Energy dCi 100 and Energy dCi 125. These two engines save considerably on fuel consumption (up to 1 litre/100km) and CO2 emissions (-26 g CO2/km). The Renault Master will now drop below the level of 200g of CO2/km (195g/km). 2. Volkswagen Crafter Benefiting from the BlueMotion programme across the rest of the Volkswagen range, the large Crafter has unusually low emissions for the segment. Depending on the engine specification, the programme makes it possible to save up to 0.8 litres/100km. The 2 litre TDI 163 version produces only 189 grams of CO2/km. 3. Mercedes Sprinter Thanks to its four body lengths and its different roof heights, the Mercedes Sprinter van offers a capacity of up to 17m3 with a maximum load of 2,710kg.

4. Nissan NV 400 Nissan has just expanded the range of its NV400 heavy van by introducing a double-cabin van going under the name of Crew Van. Developed on the basis of the Van version with a semi-glazed cabin, it makes it possible to combine a large load space and seven seats - enabling both materials and workers to be transported to the building site. 5. Opel Movano The 1.27 metre wide lateral sliding door of the Movano’s second length makes it possible to load Europallets directly from the side of the vehicle. At the back, in the H2 version, high doors make it possible to add loads of up to 1.82 metres in height. Finally, the maximum length for loading is 4.38 metres. Since its launch in 2011, the cousin of the Renault Master has sold over 560,000 units in Europe.

6. Fiat Ducato Fiat Professional is extending its “Comfort-Matic” range to include more versions of the Fiat Ducato. The 6-gear automatic transmission, already available in the 180hp 3 litre Diesel engine, is now also available for the 130 and 150hp 2.3 litre Diesel engines.

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7. Citroën Jumper Unlike previous generations, the Citroën Jumper can reach a total weight of 4 tonnes when fully loaded. It now offers a carrying capacity of 2 tonnes. The Jumper is thus one of the only front-wheel-drive LCVs to offer a total loaded weight of more than 3.5 tonnes.

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The new crossover Peugeot 2008 offers Stop & Start technology for diesel engines (e-HDi) and petrol engines (e-VTi*). Quick, efﬁcient and silent running, this enables fuel consumption to be controlled as well as a reduction in CO2 emissions with optimal ease of use thanks to an almost instantaneous vibration-free engine stop and start system. *Available in the second half of 2013.

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dossier I LCV Management in Europe

The Pick-ups: The beasts of burden Always ready to be of service, pick-up trucks enable heavy loads to be transported with ease and, at the same time, can tow a trailer with several tonnes on it – while making difficult terrain accessible thanks to their impressive ability to traverse it.

ick-ups are a race apart in the utility vehicle sector. The basic, robust design makes them fairly archaic to drive, but their look, which is getting ever more sophisticated, and their increasingly less Spartan passenger compartment is making them look more and more like traditional SUVs. It has to be said that their growing popularity among private customers is encouraging manufacturers to smarten up the appearance and road handling of the new models. But beware: even though they are proving less liable to bucking than previous models, modern pick-ups still rely almost exclusively on leaf springs and a rigid bridge; they use rear-wheel drive on the road (the 4x4 function is generally reserved for driving over soft ground in the absence of an expensive central differential). So a certain amount of caution is advisable on slippery roads… especially if the vehicle is unladen! We mustn’t forget that, even with ever more mouth-watering external appearances, pick-ups are designed to transport more than a tonne of merchandise in the back and tow a trailer with a load of more than 3 tonnes! They are veritable beasts of burden capable of accessing the most remote sites. Unless you’re happy with basic 2-wheel drive versions (which are still usually sufficient for most types of use), pick-ups actually offer the ability to tra-

verse terrain worthy of the best 4x4s. All the more so since, over the past few years, the electronics in off-road ABS or electronic locking differential or automatic braking systems when going downhill are making difficult manoeuvres even simpler! In spite of these concessions to modernity, today’s pickups have nevertheless not forgotten their primary mission and are still pushing back the limits. The latest innovation to date in the segment, the Ford Ranger, is testimony to this. Recently given the title of pickup in 2013, the new Ford Ranger now offers a higher loading capacity (up to 1,179kg at the back) and a towing capacity raised to 3,350kg – while offering driving comfort that is considerably less rudimentary.

Pick-ups are a race apart in the utility vehicle sector.

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Another good point is that the Ranger was the first pickup to obtain the maximum award of 5 stars in the Euro NCAP safety tests. On the mechanical side, Ford offers two Diesel engines to power its Ranger: a big 200hp 5-cylinder 3.2 TDCi and a 150hp 4-cylinder 2.2 TDCi. This is the other trend in the segment, pushed to the extreme by the Volkswagen Amarok: it has a smaller cylinder size to limit the fuel consumption of these “mini-trucks”. However, the Amarok only offers a 2 litre bi-turbo engine in the catalogue. ■ Jean-François Christiaens 2

dossier I LCV Management in Europe

1. Volkswagen Amarok The Amarok offers two types of integral transmission that are original in the segment: one that can be engaged with reduction gearing or a permanent one with a Torsen-type differential. Recently, Volkswagen have brought out an XXL version of the Amarok extended to 5.9 metres. 2. Nissan Navarra In spite of its greater age, the Nissan Navarra is still one of the most popular pick-ups we have. To keep its attractiveness to the maximum, Nissan are fleshing out this range. The XE version is now available with a new 2.5 dCi, delivering 144hp and a torque of 350 Nm at 1,600 rpm. 3. Toyota Hilux The best-seller in its class in Europe, the Hilux was given a bit of a facelift in 2012. Its mechanics now comply with Euro5 standards, and they are fitted with particle filters. The interior has also been slightly remodelled to make it a bit less “rustic”.

4. Land Rover Defender In the long wheelbase (130) pick-up version, the legendary Defender enables bulky materials to be transported to virtually inaccessible places. Since its last restyling, the all-terrain English model has offered a modern 2.2 litre Diesel engine providing up to 360 Nm of torque. 5. Isuzu D-MAX A specialist in pick-ups, Isuzu has been marketing the latest generation of its durable D-Max since mid2012. Apart from its more modern look, this new version benefits especially from a 2.5 litre bi-turbo Diesel engine, delivering 163hp and 400 Nm of torque and enabling it to tow up to 3 tonnes.

6. Fiat Strada With the Dacia pick-up, the Fiat Strada is the other “small” pickup available on the market in Europe. For workers using their vehicle on their own, the short-cabin version (4.4m) can carry up to 705 kilos of merchandise in the back (1.3m wide and 1.68m long). Intended mainly for teams, the Strada Working Double Cabin (also 4.4m) enables four workers and their equipment to be transported to the site. 7. Fiat Doblo Work Up For the first time, Fiat is producing a pick-up version of its Doblo van. Called the “Work Up”, this version has a loading platform with dimensions that are particularly generous in view of the reduced size of the model: 2.3 metres long and 1.82 metres wide – which means more than 4 square metres of loading surface.

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Equipment and fittings: A la carte Even the most popular private cars in the high-level customisation range can’t match the variety of equipment offers LCV models have. Designed to meet all kinds of needs, delivery vans offer an astonishing à la carte service - even a tailor-made service if you go to one of the specialist fitting companies.

One of the leaders in LCV equipment with a focus on sustainability and weight reduction is Sortimo.

ince they primarily serve as tools, delivery LCVs come in a countless number of versions to precisely meet professional expectations. The most common variations are those involving length, height or wheelbase. Depending on the particular requirements, it is possible to incorporate widely-varying load volumes in one and the same model. Expenses and running costs can be kept down with a version precisely tailored to one’s needs. For example, the Mercedes Sprinter comes in different versions from 7.5m3 (short version with normal roof) up to 17m3 in its most imposing version (extra long with long wheelbase and extra high roof). Since this range of choice,

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Flat-back version But this wide variety of versions, offered directly by the manufacturers, doesn’t stop there. For example, among the majority of larger vans we can also find flat-back versions, a kind of pick-up. And this bodywork version is also starting to be seen in the more compact categories. Fiat have just added a flat-back version to their Doblò range for the first time, called the “Work Up”. This version – which is of interest for activities in agriculture, civil construction or maintenance, or for transporting bulky objects (doors, glass, gates, windows, etc.) – means you no longer have to go for a vehicle in a higher,

Since they primarily serve as tools, delivery vans come in a countless number of versions to precisely meet professional expectations.

typical of the larger LCVs, is also available in the more compact models (the Renault Kangoo for example, is available in versions varying from 2.8 to 4.5m3), it is becoming almost impossible not to find the version of a van that perfectly matches your professional needs.

more expensive category to get the benefit of a loading platform. By way of comparison, although it’s possible to load up 3 Europallets or 33 boxes of fruit, the Doblò Work Up costs on average about €7,000 less than a vehicle in a higher category, while providing the same kind of capacities.

dossier I LCV Management in Europe

it all-terrain abilities while still retaining a more generous load volume than with a traditional 4x4.

Fiat Ducato large-volume body In partnership with the coachbuilder Trouillet, Fiat are offering a large-volume body version of its Ducato. Based on the Maxi cabin chassis (3.5t) with reinforced suspension, this version has a body made of recycled material, making it nearly 150kg lighter than comparable traditional bodies. In addition to reducing the vehicleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s fuel consumption, this makes it possible retain a carrying capacity of more than one tonne (1,050kg). In terms of usable volume, this version provides up to 20m3.

Difficult terrain Another trend in the utility world is offering â&#x20AC;&#x153;adventurerâ&#x20AC;? versions, which make it possible to access difficult terrain. This means that some vans have integral transmission and/or higher, strengthened suspension. The modifications are made either directly in the factory or in specialist workshops (Dangel, for example, which works on PSA vans) as an after-sales option. Some manufacturers push things further in order to make their utility models even more versatile. For example, Volkswagen turns its Transporter into the Rockton. This special version sits on reinforced suspension, has its body heightened and is fitted with all-terrain tyres on reinforced steel rims. In addition to its permanent transmission, a rear differential lock completes the features, enabling the Transporter to venture serenely onto soft or slippery ground. This gives

London taxi To capture certain big markets (postal services, police, taxis etc.), manufacturers will even internally develop variants specific to certain requirements. This is the case with Nissan, for example, which has just won a major contract for its NV 200 van in the USA. At the end of this year the Japanese manufacturer will be supplying a total of 13,000 vehicles to replace the fleet of the legendary yellow cabs typical of American towns and cities. Specially fitted out for New York, this Japanese taxi, which is produced in Mexico, will be fitted with a totally glazed roof, electric sockets for customers to recharge their mobile devices and passenger safety airbags. An all-electric version is also on the drawing board. To maintain the momentum, Nissan has also perfected a London version of its NV200 taxi. This London Cab has a capacious passenger compartment for five adults: three sitting on the rear bench seat and two on fold-down seats

To capture certain market segments, OEMs develop variants specific to certain requirements. This is the case with Nissan, for example, that has perfected a London version of its NV200 taxi.

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As strong as an ant

Modul-System offers a wide variety of adapted equipment for LCVs. opposite them. Separated from the rest of the vehicle, the front passenger space next to the driver can be used to hold luggage. As an extra inducement, the design also includes two sliding doors, which are more practical and safer in town than the swing doors in the present taxis. But if the London Cab achieves success in the market, it will perhaps be mainly due to its 1.5 dCi 90hp engine, about twice as economical (5.3 litres/100km) as that of the current British taxis, which are pretty thirsty! Made to measure When the various versions offered directly by manufacturers don’t cover every need for specific kinds of work, it will be necessary to turn to firms that specialise in converting and fitting out commercial vehicles. The modifications can range from a simple interior refit to turning the vehicle into a refrigerated van, including much more specific versions (mobile shop, fire-fighting vehicles, horse boxes, etc.). Customers can generally choose between more or less pre-set kits, depending on the type of vehicle required (large-volume van, refrigerated van, workshop van, hearse, publicity vehicle etc.), or depending on one’s business (kits for plumbers, electricians, bill-boarders, surveyors, painters etc.). This not only makes it possible to keep costs down, thanks to the standardisation of the versions, but also to provide a faster turnkey solution. The other solution offered by the refitting firms is to create a totally made-to-measure solution. The main companies in this field now have a team for research, development and production, making it possible to meet highly

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Modul-System is currently offering a storage system made from high-strength steel, a material four times stronger than the ordinary steel that has been used up to now. It offers a level of rigidity that makes it possible to create structures using thinner plates and upright supports. Certain types of shelving offered by interior fittings specialist Modul-System can support loads of up to 40 times their own weight. This is the same carrying power as that of the weightlifting champions of the natural world: ants! A shelf measuring 1134 x 324 x 54mm and weighing only 3kg can thus support up to 120kg of load with no trouble at all! specific requests and at the same time comply with the European accreditation and safety standards. Lightness and safety The modifications designed to facilitate the daily use of a utility vehicle are not always so major and expensive. Rather, most of the transformations generally go unnoticed, because they usually focus on the internal fitting of the loading space. Currently, it’s more a matter of constructing metal or wooden shelving of some sort, so that tools can be stored more easily. In the event of an accident, objects that have not been properly stowed could become lethal weapons. The new fitting-out structures offered by numerous refit firms undergo specific crash-tests to ensure the integrity of the rear compartment in case of an accident, making them much safer. Furthermore, the availability of new, very light composite materials or high-strength steel makes it possible to create solid structures capable of supporting heavy loads without increasing the weight of the vehicle when empty. This has a double advantage: it does not restrict the van’s carrying capacity and, above all, it does not increase the daily fuel consumption or wear and tear on the tyres. A reduction of 50kg in the structure can result in a reduction of nearly 0.1 litre/100km. If we multiply the savings made in this way by the number of vans in a fleet, this could result in substantial cost savings at the end of the year - which is good news! ■ Jean-François Christiaens

NORTH AMERICA N

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ASIA PACIFIC & MIDDLE EAST

The successful integration of Eastern Europe in international fleet management Prague, November 20th 2013 Special Focus on: > Country Focus: Russia, Turkey, Poland, Czech Republic > Implementing an international fleet management in Eastern Europe > Economic and fleet management outlook of Eastern Europe

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dossier I LCV Management in Europe

Taxation: New targets agreed for 2020 As part of its strategy to further cut Co2-emissions from light-duty vehicles with a longer perspective, the European Parliament approved a draft law to cut average emissions from LCVs from 147g Co2/km in 2020. Ministers also proposed indicative targets for post-2020 Co2 -emissions at a range of 105g to 120g from 2025

LCVs are mostly taxed on weight, number of axles, etc... and not on Co2-emissions.

he proposal to set stricter targets to 118 g Co2/km was not followed. Anyway this approval provides clarity and a long term perspective and will allow manufacturers to implement a longer term strategy. Driven by the developments on the car side, technology should be available and should not add too much to the cost of a vehicle, a cost, at least theoretically, compensated by a reduction in mostly fuel costs. Unlike with cars no taxation incentives are further pushing the demand for such vehicles. It is expected however that the CSR programs that many companies have started including the lowering of their Co2-footprint should be sufficient to match offer and demand of fuel efficient LCVs. “Green LCVs” seem even easier to

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Monitoring behaviour In principle LCV taxation will, unlike with cars, not be an element to consider. Mostly, LCVs are taxed on weight, number of axles, etc... and not on Co2-emissions. Based on the information gathered for the Fleet Europe Taxation Guide 2013, about 20 member States have linked car taxation elements to Co2-emissions, making direct and indirect taxes a big part of the savings potential for Co2-reduction programs for car fleets. By our knowledge none of them has done something focused on LCVs (apart from some incentives for electric LCVs). Taking into account the CSR driven demand and the absence of the “emotional” aspects in vehicle choice, it is likely that governments do not need to and will not “interfere”. Lessons from the “green” cars are valuable for vans. An important lesson is that driver behaviour becomes increasingly important to achieve expected results of driving vehicles with lower Co2-emissions. Having fuel efficient vans only will not bring the necessary savings in terms of fuel consumption and hence a lower Co2-footprint. Monitoring driving behaviour should be part of the process. In principle good processes should be sufficient to result in proper driving. If not the proposal to electronically limit the speed to 120 km per hour may be an option.

Although LCVs and passenger cars may be quite different in terms of their use and users, many cross fertilizing is likely to happen in terms of Co2-emissions, driver behaviour and safety with similar in-car and after market technology. This cross fertilizing is not expected to happen in the taxation area where van taxation currently does not provide the extra push, a push that does not seem to be needed… ■ Bart Vanham Indirect tax and vehicle taxation expert Price : 95.00 EUR

be implemented since less influenced by the emotions of the drivers.

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dossier I LCV Management in Europe

The need to control driver behaviour As you have probably already discovered in this dossier, managing LCV fleets and their drivers may not be the same as managing car fleets. The characteristics of LCVs steer the way they are and should be managed. To gain an insight into this segment, we asked Giles Margerison, Director UK & Ireland for TomTom Business Solutions, for his expert advice.

Car drivers are monitored for driving style, fuel consumption… is this the same for van drivers? Giles Margerison: “In terms of the actual driver behaviour, there is a perception that van drivers are more aggressive but there isn’t a distinct difference between the different types of driver. However, a van does have the capacity to use a lot more fuel. They are much heavier vehicles and much more expensive to run, so it is essential to study factors such as idling time and fuel efficiency to ensure cost is managed effectively.

here may be certain perceptions involving LCV drivers, but these may not all necessarily be true. Giles Margerison points out the specific characteristics of LCV fleets, and what fleet managers should be looking for. Is there any recognisable difference in how a ‘company van driver’ behaves in comparison to a company car driver? Giles Margerison: “There are a number of common themes which cover both types of vehicle but there are also some slight variances, largely resulting from the way they are used. A company car driver is more likely to have permission for private use, where as vans are largely for business use. As a result, there is more emphasis on monitoring abuse of the vehicle out of hours when it comes to vans. Vans are often opted out of private fuel allowances so it is important the business ensures they are used only for business use to avoid any cost or legal ramifications. Van drivers typically lead a more structured day, governed by a highly-specified schedule. A driver is given instructions to arrive at a certain place for a certain time to do a specific job so it is easy to identify when they are somewhere they are not supposed to be.” Is there a difference between service fleets and sales fleets? Giles Margerison: There is a focus on

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Giles Margerison of TomTom Business Solutions: “A company with an LCV fleet can make a real commitment to reducing road risk.” Service Level Agreements. Service fleets are often measured on strict targets to ensure they are doing the job required to the best possible standard. For sales fleet drivers, the emphasis will be on how often they are making visits to prospects and how long they last. The quality of visit is important so if a salesperson is regularly conducting meetings that last 20 minutes, it is clear they are not engaging with the prospect enough. For account managers, it is important to determine how often they are visiting clients and whether key clients are being visited regularly enough.”

According to different studies, light transport vehicles are also twice as likely as passenger vehicles to present an accident risk to other road users per kilometre, so elements such as speed and harsh cornering or braking are perhaps more pertinent. By limiting the amount of infringements in these areas, a company can make a real commitment to reducing road risk. Do you have specific services for LCVs as opposed to cars? Giles Margerison: “There are certain tools that are particularly pertinent for businesses operating fleets of LCVs. The majority of these fleets are primarily composed of service engineers, technicians, tradesmen or delivery drivers, making customer service, punctual arrival and job scheduling a priority.

dossier I LCV Management in Europe

The current systems generating driver feedback are able to identify the most appropriate employee for each job based on who will arrive first rather than simply who is closest.

The prevailing economic climate, fragile consumer confidence and increasing service-level demands have made this an area of concern for a large number of businesses. But the difficulty in achieving expected standards was outlined in Europe-wide research conducted by TomTom, which revealed that 40% of European consumers believe late arrival or unspecified estimated time of arrival are the biggest failings of service companies making home visits. On top of this, 80% have suffered from late arrival, with 27% claiming it happens on a regular basis.” So how does TomTom address this issue? Giles Margerison: “By drawing on a database of historic road use data and live traffic data, the system can generate highly accurate timings for each journey. These timings account for the time of day and week, congestion levels and even the amount of potential obstacles, such as traffic lights and roundabouts, en route. As such, it becomes possible to select the best available route for each job, minimise time spent on the road and provide customers with accurate, up-to-the-minute estimated time of arrival. In terms of job dispatch, the system is able to identify the most appropriate employee for each job based on who will arrive first rather than simply who is closest, with jobs or orders dispatched directly to the drivers’ navigation units.” ■

Light transport vehicles are twice as likely as passenger vehicles to present an accident risk to other road users per kilometre.

Clear benefits for LCV fleet managers Driver behaviour monitoring and feedback tools offer significant benefits for LCVs, allowing companies to cut fuel costs, reduce risk and improve staff safety. Each driver is given a score based on their performance in each area and regular reports can then be generated to form the foundation for incentive schemes aimed at improving driver performance. Active Driver Feedback allows drivers to gain real-time insight into how they are driving through their in-cab navigation devices. The unit will offer audible alerts if it detects excessive braking, cornering, idling and speeding, allowing behaviour to be addressed at source.

Tim Harrup

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Safety breakthrough There is no longer any question of sacrificing safety purely for the sake of profitability. Gradually, LCVs are also starting to pay attention to the sirens encircling the issue of the protection of users. the Renault Transit – which obtained a less flattering result in its category – lost points, for example, because of its lack of electronic safety equipment (result: only 14%). No doubt the next generations (the future Renault Master is expected in 2014, for example) should join the Ford Transit among LCV champions in this field! The new Ford Transit succeeded in being awarded the maximum of 5 EuroNCAP safety stars.

leading light in this change of mindset is the independent safety-monitoring organisation, EuroNCAP (European New Car Assessment Programme), which has decided to test delivery vans (in their passenger versions) during their regular inspections as well. Of the first models to be put through their paces, only the passenger version derived from the new Ford Transit succeeded in being awarded the maximum five stars. Recently revised, the EuroNCAP marking system now includes a single global rating ranging from zero to five stars. This “super-star” is calculated based on the result obtained by the vehicle in four areas: the protection of adult occupants, the protection of child occupants, the protection of pedestrians and the electronic safety systems. Modern design Just launched on the market, the Ford Transit Custom benefits from a modern design, distinguishing it from considerably older models. Launched in 2000,

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Electronic safety By turning the spotlight on the safety of passenger vehicle versions of LCVs, the independent organisation EuroNCAP will clearly encourage manufacturers to take more trouble over their designs in the future. For example, Mercedes have recalled 3,500 of their new Citans (the compact LCV based on the Renault Kangoo) after the middling result they obtained during the EuroNCAP crash test, in order to review the functioning of the side airbag, which was not triggered correctly during an impact in the testing facility. Active safety The success encountered by the MPVs, which were originally simple LCVs rigged out with seats, among non-commercial customers is not unusual in this new trend. Most of the recent MPVs were conceived firstly as family cars, before being turned into vans in the course of development. The “archaic” architecture, with a rigid deck at the back, has gone; most of today’s compact LCVs are equipped with modern wheel & axle sets, are more comfortable and safer. The popular Citroën Berlingo/Peugeot Partner and Renault Kangoo share their under-the-cover technology with the

Citroën C4 Picasso and Renault Scénic MPVs. Hence, the active safety of today’s LCVs is considerably better than in previous generations. Strengthened structure In addition, the LCVs of tomorrow will be able to take advantage of modern materials that considerably improve their passive safety. The Transit’s excellent result in the EuroNCAP crash tests can in part be explained by the use of modern types of steel in its design. For the first time in its history, the Ford Transit has certain structural elements made of ultra-high-strength boron steel and a total of more than 40% high-tensile steel. This gives it a body that is both light and very solid, providing better protection for the occupants in the event of an accident. The widespread use of these types of material in the automotive industry will benefit other utility vehicles in the future. All the more so, since this also makes it possible to limit the weight of the vehicle while increasing its rigidity. Electronic revolution A few years after surging into the world of passenger cars, electronics are now set to revolutionise the safety of LCVs. Once again, the Ford Transit is a typical example of this trend. It can be fitted with a digital camera mounted behind the interior rear-view mirror, making it possible to trigger an alarm signalling an involuntary change of lane, an anti-sleep alarm and automatic fullbeam headlight switching. In the near future, the camera could also operate the braking system automatically to prevent low-speed collisions (an option that will be offered on the future Tourneo Connect). ■ Jean-François Christiaens

dossier I LCV Management in Europe

Future of the LCV: Utility vehicles going crazy What will the utility vehicles of tomorrow look like? What with their design dictated by the increasing difficulties of getting around town, the need to limit polluting emissions, the avalanche of new technologies and the gradual development of automated driving – there are quite a few surprises in store for us!

he need for connectivity is just as relevant for utility vehicles. For example, in its recent facelift, the popular Renault Kangoo has been given an R-Link touch-screen tablet, making it possible to access a huge catalogue of apps. Downloadable via the 3G network, the apps open up a virtually limitless world of data: find an address via the Internet, confirm your arrival via email, update your diary directly after ending your call - with a voice command, find the cheapest petrol station in the immediate vicinity, etc.

The future is already among us. Self-driving utility vehicles are no longer a dream: here the Volkswagen eT minibus concept vehicle.

City deliveries Another huge revolution that will soon be appearing in the world of the utility vehicle is the arrival of small city vans, electric or otherwise. These will facilitate the delivery of compact packages or maintenance rounds involving a small amount of equipment (such as for lift repairmen, for example). The Renault Twizy, which is derived from the cargo version, is one of the first examples of this. In the future, we should be seeing increasing numbers of utility models derived from small urban vehicles. Electric engines The increasingly stricter anti-pollution standards will also be forcing manufacturers to offer alternative engines (electric, hybrid, natural gas). Initially, it seems that electric engines have the best chances of breaking through in the field of utility vehicles. Integrated screens Another futuristic novelty that should make its appearance in the world of utility vehicles is the increasing presence of giant, flexible yet robust screens on the sides of

vans. As presented in style studies, these large screens are integrated into the bodywork, making it possible to display information directly (such as the company’s contact details), or even TV adverts or dynamic slogans – making simple livery stickers look positively prehistoric. Automated driving A bit further into the future, we might even see the advent of utility vehicles capable of driving themselves. The Volkswagen eT minibus concept vehicle bears witness to this. It can actually drive around automatically under certain conditions, making everyday work for deliverymen all the easier. The concept vehicle – all-electric – can thus follow the deliveryman from house to house totally independently at walking pace (“Follow-me” function). It might even start to make small boys want to become postmen again when they grow up! ■ Jean-François Christiaens

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Tricks of the trade Sometimes taking the simplest of actions can have the biggest impacts on performance. Fleet Europe took some time out to talk with four experts to hear what they had to say about optimising a fleet of vans. Here’s the tricks of the trade that we took away from Wim Buzzi, Coca Cola Enterprises; Giovanni Tortorici, Barilla; Bart Vanham, BVH&Co Consulting; and Giles Margerison, Tom Tom Business Solutions.

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The less loved cousin of the car: There is less affection for the company van than the company car. Less attention is given to the van’s condition and drivers’ treat the humble van like a work horse rather than a racing horse. Take a closer look at the van, give it some more love and there are rewards to be had. Get engaged: Analyse driver behaviour, understand where performance can be improved and schedule actions to support change. By improving the driver’s relationship with the van extra value can be achieved in terms of maintenance and day to day running costs, all the way though to residual values. Protect and enhance the brand: Is your company logo going to be on your vans? If so, you’ll want to make sure they project the right image. Well maintained and clean vans tell a very different story to unkempt and dirty ones.

Keep it Simple – Step 1: Ease the challenge of procurement and day to day management by opting for OEM harmonization.

Keep it Simple - Step 2: Go for harmonization in leasing. Work with one supplier intensively to optimise performance.

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Make it fit for purpose: Build a fleet for the job at hand. Avoid fancy extra features and instead focus on the value that vehicle ergonomics can bring.

Focus on fuel: Opt for the most efficient engines to get the job done. Oversized engines will only increase costs.

TCO is top of the agenda: Consider the end to end costs: all the way from purchase price / lease price through to residual values, and everything that is sits in the in-between.

Optimise operations: Suppliers offer a wide range of fleet management solutions that help to keep your vans on the road. Wide service networks, no-queue policy, committed repair timeframes and free replacement vehicles. There is a lot of stuff to negotiate. Find out what is best for keeping your vans on the road by engaging with the market and exploring the solutions on offer.

Always consider the end-to-end costs when managing your fleet.

dossier I LCV Management in Europe

Giovanni Tortorici,

Giles Margerison, Sales

Bart Vanham, Managing

Wim Buzzi, Senior Manager

Purchasing Manager Global

Director TomTom Business

Director BVH&Co Consulting

Fleet Coca-Cola Enterprises

Supply Chain Barilla

Solutions

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Maintenance and buyback: If purchase is your preference explore maintenance contracts and guaranteed buyback arrangements with OEM’s.

Talking telematics: Talk about telematics systems with employees and encourage them to ask questions and make suggestions. Build the right solution together. It will pay off in the long run. Build the conditions for change: Change does not happen overnight. Engage with stakeholders and explain the aims and objectives of the project, what the change could lead too and how they can help make it happen. Support the champions: Identify employees who recognise the benefits of new systems and empower them to become champions of change. They will encourage others to adopt best practice.

Carrots taste nicer than sticks: And sticks hurt. Offer employees incentives to improve performance and give them the support they need. Help them become the change you want to see.

Look for added value: With van drivers often by paid by the hour proof of hours worked and job completion is important. Fleet management solutions can improve company systems, so demonstrate the added value that you bring to the table. ■ Tim Harrup & Jonathan Green

Management Facts • On average safe and fuel efficient driving delivers saving in the region of 10-12% of fuel costs. That’s a fifth more than for cars. Use the potential for financial savings to build a business case for action. Safer driving styles means less wear and tear, fewer accidents and less down time. • Get stakeholders involved in research and decision making process. If management teams and drivers are not on board then the chances of success start to fade away. By engaging with employees, communicating objectives and listening to fears it is possible to create balanced solutions. For example, if communicated correctly the fear of ‘Big Brother’ associated with telematics can fade away and be replaced with a sense of contentedness that “Big Mother” is at hand to offer support and guidance. • Managing risk leads to financial rewards. Improved driving styles, leads to fewer collisions resulting in lower insurance premiums. It’s a win – win for your van fleet.

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Management I News Tayo opts for TomTom

Versailles joins electric age

Crisps and snack manufacturers Tayto Group has introduced a TomTom combined tracking, performance monitoring and fuel management system across its 117-strong vehicle fleet. This is designed to provide improved visibility and insights into its mobile teams of sales, management and distribution professionals. The LINK tracking units and ecoPLUS™ fuel management and diagnostics devices enable information on how vehicles are being driven – from speeding and idling to harsh braking and steering – to be collated via TomTom’s WEBFLEET management software in a live information dashboard or in a customisable report.

The Château of Versailles has committed to sustainable mobility in order to enable its gardens staff to move around the large extent of the park. It has come to an agreement with Renault to use 3 ZOE models, 10 Kangoo ZE and 10 Twizy – all of these cars 100% electric. The park at Versailles comprises 43 km of alleyways, and some 12 million visitors come each year to enjoy the château and the park with its 350,000 trees and 300,000 plants. The Twizy quadri-cycle car features ‘Dauphin’ decoration in a reference back to Louis XVI.

The electric line-up of Renault e-cars at Versailles.

More Safety Success for Almirall Espiri Carrasco, Global Sourcing Head at Spanish pharmaceutical company Almarill, has received even more good news involving her safety on the roads campaign. Just a few months after being crowned with the International Fleet Safety Award, Espiri has obtained excellent results from the first year of her campaign in the UK. The number of accidents in the UK halved from 42 to 20 between 2010/2011 and 2011/2012, despite the number of cars almost doubling from 44 to 77. Accident repair costs were also substantially down. Espiri Carrasco describes her approach as ‘zero accidents with leave of absence’ and points out that this is another way to care for people’s health and wellbeing. This is an ongoing objective. Espiri Carrasco of Almirall keeps improving the safety results of her car fleet drivers.

“We have always outright purchased rather than leased our vehicles”, says Darren Ward of Wilson James.

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New fleet-owner federation for Belgium A new association designed to represent the interests of fleet and mobility managers in Belgium has been created. The ‘Belgian Fleet & Mobility Management Federation’ (Fleet & Mobility for short) was officially brought into being on June 17th, and will represent the interests of companies and organisations with a total of 800,000 vehicles in their fleets. The new association (see also www.fleet-mobility.be) has been created within a context, it explains in a press release, which has seen an increasing number of fiscal and other measures introduced by the various authorities within the Belgian Federal State and its Regions. These measures include steps with the goal of increasing overall mobility and not limited to the use of company cars.

Wilson James - security specialist and provider of construction, aviation logistics and consultancy services -has outsourced the management of its UK fleet of more than 100 outright purchase vehicles to fleet management specialists CLM. This in order to improve customer service, and maintenance management, and increase value and efficiency on its fleet. Wilson James’ fleet comprises around

40 Ford, Audi and Mercedes-badged cars for staff, and more than 60 Ford and Nissan-badged light commercial vehicles which are used for logistics support UK-wide. CLM has now been Wilson James’s fleet management supplier for nine months and the relationship has proved to be a very successful one, said Darren Ward, who has fleet responsibility amongst his other duties.

Management I Annual conference

Looking forward to 2014 We look forward to meeting you on November 21 in Prague, for the annual Fleet Europe Forum. The main theme for this year’s gathering of the international fleet community will be: The ‘2014 Outlook of International Fleet Management’.

November 21 will be a day filled with fleet expertise. The Theme of Fleet Europe Forum 2013 in Prague is ‘The 2014 Outlook of International Fleet Management’.

he international fleet sector today is facing a host of challenges - each both a risk and an opportunity. They range from issues like cost control and internationalisation (or even globalisation) to CSR integration, supplier management and stakeholder involvement… to name but a few. This is why Fleet Europe has decided to look ahead, and has summoned a high-quality selection of keynote speakers and fleet experts to Prague. They will provide participants with an Outlook on International Fleet Management in 2014.

Tomorrow’s challenges In the afternoon, the Forum will broaden its scope to assess the challenges to the fleet management of tomorrow. To kick off, we will focus on what today’s fleet managers expect from the fleet industry, so they can continue optimising their car fleet management; and on their needs and requirements in an international context, where different market dynamics and best practice traditions meet (and sometimes collide). We’ll discuss supplier management, reporting capabilities, transparency, driver behaviour control, among other topics. Robert Patrick of MSD EMEA, winner of last the International Fleet Manager of the Year Award in 2012, will explain how his company incorporates these challenges into an effective fleet management strategy. The new fleet offer In the third and final chapter of Fleet Europe Forum 2013, we will hear the fleet industry suppliers’ side of the story, and challenge them with the questions and requests from the fleet managers’ side. The goal is to see how our fleet community can increase the professionalism of our sector. Throughout the day, participants will have the chance to attend multiple Corporate Conferences, where fleet suppliers will explain their newest products and services. In the evening, the fleet community is invited to celebrate the winners of the Fleet Europe Awards 2013. There are seven Award categories in overall (five for International Fleet Managers, one for Fleet Industry Suppliers, and one International Fleet Hall of Fame Award). You can still apply to be a candidate by filling out and sending back the official Application Form. ■ Steven Schoefs

Opportunities in Eastern Europe Fleet Europe Forum 2013 will be a single, integrated platform, allowing participants optimal opportunities to discuss, learn and share information. There are three main items on the Forum’s agenda. We will start the day by concentrating on fleet management in Eastern Europe - not just because the host city Prague is the dynamic capital of the Czech Republic, but also because Eastern Europe is an exciting region for fleet management. The big divergence of maturity, approach and geographical scope between the different fleet markets of this region present both international fleet managers and suppliers with promising opportunities.

Join today Fleet Europe and its partners hope to welcome you at the Fleet Europe Forum and Awards 2013 in Prague. To benefit from an Early Bird registration fee, register today at www. fleeteurope.com/events. Check our website from September 2013 onwards for more details on the programme and the speakers.

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Management I Case Study Johnson Controls

Reach out and share best practices Although international fleet management is still a man’s world, there are luckily enough also women that excel in car fleet purchasing and fleet management. One of the leading ladies in today’s Global Fleet Industry is Christy Coyte Meyer, Global Fleet Director of Johnson Controls. During her well established career she has received multiple fleet management awards for her work at Johnson Controls, a Tier One supplier of automotive interiors parts, facility management, refrigeration and many other businesses.

espite her large experience Christy Coyte Meyer is not the type of fleet executive that reigns alone. She supports discussing management ideas and new initiatives with stakeholders and peers.

How large is your vehicle fleet and how is it managed? Ch. Coyte Meyer: “We have roughly 19,000 vehicles worldwide and the largest region is Europe with over 9,000 vehicles, followed closely by the US. The largest countries in Europe are France, Germany and the UK. In terms of management we have an EMEA fleet manager Karin Meersman; she has a fleet analyst in Brussels, as

well as regional fleet managers reporting to her – one for North and North West based in the UK, one for the South based in Paris and one for Eastern Europe based in Czech Republic. There is a regional fleet manager and fleet analyst supporting the U.S. and Canada.” Are you in other regions too? Ch. Coyte Meyer: “Yes, we have a global vehicle fleet. We have fleets in Latin America and Asia Pacific. In addition to my global responsibilities, I’m also responsible for Latin America at the moment, following a restructuring. The largest country here is Mexico with about 700 vehicles.” Within this structure, what is globalised and what is decentralised? Ch. Coyte Meyer: “We work with our business stake-holders and align our policies globally, using the same guiding principles. We work with our compensation and benefits colleagues on these areas too. We also have a technician service vehicle policy (LCVs and trucks) and a functional vehicle policy, where the car is high mileage but not for benefit. Within each region we have policies which support these different users. Things like servicing, fuel and so on are all covered within the policy and the budget.”

“The upcoming trend in fleet management has to do with the abundance of technology, not just things the manufacturers are putting in their vehicles, but also the after-market”, says Christy Coyte Meyer, Global Fleet Director at Johnson Controls.

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What about brands and fleet management or leasing companies? Ch. Coyte Meyer: “We have both global and regional manufacturer agreements. But it is difficult to impose models in a user-chooser environment, because of our customer base within our Automotive Division. Where fleet management is concerned, we have two preferred global suppliers, but in some smaller countries in Europe, and in Brazil, or the Middle East we have to have a local solution.”

Why is it so important to always keep a local aspect of the policy in place even though you have a global structure? Ch. Coyte Meyer: “There are times we may have to adjust/ localize our policy to local regulatory or legal reasons, but guiding principles are still the same, to maintain consistency and fairness. At Johnson Controls, we don’t only just have differences between countries, but differences within the businesses in countries. So we have to kind of referee this situation more than the country itself does. We explain why one thing might not be possible because it wouldn’t be fair or consistent with the other business units in the same country. Since we centralised the controls in Europe, this has been the biggest challenge – everyone wants a customised solution but now they have a policy to follow that they may not have had to follow before.” How difficult is it to manage difference between countries in terms of CO2, taxation…? Ch. Coyte Meyer: “We are doing well with greenhouse gas reductions, and in Europe they don’t have much choice in this because of legal regulations. Johnson Controls has a five year reduction plan in place in terms of CO2 levels by car category. In terms of open-ended or closed-end contracts, it is a case of what the businesses have been used to. For me to take a global view on this would be pretty challenging because here in the US it is ‘pay as you go’ and we are not used to paying for a service before we’ve received it, such as you do in a full operational lease. In Europe, the opposite would be true.” Safety is of great importance to Johnson Controls. Are there different attitudes from drivers around the world in this domain? Ch. Coyte Meyer: “Well I don’t see it just as safety but as driver efficiency. In the US a driver who has a bad record in driving has to take a driver safety training programme, so it’s sort of punitive. In Europe we are taking an inclusive approach by offering it to all drivers. I think that way people are more interested in taking driver programmes and in driving more safely, so it’s not seen as punitive. In Europe they embrace the issue much better than we do here.” What do you see as the biggest trends in fleet management here in the US, in any of the areas this covers? Ch. Coyte Meyer: “I would say this has to do with the abundance of technology, not just things the manufacturers are putting in their vehicles, but also the after-market – telematics and so on. The amount of data we can receive from all these technologies is growing. We are putting telematics in our vehicles, so the next thing is looking at how we manage the data we get from it. I expect to see the manufacturers putting more in the cars and reducing the size of the after-market.”

What tip do you have for international fleet managers willing to go global but who don’t know where to start? Ch. Coyte Meyer: “To reach out. There’s certainly a network of global fleet managers who are willing to share best practices and experiences. And the suppliers and fleet management companies can help too. Also, collaborate with internal business partners.” ■ Steven Schoefs

Karin Meersman, EMEA Fleet Manager at Johnson Controls How easy or difficult is it to work as an EMEA Fleet Manager under a Global Fleet umbrella? “Personally I find it not only easy but also very exciting; I expanded my knowledge a lot the last couple of years. Everyone knows that there is a substantial difference between Europe and US on company cars and how they are handled. Therefore we do have different policies to manage this. But we always approach our global suppliers as one company which is important from a strategic point of view. And when it comes to decision making EMEA has an equal say in it. Of course our US colleagues might not share the same emotions that are linked to company cars as we have in Europe but they do understand the European view.” What is your tip to peers that are regionally responsible but work in a global environment, and to global fleet managers that have to co-ordinate and supervise regional fleet managers? “Embrace the differences between the regions: they can be the source to find creative solutions. Secondly, use the leverage of combining similarities and create opportunities from these similarities. Last but not least: keep the communication going and don’t hesitate to ask questions. Learn from each other’s practices and respect each other’s opinion.”

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Management I Global Fleet Management Conference 2013

Get new insights in the world of fleet management

he registration price for this unique Global Fleet Management Conference has been announced at $595, and, as a special bonus attendees will receive free admission to the third day of the Green Fleet Conference with content geared toward multinational fleets.

On September 30 & October 1, the inaugural Global Fleet Management Conference will take place at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Phoenix, Arizona. This conference, organized by Bobit Business Media –editor of Automotive Fleet– and Nexus Communication– editor of Fleet Europe and Global Fleet– is the best opportunity for global fleet managers and fleet executives with global responsibilities to get insight in new markets, trends and developments of today’s fleet management across the globe.

“We have developed a robust agenda that comprehensively addresses the challenges currently facing global fleet managers. In addition, we have introduced innovative ways to engage our conference participants through dinner discussions. Participants typically get most out of conferences when they learn directly from other attendees,” says Mike Antich, editor of Automotive Fleet magazine, and conference co-chair for the Global Fleet Management Conference. The Global Fleet Management Conference meets a fleet industry need as more and more organizations are looking to globalize their fleet strategy. “The conference was designed to help attendees understand the various facets of Global Fleet management. To do so, it is necessary that you gain an understanding of the complexities that exist in the various parts of the world. Most of the fleet challenges faced by global fleets are no different than those faced by their counterparts. Conferences like this allows one to meet and exchange experiences and ideas that could prove invaluable when developing your fleet strategy,” continues Mike Antich. “Global fleet management is challenging. Having a forum where global fleet managers can not only share best practices, but more importantly, learn where to avoid pitfalls will make the conference invaluable to attendees.” ■ Steven Schoefs

Practical Details & Registration information: Mike Antich, editor of Automotive Fleet magazine, and conference co-chair for the Global Fleet Management Conference: “The Global Fleet Management Conference was designed to help attendees understand the various facets of Global Fleet management.”

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For all details about the Global Fleet Management Conference 2013, please visit http://www.globalfleetconference.com/ where you will find all updated information.

Monday, September 30 10:00am – 11:30am

The State of the U.S. Commercial Fleet Market

Examination of current trends in vehicle procurement, fuel management, maintenance management, fleet-related technology, and vehicle remarketing in the U.S. commercial fleet market.

11:45pm – 1:45pm

Welcome Lunch with Keynote Address: Think Global and Act Local – Why and How

The keynote will focus on the opportunities of managing an international fleet in a global market economy, while not losing sight of what needs to be delivered locally – country-by-country.

2:00pm – 3:00pm

Creating Global Fleet Excellence by Developing a Worldwide Corporate Fleet Policy & Fleet Processes that Work

Although there are significant differences around the world in terms of taxation, local governance, and vehicle preferences, developing a global fleet policy is fundamental to creating global fleet excellence. The challenge is developing policy that is generic enough to be applicable throughout the world and specific enough to meet local fleet needs. This roundtable audience participation discussion will provide proven real-world applications on how to define managerial and operational consistency around the world.

3:15pm – 4:10pm

Best Practices in Creating a World-Class Tender Process

Examined will be best practices in a tender process for OEM, fleet leasing companies, and other fleet suppliers. Does it make sense to do a tender globally vs. regionally vs. locally?

4:10pm – 4:40pm

Networking break

4:40pm – 5:30pm

Identifying the Products and Services Offered by Fleet Management Companies around the World

Identifying the services and products available on a global basis. This session will explain the diversity of products and services available. It will explain how fleet leasing varies internationally. This seminar will provide an overview of the different lease products, the pros, cons of each.

7:00pm – 10:00pm

Networking Reception: Keynote Speaker & Dinner Table Discussion Groups

Dinner Keynote Speaker: 8:00pm – 9:00pm The State of the Global Economy and a Forecast of Future Trends Examined will be the current dynamics of the global economy by region and the forces that are impacting economic activity, along with a forecast of future trends. Dinner Discussion Groups Topic: Sharing of Best Practices in Developing Consolidated and Standardized Reporting Dinner tables to be assigned to attendees. Each dinner table will be assigned a specific global fleet management issue to resolve based on their collaborative discussions. Each table will have a facilitator to assist attendees in guiding discussion to reach a consensus on how best to resolve the issue.

8:00am – 9:45am

Breakfast and General Session How Fleet Management Varies by Global Region

Each speaker will give a 20-minute presentation on the state of fleet management in their region – Europe/Middle East, South America, Asia/Pacific, and South Africa.

9:45am – 10:15am

Networking break

10:15am – 11:15am

How Procurement and Fleet Management Can Work Together to Better Engage Global Stakeholders and Develop Innovative Supplier Strategies

This seminar will focus on how global fleets manage purchases in climate where the prevailing trend is to separate purchasing from fleet management. You’ll learn how companies can manage this “separation of power” while unifying vastly different markets, including those in the U.S., Canada and Europe, under single globally-leveraged agreements.

11:30am – 12:30pm

Metrics for Effective Management and Benchmarking of a Global Fleet

The presentation will help fleet managers identify metrics that directly measure desired business outcomes such as cost reduction, performance improvement, and supplier service consistency.

12:30pm – 2:15pm

Networking Lunch

2:15pm – 3:30pm

Understanding the Product Offerings of Global OEMs

3:15pm – 3:45pm

Networking Break

3:45pm – 5:45pm

The Challenges in Operating a Fleet in Emerging Markets

6:45pm – 7:15pm

Reception & Cocktail Hour

Tuesday, October 1

What are your OEM sourcing options by country and region? How can you get the right product in the right country at the right price? What are the best practices in negotiating a global OEM sourcing agreement? And much more.

3:45pm – 4:15pm Market Focus on Brazil and Russia Examination by subject-matter experts of the fleet markets in Brazil and Russia. 4:15pm – 4:30pm Networking Break 3:30pm – 4:15pm Market Focus on China and India Examination by subject-matter experts of the fleet markets in China and India.

Wednesday, October 2 - Bonus: Post-Conference Workshop & Green Fleet Conference 8:00am – 10:00am

Assessing Tax Impact Regionally or by Country

This session will examine the impact of local tax schemes on fleet vehicle acquisition, fleet operations, and fleet disposal, broken out for key regional fleet markets. Also, discussed will be the tax implication related to leasing and the driver for personal use.

7:00am - 5:15pm

Bonus No-Charge Attendance to 2013 Green Fleet Conference

A. All attendees to the Global Fleet Conference will be able to attend the second day of the Green Fleet Conference at no charge.

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Management I Procurement Strategy

Supply Risk Management: an Emerging Discipline Supply chain complexity, business failures, and public concerns call for companies to develop their supply risk management systems in the most efficient way. The most common Risk management framework was established by ISO. It states that managing risks requires to establish a structured and systematic process

When looking at this process this includes several elements: • Establishing the context requires to familiarize oneself with the environment in which the Company, the purchasing organization, the specific category operate. • Communicating about risks and consulting stakeholders on an ongoing basis • Risk identification is the process of finding, recognizing and recording risks. • Risk analysis aims at understanding the nature of risk and to determine the level of risk • Risk treatment involves selecting one or more options for modifying risks, and implementing those options. • An integral part of the risk management process involves regular monitoring and review

Definitions from ISO Guide 73:2009 Risk Effect of uncertainly on objectives Risk Management Coordinated activities to direct and control an organization with regard to risk.

Key tools of risk analysis and evolution are • the risk register, • the Probability / Impact criticality index • the heat map An example of this is shown in the other graph.

Communicate & Consult

Establishing the context

Risks Identification

Analysis

Monitor & Review

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Evaluation

Risk Treatment

Risk Topic

Probability P

Impact I

Criticality P x I

Abatement Plan

Customer Demand - Materiel price increase

Hedging

- Supply shortage

Stocks, supply contracts

-Forecast unreliable

Stocks, supply contracts

- Supplier breach of contract

Relationship management

- Logistical failure

Stocks, reporting system

Heat Map Criticality

Supplier Relational

High

Impact

Low

Probability

High

Supplier Environment - Extreme weather

Stocks, dual supply

- Political instability

Stocks, dual supply

- Financial failure

Supplier financial analysis

- Capacity shortage

Stocks, supply contracts

- Poor quality items

QC, supply contracts

Supplier Internal

Probability 1 low 3 moderate 5 high

Impact 1 low 3 moderate 5 high

Criticality 10-25: High priority: requires an abatement plan 5-9: Medium priority: teams must decide if an abatement plan is required 1-3: Low priority: no additional attention (in principle!)

Supply Risk Management Organization and Key Practise The EIPMs 2013 Supply Risk Management Survey identified which key areas of risk management are be of most benefit to focus on for the purchasing community. The survey gave useful information regarding current supply risk management practice issues among European international companies: • Less than one third of the responding companies have developed a risk register for quantitatively measuring and analyzing risk at category and/or supplier level • The most prominent objectives for managing supply risk are: Delivery, quality, customer perception (of the company) and corporate social responsibility which includes safety. • The causal link between corporate sustainability and supply risk appears very strong and calls for further investigation. No corporate sustainability program can be successful without an efficient and widely deployed supply risk management practice • Few companies see themselves as highly competent in managing risk. Companies should address this issues by ensuring a basic understanding of risk management principles and methods within the purchasing function. Risk management should be included in the training agenda for a purchasing professional with strategic responsibilities.

• Less than one third of companies have developed a supply risk register for quantitatively measuring and analyzing risk at category and/or supplier level. Most of these companies acknowledge their need to develop a mature supply risk management system in the near future. ■

Henrik Rasmussen and Hervé Legenvre, EIPM

About EIPM The EIPM is the Institute in Purchasing & Supply management offering the sole Executive MBA accredited by AMBA, Complete Certification Program for Professionals & In companies Programs in 9 different Languages around the World. www.eipm.org

FLEET EUROPE # 65

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BUSINESS I News People Keith Sherin has been appointed as chairman and CEO of GE Capital, succeeding Mike Neal, who is retiring. Amongst other changes GE Capital CFO Jeff Bornstein will succeed Keith Sherin as CFO of GE. The appointments are effective from July 1, 2013. Opel has announced two appointments to its senior team aimed at strengthening its presence in the European fleet market. Marc Schomburg, currently European Leasing and Residual Value Operations Manager, becomes European Leasing and TCO Manager and will assume responsibility for European leasing in addition to his current role. At the same time, Dennis Rachow, currently European Fleet Marketing Manager, will assume the position of European Corporate Account Manager. Fleetmatics Group, provider of fleet management solutions for small and medium-sized businesses delivered as software-as-a-service, has appointed Derek Bryan as European Sales Director. Derek will be responsible for leading the European field and web sales teams in the Dublin (Ireland) and Reading (UK) offices.

Fleet Logistics International has appointed David Raponi as Business Development Director with responsibility for large national and international sales. Mr Raponi brings with him over 12 years’ experience in the UK leasing industry at three major contract hire and leasing providers, Arval, LeasePlan and GE Capital, and a further 5 years in the UK and US daily rental industries.He reports to Stuart Donnelly, Chief Regional Officer for Europe North. Renault Retail Group (RRG), Renault’s wholly owned distribution network, has appointed Len Curran to be its new Director, European Operations. Within this position, he will be in charge of the retail operations of all three brands throughout Europe – Renault, Nissan and Dacia. Simon Thomas has been appointed head of Marketing for the Volkswagen Group and the Volkswagen Passenger Cars brand. Mr Thomas, 53, who was Managing Director of Volkswagen Group UK, succeeds Jürgen Stackmann, 51, who became Chairman of SEAT S.A. on May 1, 2013.

Europcar targets SMEs Europcar has launched a new service for local businesses and SMEs. The new service aims to give smaller companies the choice and flexibility that is available to larger corporates, whilst ensuring that prices remain competitive. There are several options available in Business Connect service for customers to choose from. A fixed service option presents a defined set of rates enabling companies to manage budgets and select the rental product that will be most suitable for their business needs throughout the year. Alternatively, a flexible product is available with variable rates with customers offered discounts on Europcar’s standard web offering. Other benefits being offered as part of the Business Connect service that are usually only available to larger customers include a guaranteed diesel option, delivery, collection and one way rentals, a light damage option and dedicated account manager support.

LeasePlan starts in Russia LeasePlan Corporation launched operations in Russia. LeasePlan currently manages over 1.3 million multi-brand vehicles across the globe. Continuing to expand its global reach, the launch of the Russian subsidiary brings the total number of countries in which LeasePlan provides its car fleet and leasing serSergey Dianin of LeasePlan Russia gives a tip on fleet management in Russia: « One important element is not to focus on price only, but also on what exactly it is that you buy (services included/proposed, what is delivered exactly under the name of each service, geographical availability, delivery and lead time, etc).”

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vices to 31.Vahid Daemi, CEO of LeasePlan Corporation says: “This is an important day for LeasePlan. We have seen continued interest among our multinational customers to internationalize throughout the Russian region. By launching LeasePlan Russia, we are making it easier for them to manage their global fleet and keep their workforce mobile around the world.” Sergey Dianin, Managing Director of LeasePlan Russia adds: “LeasePlan is only the third international player to arrive in the Russian market. This makes this launch particularly important for the development of the car leasing market here, and not only from a volume perspective. It will also improve the awareness of the products and services of full service leasing. We aim to help to educate the market and to bring innovation to the fleet management industry in Russia thus adding value for both international and local clients.” You can read an exclusive interview with Mr Dianin on our website www.fleeteurope.com.

BUSINESS I News ARI acquires Fleetlevel+ in Germany Fleet management services specialist ARI has acquired the fleet management segment of Fleetlevel+ Services business holdings, based in Stuttgart (Germany). The new company, which will be known as ARI Fleet Germany, fits into the strategy of ARI to create a global footprint and will provide its clients with enhanced fleet Carl Ortell, ARI President, and Marco Lessacher, Alphabet CEO, shake hands on the acquisition.

management solutions in both the German market and in Europe. The number of vehicles that will be managed by the new ARI Fleet Germany company is currently 12,500. ARI expects that the success of the ‘One ARI’ strategy will lead to new business opportunities and thus the expansion of the German team. ARI will identify the best possible candidate to lead the new ARI Fleet Germany organization. In the meantime, Craig Neuber, ARI’s Vice-President for European Operations, will manage the operation and implement the ‘One ARI’ strategy. “The acquisition of Fleetlevel+’s fleet management business supports ARI’s focus on developing a strong global platform to better serve the needs of our customers” said ARI President Carl Ortell.

BCA and LeasePlan extend cooperation in Germany

Rectification

LeasePlan Deutschland has announced that it is expanding its partnership with European remarketing company BCA. Under this agreement BCA will now be exclusively responsible for providing wholesale market valuations and remarketing trade-in vehicles for LeasePlan’s German-based retail used car outlets, in addition to the ongoing programme of end-of-lease sales. BCA is using its BCA MarketPrice service to simplify the whole trade-in process.

In Fleet Europe °64 (June 2013 edition) we have published a wrong picture for Mr Philippe Alexandre, Head of Citroën Finance (page 19) and Peugeot Finance (page 22). Our excuses. Here you can now find the correct picture.

www.volkswagenleasing.de/internationalfleet

International Fleet

As a European market leader with many years of experience in implementing fleet solutions, we are a reliable partner and assist our clients with a diverse range of high quality products and services. Further information about fleet solutions in Europe can be found at www.volkswagenleasing.de/internationalfleet

BUSINESS I BMW

Will the new i3 «revolutionise» fleet mobility? BMW has launched the i3. At last! The car is the first commercial product of ‘i strategy’, BMW’s e-mobility project started in 2007. For eagerness of anticipation, how about the 90,000 requests for a test drive or the i3’s 1.2 million fans on Facebook? “The i3 is more than a car, it’s a revolutionary step towards sustainable mobility”, says Norbert Reithofer, BMW’s Chairman of the Board. A few weeks ago, Fleet Europe was able to test the i3 at a pre-drive event in Munich, and we can confirm that BMW has once again successfully combined fun with sustainability.

BMW has developed a complete programme called 360˚ Electric to optimise the use of the new i3.

he BMW i3 will be released in Germany and throughout Europe in November 2013, and in the US, China, Japan and elsewhere in the first half of 2014. Basic price is €34,950. Add the Range Extender, a two-cylinder petrol engine (650cc, 34 Hp) that increases the i3’s range from 130-160km to around 300km, and the price is €39,450. Market demand Public acceptance of e-mobility is rising. Last year, a total of 93,000 e-vehicles were registered worldwide, with 150,000 new units projected for this year. BMW clearly agrees that e-mobility is gathering pace. The German automaker claims the i3’s maintenance and operating cost over a three-year period is about 40% below that of a highly economical 320dA,

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at least in Germany. Figures for other countries may be even better, depending on the subsidies available. Innovative construction The i3 is not the prettiest BMW ever, but it does combine style, comfort, functionality and driving pleasure as few other fully electric cars have done so far. It features innovations in lightweight construction such as a carbon-fibre passenger cell and an aluminium chassis. With a kerb weight of 1,195 kg, it is lighter than most compact cars, yet roomy enough for 4 adults, with a load capacity of 200 litres (up to 1,100 litres) in the back. The weight contributes to the i3’s range and agility (accelerating from 0 to 100 km/h in 7.2 seconds). For efficiency reasons, its top speed is limited to 150 km/h.

Customer support BMW i Partners will be the backbone of the BMW i sales network and the main point of contact for BMW i3 customers. “We will support them with a comprehensive package of premium service, for sheer driving pleasure”, explained Ian Robertson, BMW Board of Management member at the i3 launch in London. BMW has developed a complete programme called 360˚ Electric to optimise the use of the i3. Aside the home charging option, BMW will also push for public charging infrastructure with an initiative called Charge Now, allowing the driver to reserve a charging station. To enhance comfort, BMW offers i3 drivers another BMW car on special occasions, for example when going on holiday. A dedicated web page gives the driver instant updates on his or her i3. Last but not least, driver assistance systems, coupled with BMW ConnectedDrive’s mobility services, optimise safety, convenience and usability of in-car infotainment. ■ Jonathan Green

BUSINESS I Opel

Born to Fleet Christel Reynaerts, Head of International Corporate Sales at BMW Group, sees the i3’s fleet business potential. “The BMW i3 is the perfect extension to BMW Group’s Efficient Dynamics product portfolio, because it allows our corporate customers to choose between efficient combustion engines, our active hybrid range, and now our full-electric i3”, says Christel Reynaerts. Who is your target customer for the i3? “In general, BMW i appeals to cosmopolitan customers with a socially responsible and environmentally sustainable lifestyle. Our i3 allows our corporate customers to position themselves as sustainable and responsible market players. Depending on the usage profile, the i3 can be an attractive management car or an efficient urban vehicle with a range of up to 160 km or 300 km, with the Range Extender. Of course, the i3 is also an excellent car-sharing or mobility-plan solution”. Residual values of electric vehicles are difficult to predict, which makes it hard to devise an attractive lease rate. Will the i3 be any different? “Yes, because the i3 is part of a completely different concept. With BMW i, the BMW Group went way beyond the traditional business model in order to overcome anxieties around e-mobility. Our 360˚ offer provides the customer access to solutions for both home and public charging, flexible mobility and assistance services. This will not only enhance the option’s popularity, but also drive up residual values. And let’s not forget the i3 itself: born electric, it has been designed from scratch for efficient and enjoyable driving”. ■ Steven Schoefs

Insignia for fleets Opel-Vauxhall have just introduced an improved Insignia. European Fleet Director Ian Hucker explains the link between the car and the importance for the fleet business.

Ian Hucker, Director European Fleet & Commercial Vehicles for Opel/Vauxhall believes in the fleet assets of new Insignia.

“

The previous Insignia was awarded European Car of the Year 2009. So we wanted to take its successor to the next level and not radically alter it. The improvements are both exterior and interior. On the outside, it has a wider, lower stance and on the inside there is in particular the state-of the-art infotainment system including two 8 inch screens and a touch-pad between the front seats. There is voice command, steering wheel controls etc., so the driver can conveniently interact with the system.”

The new Opel Insignia, in your fleet tomorrow? Is there a particularly fleet-friendly version? Ian Hucker: “Yes, one of the headlinegrabbers will be the version emitting only 99 grams of CO2 per km. And this is not

because of any gimmick or by reducing anything which might affect driveability. It is from the mainstream CDTI 2.0 litre powertrain. This translates into 3.7 litres of diesel per km, or 76 mpg (UK). This level of 99 grams/100km impacts on driver taxation in some countries, as well as providing low running costs. In the UK, we also have the TechLine version, which minimises the tax impact for the driver because of a lower list price – without sacrificing any of the equipment. It is a spec level geared towards business drivers. We will bring this concept into other countries, including for example the Insignia Business Edition in Germany.” Is the Insignia important for your fleet business? Ian Hucker: “It is a flagship car, and in terms of our user-chooser customers it is very important. The current Insignia is number one in its segment in fleet in a number of countries, including the UK and Spain. So by improving the car even further we want to retain this position and even make more progress.” You took over as Fleet Head of LCV at Opel/Vauxhall earlier this year. Do you have fleet objectives for this segment? Ian Hucker: “We have grown our share of the total LCV market year on year, which shows that the new models we have introduced are successful, and that the conversion offer we have expanded is also being well received. Sales of conversions are 30% up year on year. The vast majority of our LCV sales are made in fleet.” ■ Tim Harrup

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BUSINESS I Advertorial LeasePlan

50 Years of Successful Fleet Management Innovation On February 23, 1963 LeasePlan began operations as an asset financier in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Now, 50 years later LeasePlan is the biggest car leasing and fleet management company in Europe with almost 1 million vehicles under management, and more than 1,3 million worldwide.

“

The original idea at the outset was to offer asset finance, as we were part of a bank. We were not originally in fleet leasing or management”, says Vahid Daemi, CEO of LeasePlan Corporation. “The first step was after a few years when the board of Shell wanted their cars financed. The next milestone was when we introduced a new product we called ‘open calculation’. The story here is that one of the company founders used to go to customers and they would say ‘how do we know we are getting the best price from you?’ It was decided to open up the calculation to them, show them how we arrived at our contract prices. We then decided to share with the customers any benefits made – so if we get it wrong, it’s our cost, and if there’s a benefit we share it with the customer. The third milestone was when the company decided to become international and go outside the Netherlands. So Belgium came next. It wasn’t easy at first to know whether this was the right move, but it worked and so we decided to continue down this route.” Today LeasePlan is present in 31 countries, only two months ago officially launching activities in Russia.

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How does being the biggest leasing company affect how you operate? Vahid Daemi: “The biggest risk companies can have is thinking they’re the best. Then there is only one way to go - down. We are continually looking to become better at what we do. I value competition. It keeps us sharp. We never think that being the biggest makes us the best. So I never say we are the best, but I always say we are in a strong position.” In what way does LeasePlan differentiate from its competitors? Jose Luis Criado, Managing Director of LeasePlan International: “Through a combination of global experience, local expertise and on-the-ground ser-

“More and more companies are looking to centralise global fleet management whilst reducing their own involvement” Jose Luis Criado, Managing Director of LeasePlan International.

“With a good benchmarking programme sole supply becomes the best fleet management solution.”

vice support as well as our broad offering of harmonised services and our experience with global cost-savings initiatives.

Vahid Daemi, CEO LeasePlan Corporation

You currently have around 1.35 million vehicles - are there plans for more? Vahid Daemi: “Some markets in Europe, like Spain and Greece have been shrinking, but LeasePlan has either maintained or increased market share. Our overall numbers may be small-

er but the market share is bigger. I do not believe, the market is going to return to where it was quickly, but there are signs of recovery. Companies are ordering new cars again and there are other, less mature, markets that offer potential. But this does not mean that our product will remain the same. Future generations will be looking for mobility solutions rather than car leasing.” LeasePlan has always been at the forefront of innovation. How do you see this evolving further? Vahid Daemi: “I see car leasing, as a service, and there is always room to improve a service and make it more ef-

Looking ahead Vahid Daemi, CEO of LeasePlan Corporation, is convinced that the focus will be on the individual, and not solely on the vehicle anymore. “There is a fundamental change ahead.” ficient. Product innovation comes from trying to serve the customer better. We deal with everything in a customer’s mobility – payroll, fines... and even a single card for all mobility including bus, metro etc. in the Netherlands.” What is your opinion on bundled services in operational leasing? Vahid Daemi: “Some customers have gone down the unbundling route and have found it can lead to difficulties

“LeasePlan was at the forefront of mobility offerings launching MobilityMixx in the Netherlands 10 years ago. We are now actively developing solutions that go beyond the mobility offered by vehicles” Jose Luis Criado, Managing Director LeasePlan International

when integrating services. The minute there is a problem, everybody blames everybody else. I believe in benchmarking the total solution. Customers want to know they are getting the most cost effective solution.” Some in the industry say LeasePlan’s open calculation model has led to customers demanding even more transparency? Vahid Daemi: “Possibly, but why worry about this? Transparency is important. Nobody is proposing that suppliers should operate at a loss. If a customer sees that a new supplier is operating at a loss, trying to gain new business, they will start asking how this business will be financed. Our industry should embrace transparency, not shy away from it.” How do you see the future success of full service leasing? JL Criado: “There is a move towards centralization, global fleet management and outsourcing. This trend requires flexible end-to-end service solutions that allow companies to focus on their own core business, whilst securing the maximum benefit of their core suppliers’ expertise. Next to that there is a need to provide the right level of control and transparency, and to deliver a consistent service experience across different countries or business entities. Given these requirements, it’s no surprise that we see an increasing development of full service leasing solutions, including our Open Calculation offering.”

You have just moved into the Russia market – where is next? Vahid Daemi: “We are looking at Asia and South American markets. With China it is a matter of timing. We moved into India early and the business is running very well now. In South America we are in Brazil and in Central America we are in Mexico, and we are looking to further build our presence.” ■ Steven Schoefs

Next big thing in fleet Vahid Daemi: “Car usage is going to be more important than car ownership. We are seeing the SME market embrace this. Mobility, including car-sharing, is developing. Change will happen slowly, as will the integration of electric cars. Looking a very long way ahead the focus will be on the individual, not the vehicle. This will be a fundamental change. The service will be provided to the driver rather than the company. So the contract will no longer be linked directly to the company but to the employee.” Jose Luis Criado: “Telematics and efficient reporting systems are gaining momentum, particularly with large international fleets. Fleets value will advance from a commodity pricing focus, to one on overall business value and service. There will be a move away from transactional relationships to strategic partnerships.”

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BUSINESS I Autorola

“We’ll stick to selling used cars” With a background in software and a used-car salesman for a father, Peter Grøftehauge and his brother were well placed in 1996 to co-found Autorola, the international online platform for selling used cars. Today Autorola has a true international presence in 17 countries and buyers from over 30 countries. “Our platform is very up to date, but that doesn’t stop us innovating”, says Peter Grøftehauge, CEO of Autorola. “I have a good idea what it should look like in a few years time. As for markets, even in less mature ones like Turkey, online sales are growing fast. They’re very eager to learn. Soon, the emerging markets could overtake the established ones.” Do you think online auctions will ever completely replace the actual, physical auctions? P. Grøftehauge: “Definitely. The market is evolving fast. Five years ago, corporate decision makers would have said no to selling used cars online. Today, they see the benefits: transparency, speed, and a wide market reach. And of course you don’t need to drive those cars to auction.” Does that include hybrids and EVs? P. Grøftehauge: “Because of our online reach, we can sell anything. We have about 70,000 registered buyers, from luxury car dealers to small workshop dealers. Dump trucks or Bentleys: someone will always want what you sell. There is a but: used-car prices are entirely market-driven. The internet makes everything transparent. Nobody can influence price and that’s an important asset.” The world is a big place. How do you decide where to go next? P. Grøftehauge: “We have strong European platform, but no fixed plan. Our next moves are dictated by customer needs. If those needs are in China, we’ll go to China.” Where do you see growth happening? P. Grøftehauge: “Everywhere. The question is: by how much? That depends on the economic crisis. It has affected not just the mature economies. Eastern Europe would have grown much faster without it. Brazil is a big and interesting market, but we’re not very experienced there yet. Brazilians do seem professional, though, and it’s the one place where the used-car market is really strong, but of course an important influencer here is inflation.”

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Is the fact that Eastern Europe is aligning its economic and environmental policy with that of the European Union a problem for your business? P. Grøftehauge: “Maybe in 10 years, but not now. The demand for cheap used cars is still huge. And this is due to the crisis: people are downsizing their expectations, opting for used instead of new cars.”

Peter Grøftehauge, CEO of Autorola: “Being Number One is just not realistic in mature markets like the UK, nor even in emerging ones like China.”

Will the used-car market regain its pre-crisis strength? P. Grøftehauge: “In some of the worst-affected countries, the market is out of balance. In Spain, there is a shortage of used cars, so values might creep up again. But not for long. The market is more transparent than ever. I think we’ll end up with a ‘single European price’, which shouldn’t be higher than it is now. Every fleet partner, OEM, leasing company, and other suppliers have interest in a stable used-car market. But you may never forget that a very important driver of the usedcar market will always be the new-car market. A slump in new-car sales means a shortage of used cars on the market and will have implications for the fleet business.” OEMs are producing a surplus of cars, expecting to sell them in the BRICs. Is this affecting the used-car market? P. Grøftehauge: “Simply put: global population growth will drive demand for new cars, and thus also the supply of more used cars. Will there be too many used cars? I don’t think so: export will level off any surplus. Your target is to sell 500,000 cars per year by 2018. How will you do it? P. Grøftehauge: “We’re handling 250,000 cars right now. We’ll grow by adding new markets, and expanding in existing ones. And we’re sticking to what we know: we are not going into fleet management services.” ■ Steven Schoefs & Mike Antich

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business I Tesla Motors

European expansion with fleet focus On July 18, 2013 Tesla opened its new store in Brussels. It’s the ninth store in Europe for the Silicon Valley based car manufacturer of electric vehicles (EVs). Bryan Batista, Sales Director for Europe, believes Tesla will bring a new dynamic to electro mobility in general and the fleet market in particular, especially in mature and EV taxation friendly markets like Germany, the Netherlands, UK, and Belgium. good relationship with Athlon, they have preferred production slots for quicker delivery.”

“We have now showrooms in Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Denmark, and Norway. We should soon have more than 20 stores in Europe. We want to sell cars by building a strong local presence, and fleet sales can definitely support this”, says Bryan Batista. “In the Benelux fleet will be a priority, as in Germany.” Was it a conscious choice to go with Athlon as preferred leasing partner or were others in the frame? Bryan Batista: “Others showed interest but Athlon were the most aggressive and had the most appetite to promote electric cars – they have always been innovative in this field and so it was a good fit for us.” If I am a fleet manager who doesn’t use Athlon, can I have a deal with another leasing company? Bryan Batista: “Yes of course, if another company such as Arval comes to us for a quote, we will always work with them. But because we have such a

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Are you approaching fleets directly too? Bryan Batista: “We are not going to rely on the leasing companies alone. As it’s our product, we should sell it too. We have a fleet team in order to do this, a fleet sales manager and regional fleet sales specialists.” What do you offer to clients in terms of responding to the traditional electric car issues – recharging for example? Bryan Batista: “One of the key elements is setting up a home installation package. We make the connection between the customer and the infrastructure installation company. In addition to that, we ensure the leasing company can offer the correct charging solution. Third – Supercharging. Some of these points are already in operation in the USA and we will set them up in Europe. Supercharging means, for example, that though you could make it from Amsterdam down to Paris on one charge, if you drive more aggressively we will make sure you are able to go to a supercharge point on the way. We are starting to build this network now, and the electricity is free of charge.” You are in full electric vehicles. Can you survive in this niche only? Bryan Batista: “We have already shown

we can, when volumes were still ramping up. If we can survive on 5,000 vehicles a quarter, then we can survive on 10,000 vehicles a quarter – it should become easier with economies of scale. Can we do it with the same business model – we believe we can. Model X is coming at the end of 2014 and this will enable us to leverage our manufacturing base better. Volumes will go up. We are extremely focused on driving down cost and increasing margins.” Do you believe wider electric mobility has a future in Europe? Bryan Batista: “Yes – everyone at Tesla does! This is partly because some of the traditional barriers to purchase that we’ve seen before had not bet been knocked down. We’re addressing them. For example, electric vehicles were never the best looking cars – this one is. They were never the best performers – this one is. They were never easy to use, but with the touch screen technology, along with the long driving range, we’ve knocked these barriers down too. But there’s still the issue of range anxiety. This is where the Supercharger comes in.” You are sometimes referred to as the ‘new Apple’. How do you react to this? Bryan Batista: “We don’t shy away from this – Apple is a fantastic company. They have a similar background to us, in Silicon Valley. Two companies driving innovation in their own spheres.” ■ Steven Schoefs

Register today to be part of this unique event Programme and registrations: www.fleeteurope.com/events The Fleet Europe Forum will focus on the 2014 Outlook for International Fleet Management.

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SCOPE I News 100,000 zero-emission car for Renault-Nissan

The Nissan LEAF is the world’s best selling full electric vehicle.

The Renault-Nissan Alliance has announced the sale the 100,000 zero-emission car. So far electric cars from Renault and Nissan have driven approximately 841 million zero-emission kilometres - enough to circle the earth more than 20,000 times what has led to 53 million litres of oil being saved and 124 million kg of CO2 that have not been emitted. The Nissan Leaf is the world’s best selling electric vehicle with sales of 71,000 vehicles. The top markets for Nissan LEAF are the United States with about 30,000 units, Japan with 28,000 units, and Europe with 12,000 units. Renault leads the electric vehicle market in Europe with a 61% share, including Twizy. Renault’s top markets in Europe are France, Germany and Italy. Renault has sold about 30,000 electric vehicles since its first model, Kangoo Van Z.E., went on sale in late 2011.

ALD celebrates 500th EV on the road in Netherlands ALD Automotive in the Netherlands has acquired its 500th electrical vehicle (EV). At the Volvo dealership Hooftman in Alphen aan de Rijn, the keys to a brand new V60 plug-in Hybrid were ceremoniously handed over to Paul Bosch of Otto Chemie GmbH. He was happy to exchange his previous lease car for one that carries a much lower fiscal burden (the so-called ‘bijtelling’). To mark the 500th-EV milestone, ALD Automotive presented Mr. Bosch with an e-learning programme for safe and economical driving and vouchers for free car washes for the duration of the contract. ALD’s 500th EV implies that its fleet of electrical vehicles now represents no less than 5% of a total of 10,000 EVs currently on Dutch roads.

The Volvo V60 Hybrid is the 500th electric car in the fleet of ALD Automotive in the Netherlands.

Operational leasing set to increase in Turkey A new report by consultants Frost & Sullivan shows that operational leasing is rapidly taking hold in the Turkish market. The company’s ‘Strategic Analysis of the Turkish Fleet Leasing Market’ predicts that sales to operational leasing companies, which were at 69,000 last year, will almost double to 123,000 by 2018. According to Frost & Sullivan’s transport analyst Hikmet çakmak, it is a combination of the ‘service’ benefits of operational leasing, and higher vehicle taxes, which is pushing fleet buyers in this direction. As in other parts of Europe, the leasing industry is also trying to reach out to SME’s with its products, which will give a further boost to the operational leasing segment. However, Hikmet çakmak also points out that there is a lack of legislation in this domain in Turkey, which needs to be addressed.

Road pricing in Belgium Following the announcement that a planned road tax vignette in Belgium would probably be scrapped, FEBIAC (the national federation of car manufacturers and importers) said it would now throw its full support behind road pricing. In other words: any fiscal measure that taxes the use of a vehicle (varying by duration, location and emissions) rather than the ownership.A mileage tax for trucks will be introduced in Belgium from 2016 onwards. FEBIAC asks that cars would also be subject to a mileage charge, with a variable rate based on the duration, location and environmental impact of a vehicle’s movement. There will be a road pricing test project for cars in Brussels from January 2014 to measure the impact on driving behaviour.

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Japan joins EU protest against Russian tax The European Union recently announced that it was protesting to Russia about a discriminatory recycling tax on new vehicles, which was not applied to local production. One of the world’s other major carmaking nations – Japan – has now added its own protest to that of the EU. This dual protest is in the form of a complaint to the World Trade Organisation. The tax in question was introduced in September 2012 and adds between 420 and 2,700 Euros to the cost of a new car imported into Russia. It is not applied, however, to vehicles produced in Russia, Kazakhstan or Bielorussia. The United States may follow suit, but has not yet done so.

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Car Sharing A premium solution for mobility important element of intelligently networked mobility.” With the launch of the i3 BMW is putting a stake in the ground. Premium car sharing product DriveNow and parking assistance app ParkNow are two other examples of BMW’s mobility vision. With BMW i ventures, a Venture Capital company founded in New York City with an investment totalling up to $100 million, there’s more mobility to come form the German giant. Dr Ian Robertson, BMW Group Member of the Board, said at the launch of ParkNow, “The BMW Group is more than a premium car company, it is also focused on developing and delivering new services to help meet the increasing need for flexible mobility solutions in our cities.” The car manufacturers that make MaaS a success will become the prime movers in a big marketplace.

A few years back car sharing was a novel concept deployed in a few niche markets. Today it is starting to blossom and automakers are exploring a range of Mobility as a Service (MaaS) solutions. At the fore front of the charge into MaaS are the premium car brands.

he European car market has been a turbulent place for the last few years and shows no sign of recovery in 2013. Analysts predict that new car sales in Europe are set to fall by a further 3 – 5% and not return to 2007 levels until at least 2018. Pre-

mium car brands have been bucking this trend and returning healthy sales figures both in Europe and emerging markets. It is these same brands that are at the forefront of exploration into MaaS. Daimler AG has created Daimler Mobility Services to co-ordinate its growing portfolio of mobility products. Under this umbrella sit Car2go, Moovel, Gottapark and Car2Share. An OEM promoting ride sharing raises a few eyebrows, but Wilfried Steffen, who heads up Business Innovation at Daimler AG, says, “We view ride sharing as an

Add into the equation Toyota Motor Corporation engagement in last mile mobility to “explore the utility and business feasibility of co-modality transport solutions”, and Volvo’s successful engagement in the EU SATRE project into autonomous driving and a new landscape of mobility solutions and business opportunities starts to emerge. David Green, Market Development Director, from Volvo says, “Cars are all about mobility – that is what they are designed for. Volvo is a people centric company and we design cars around our customers.” As customers’ needs are changing so too are the car manufacturers. A leap into the unknown We are in a new age of intra urban mobility and it’s the premium auto-

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makers driving R&D into MaaS. It is an exploration into a whole new world. John Leech, Head of Automotive UK for KMPG said, “For a traditional automaker, whose market is selling and leasing vehicles, engaging in Mobility as a Service is a leap into the unknown.” So why are the premium brands leading the charge into mobility? It’s a new marketplace Contracting traditional markets, the growing importance of emerging markets, rising urban populations and environmental constraints mean that the landscape is changing. The world’s population is predicted to increase to 9 billion by 2050 and with 70% of the population living in urban areas the cars relationship with the city is under intense scrutiny. Intelligently networked and integrated transport is a pre-requisite of a smart city. If clean vehicles are not available and congestion is not addressed then an automakers licence to operate will be challenged. This is a big motivator for MaaS. KPMG’s 2014 Global Automotive Survey found that 59% of automotive executives see the car as part of the wider mobility concept in cities. With urbanisation a bigger market for mobility solutions is on the horizon.

MaaS presents premium brands with an opportunity to build relationships with a young, educated and brand aware car sharing populous who may purchase a car in later life. Big markets equal big returns The automakers that make MaaS a success will be the prime movers. With premium automakers able to invest in research and development they are well placed to challenge the status quo without eroding their own market share. The premium brands are interested in the customers of other automakers. MaaS does not cannibalise a premium car brands existing market share: it brings a new type of customer into the brands portfolio. KPMG predicts that the market for MaaS could be as high as 105 million people in China, 32 million in the US, 20 million in Brazil and 18m in Western Europe by 2025. These figures are significant increases on the numbers reported in the same survey last year and demonstrate the size of the prize that is on offer. Cracking the MaaS model in established markets means that the prime movers will be able to explore the immense opportunities that emerging markets present in the future.

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Two thirds of automotive executives surveyed by KPMG believe that emerging market mega cities are either extremely or very important sources of profitable business for MaaS. A further 65% see value added services, such as apps for mobile payment and location aided devices, as providing either extremely or very important sources revenue. MaaS: A test bed for EV Dr. Norbert Reithofer, Chairman of the Board of Management at BMW AG, believes that “In megacities, the car can only have a future if we take the right steps to lead it from low-emission to zero-emission technologies today.” Car sharing provides the perfect platform for consumers to put electric vehicles to the test. KMPG’s survey finds that 66% of executives cite MaaS an opportunity to boost electric car-sales. Building consumer confidence in EV is the big challenge for automakers. With MaaS consumers have a risk free way of road testing EV’s. Moving with changing market KPMG believes that changing macro conditions and consumer behaviours “calls for sweeping changes to automakers’ business models.” The premium brands are exploring this space because they have the change to become the prime mover. In doing so they will be positioned take advantage of a new and sizeable market that compliments, rather than cannibalises, their established market share. And we should not forget the opportunity that MaaS presents for premium brands to build relationships with a young, educated and brand aware car sharing populous. As time passes, these younger drivers will grow older and may be in the market to purchase a car of their own. ■ Jonathan Green

MaaS: Creating the conditions for growth A survey by The Futures Company earlier this year found that of the 56% of respondents who said they would be willing to consider car sharing in future, 27% would be most attracted by reduced travel costs, 26% by convenience of location and operating hours, 23% by a straightforward booking system and 22% by a reduced impact on the environment.

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