Last mile delivery industry acts as a pioneer in fleet electrification

Written by Cameron Feil – Edited by AttriX

Mont-Saint-Hilaire, QC, June 17th 2021 – Fleet electrification is more than just meeting a mandatory requirement, it presents an enormous opportunity as well as plenty of benefits for fleet managers. Transitioning to electric vehicles not only positively impacts the environment but it can help improve a fleet’s bottom line. In order to gauge the benefits in fleet electrification, let’s take a look at the last mile delivery industry as numerous companies have made major investments over the last couple of years.

To begin with: What is the last mile delivery industry? 

Last mile is a term used in supply chain management and transportation planning to describe the last leg of a journey comprising the movement of people and goods from a transportation hub to a final destination.

Big industry names in last mile delivery are already electrifying

Last mile delivery fleets are starting to heavily invest in electric vehicles. In early 2020, UPS purchased 10,000 electric delivery trucks and Purolator expanded their zero-emission last mile delivery services in two major Canadian cities. More recently, FedEx announced that it plans to have a fully electric fleet by 2040. However, the biggest announcement came a bit earlier in 2019 when Amazon purchased over 100,000 electric delivery vans.

Over recent years, Amazon shipments have grown exponentially with them shipping approximately 400 million packages a month, with roughly two-thirds being delivered by Amazon itself. With this amount of usage, Amazon is set to save millions of dollars annually on fuel costs alone. However, this is not the only reason they are transitioning to electric vehicles. They have also stated that EVs are a critical component for them to fulfill their Climate Pledge of being carbon neutral by 2040.

While not all companies have the amount of resources as a large fleet like Amazon, it is becoming easier to evaluate the costs and benefits of fleet electrification – if you have the data and the right tools.

Last mile fleets are overcoming the initial barriers to electrification

Until recently, the majority of EVs on the market were compact to mid-size passenger vehicles that did not have the carrying capacity or the electric range capabilities required for many fleet applications, presenting a hurdle for fleets considering electrification. The market has mostly caught up with the demand and this problem has largely been addressed, or will be in the near future.

The ‘’range anxiety’’ phenomenon implies that many fleet managers find themselves reluctant to make the switch. However, the network of charging stations is continuously improving, and there are numerous long-range EVs available that have an effective range over 300 miles on a single charge – and this will only continue to improve as battery technology advances.

As for vehicle offerings, a wide variety of Class 2 to 5 EVs are currently available with a number of additional delivery vans and pickup trucks on the horizon. It is safe to say  that there will soon be an EV that suits every fleet’s particular needs.

The takeaway: It is clear that many of the largest players in the last mile industry have moved past any hesitations when it comes to electrification. By committing millions of dollars, and purchasing thousands of vehicles, they are sending a strong message – it’s time to start transitioning to EVs.

Choosing AttriX and Geotab to navigate the road to electrification

So you want to take example of last mile delivery fleets and start your journey to electrification – what does that imply? There are a couple questions and data to evaluate in order to plan your transition. Using accurate telematics data to capture existing driving profiles can help establish a baseline for going electric, or not.

Geotab has a EV Suitability Assessment (EVSA) tool to conduct an in-depth analysis of all their fleet vehicles to determine the costs and savings related to converting to EVs.

The EVSA will allow you to:

✔ Identify the best vehicles to replace with EVs based on actual driving data
✔ Save time by researching available EV acquisition options
✔Ensure the EV is suitable even in extreme weather conditions
✔Get reliable financial data to build a business case for EV replacement
✔Ability to create custom reports and answer specific questions for your company

Start planning your EV adoption strategy

With regulations and sustainability goals fast approaching, it is critical that fleets begin to create strategies for incorporating EVs.

Finding suitable vehicles and building out charging infrastructure can be a time consuming task. Fortunately, Geotab has created a number of tools and assets to help fleet managers with this transition. More importantly once EVs have been incorporated into your fleet Geotab continues to provide on-going insights and support. With official support of over 100 EV makes and models, Geotab is the strongest telematics provider in the EV space.

Link to original article: https://www.geotab.com/blog/last-mile-fleet-electrification/