Oce, one of Europe's largest document management and digital printing companies, embarked on a major project to improve drivers' spatial awareness while driving on company business.
The company runs about 630 company cars in the UK, part of an overall pan-European fleet of 4,500 vehicles in 14 countries, and in the UK has reduced accidents by 22.5% and cut accident and repair costs by a similar amount.
It has put 750 drivers through a three-year training programme devised by Peak Performance, which involved half-day workshops and in-car training sessions.
Oce executives say that as a result the company has seen a marked fall in heavy front and rear end crashes and parking accidents. This has helped cut repair bills, hire car costs and downtime lost through vehicles being off the road.
The Oce work fleet, which comprises primarily Ford and Peugeot-badged diesel vehicles, is high mileage with most service and sales staff travelling between 25,000 to 30,000 business miles a year.
And, according to UK fleet and European operations manager, Carol Mayers, the major improvement in drivers' performance has come through increased spatial awareness.
She said: 'Our drivers now talk about taking their personal space around with them. That means leaving more space between them and the car in front and this increased awareness has undoubtedly had the biggest impact on our accident rates.
'The greatest improvement has been in heavy front and rear accidents, and in parking incidents. We are seeing major benefits such as fewer lost employee days, reduced replacement vehicle or hire car costs and lower crash repair bills.'
Login to comment
Comments
No comments have been made yet.