Freight Best Practice

In most road transport operations fuel accounts for at least 30% of operating costs – so fuel management is the logical place to start on the road to operational efficiency! Freight Best Practice has a range of publications available to give you ideas on how to reduce your overall fuel consumption.

It´s widely acknowledged that the driver´s right foot can have the single greatest impact on fuel efficiency within your operation! Developing the skills of your HGV drivers and other staff throughout your operation can pay real financial dividends in the long run. Freight Best Practice has a range of publications available to help you do just that.

Specifying the right truck at the outset to make sure it’s really fit for its intended purpose is one of the secrets to long term operational efficiency and reduced operating costs over the life of the vehicle.

Once the truck’s in service, using the right technology to plan its work and manage it can lead to real efficiency improvements.

Freight Best Practice has a series of publications available to help you get the best from the equipment and systems used in your operation.

If you don’t measure performance effectively, how can you manage it effectively? This question is vitally important in freight operations as there are so many component parts to monitor, from fuel consumption and tyre wear through to driver productivity and accident records.

Measuring performance, setting targets for improvements and monitoring progress towards those targets are the cornerstones of successful performance management.

Freight Best Practice has a series of publications available to help you monitor your internal operational performance against Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and to benchmark your own operation against the very best of the competition.

Logistics companies and freight forwarders are increasingly looking for opportunities to reduce costs, improve service and actively reduce their impact on the environment. In doing so, many organisations are re-examining their Supply Chains strategically to not only maximise benefits against costs but also to consider Corporate Social Responsibility and business continuity in the longer term. A number of factors have elevated modal shift to a topic worthy of serious consideration including a more environmentally aware society, rising fuel prices, more customer focused and competitive rail and water freight operators and heightened road congestion.

Taking freight off congested roads and moving it by rail or water can have environmental and wider social benefits. However rail and water can sometimes be more expensive than road transportation. The Department for Transport and the Devolved Administrations offer a number of grants designed to facilitate and purchase the environmental and social benefits that result from shifting freight from road to rail and water. Details of these schemes, with an accompanying guide for each, are set out below.

Practical examples of the programme principles in operation, demonstrating how operators have improved efficiency and reduced costs.

This section contains reports providing additional in-depth information on various aspects relating to the freight industry.