Truck Rental Inspection

Commercial truck inspection mistakes you need to avoid

August 3, 2021 by record360

Your commercial truck inspection is crucial to the longevity of your vehicles.

Frequent, careful inspections safeguard your clients, fleet, and even your bottom line.

Sadly, because many truck rental businesses aren’t religious about their inspections, they miss out on the benefits of having well-maintained trucks.

Even small compromises in a truck inspection over time can lead to catastrophic repercussions, such as accidents, financial, and client losses, etc.

Prevent these from happening to your truck rental company. Learn the commercial truck inspection mistakes you should avoid and the right steps you should do instead.

1. Superficially checking truck parts

A truck inspection often becomes so habitual that technicians can perform it mindlessly. However, this results in careless assessments of vehicle parts’ conditions that don’t guarantee safe, optimal operation.

For example, testing the braking systems requires exhaustive scrutiny. It involves checking the slack adjuster with the brakes, hunching under the trailer or over the wheels, ensuring air lines are not leaking, etc.

If your technicians carry pens and clipboards, the steps become extra tedious, wearying technicians and tempting them to dismiss careful inspection.

To avoid that mistake, use a digital truck inspection form. For example, our Record360 app has an electronic inspection checklist customizable according to your operations.

It even lets you capture all needed inspection data in one standard format. This makes checklists and later reports look clean and easy to read.

By loading inspection checklists onto mobile devices, technicians can painlessly carry them around while comprehensively examining your truck’s parts.

The result is a precise inspection, leading to optimally running vehicles, plus client safety.

2. Inaccurate documentation of truck conditions

Another truck inspection mistake to avoid is using inefficient methods to record your vehicle’s pre- and post-rental conditions — especially when defects are present.

Manual methods (e.g., narrative descriptions, hand-drawn illustrations) fail to capture the extent of any damage accurately, even for visible ones.

Once you discover any defect emerging or worsening and argue with your clients about it, you’re likely to lose the dispute.

After all, you don’t have solid evidence showing they caused it.

That is why, to avoid making this mistake, you must use photo and video documentation for your pre- and post-rental commercial truck inspections.

Our Record360 app demonstrates that with its high-resolution photo and video capture functionalities. It also lets you add tags indicating exactly the damage type and area in your truck.

Here’s another benefit to the Record360 app for recording inspections. You can create digital pre- and post-inspection forms and reports, attach photos and videos of your truck’s condition, and request clients to verify them with their digital signatures.

All this streamlines and bolsters your documentation workflow and enables you to resolve any arising customer disputes peacefully.

3. Failing to alert the team of recorded damages

It’s not enough to document your truck’s condition properly. You should also report the damages and notify your team promptly for corrective action.

When this happens, don’t put handwritten reports on tables and risk losing them or delaying the needed repairs.

Use more efficient methods such as instant email and SMS alerts.

The Record360 app offers those features when you discover truck defects and inspections fail.

It schedules the automatic delivery of these messages, shortening the communication process from technicians to maintenance officers.

Plus, remember the photos and videos with damage tags?

Our app lets you upload them to the cloud for your team’s ready access. This enables them to view the defects even remotely and determine and schedule the correct repairs fast.

There is no need to transfer media files via USB cords and email long threads, resulting in more working time consumed and communication disarray.

4. Segregated monitoring of inspection activities

Trucking companies with multiple branches usually struggle with efficiently monitoring inspection activities from other locations. This is typical, especially if they use manual systems.

If that’s your case, you make the mistake of segregating your inspection monitoring.

This leads to inaccurate overviews of your fleet’s real situation, low responsiveness to issues, etc. Eventually, these will hurt your business performance.

The solution? Harmonize your inspection activities from various locations with truck fleet management apps.

Record360 software can help you with streamlining and centralizing your inspections.

It has a user-friendly dashboard that reports your inspections by location, their history, total damages found, recent real-time activities (including vehicle checks), and more.

Moreover, if you need specific inspection data from technicians in remote locations, you can send them a direct link to our Record360 app.

You can then get instant access to that dataset and respond immediately to damage or any other issue. This feature lets you perform truck inspections from any place.

5. Inefficient truck inspection implementation

Conventional inspection systems are often inefficient, whether using hand-drawn and narrative condition descriptions, relaying printed damage reports on office tables and bulletins, or others.

All this internal inefficiency in your truck inspection workflows could result in fewer rentals deployed, delayed service delivery, lagging rental and inspection schedules, etc.

Streamline your inspection workflow management by digitizing related processes, forms, and assignments for your team. Our Record360 truck inspection app can help with that.

For one, it allows you to start an inspection with your customized in-app checklist, then send it to your team. This enables technicians to complete a request immediately in the field, saving plenty of working time.

Record360 also makes it quicker for you and your team to begin inspections and document your vehicle’s condition.

Under the “New Inspection” functionality, Record360 displays various task choices. Clicking on any one of them leads you to the right forms, checklists, etc., suited to the type of inspection you need to perform. This simplifies and accelerates your team’s work.

When you can perform and finish inspections fast and correctly, you boost your internal productivity, service delivery, and customer experience.

6. Disregard a roadway safety mindset

The ultimate reason you conduct truck inspections is to promote roadway safety, which involves your clients’ lives, vehicles, and even national properties, among others.

Which is why you should always keep that in mind when inspecting your fleet. The goal of guaranteeing safety motivates you to examine trucks extensively — even beyond what’s in the checklist, routine, or other minimum requirements.

Inculcate this roadway safety mindset and culture among your team, so they can also give their best during truck inspections.

Stop committing these commercial truck inspection mistakes.

As a truck rental company, you c-a-n-n-o-t afford to compromise on your vehicle inspections.

Doing so endangers your clients, fleet assets, and eventually, your business.

Avoid making these and other truck inspection mistakes — and you’ll reap the benefits of managing a safety-first rental business.

Interested in learning more about Record360? Schedule a demonstration today.

The importance of electronic signatures for equipment inspections

June 7, 2021 by record360

Using electronic signatures streamlines your equipment inspections, asset management, and rental operations.

With it, you can obtain the signatures of parties involved in your processes and transactions without having to meet them physically.

Offering e-sign options for your customers can drastically improve and simplify your processes while making doing business with your company more efficient and flexible.

This article covers what an electronic signature is, its impact on your equipment rental company, and why it is crucial for modern inspections.

Definition of an electronic signature

An electronic signature (or e-signature) is a legal method of getting approval or consent on digital forms and documents. Legal e-signatures can replace handwritten ones in any virtual process.

The current U.S. code under the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce (E-SIGN) Act defines e-signatures as:

An electronic sound, symbol or process that is attached to or logically associated with a record and executed or adopted by a person with the intent to sign the record.

Are e-signatures legally binding?

In the U.S., electronic signatures are recognized and legalized as equally binding as pen and paper signatures after legislation passed the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act (UETA) and the E-SIGN Act in 1999 and 2000.

The two pieces of legislation allow e-signatures to replace ink signatures as long as they meet three legal hallmarks:

The signer must be whom he/she claims to be. The signer’s identity can be authenticated or verified through digital markers, such as an IP address (if required).
The signer’s intent to affix his/her signature to the document or form is captured. The e-signature is legally binding if the transaction’s parameters have been communicated and the signer unequivocally goes through the signing process.
The signature associated with the form or document is verifiable. The electronic signature is legally accepted if the steps in the signing process can be validated. This includes how the document was signed, what action the signer completed, and what documentation was presented to support the digital transaction. The business or originator must also keep a record of all electronically signed documents.

That said, e-signatures are legally binding as conventionally obtained signatures as long as they satisfy the legal requirements.

How to insert electronic signatures

How companies implement and set up electronic signatures depends on the type of business and transaction involved in the signing process.

E-signature deployment methods and the customer-facing interface can also be unique to the company based on the software or applications.

Most e-signature tools allow you to upload your document and enter the signer’s email address. The signer can then click the link within the email and sign digitally from a mobile device, browser, or computer without signing up to or downloading anything.

Equipment inspection software Record360 is equipped with a helpful eSign feature that lets inspectors affix an electronic signature after filling out a new equipment inspection form.

If you have a previous inspection record that needs signing off, you can open it from the app and send the report to your customer’s or other stakeholder’s email address.

With the in-app e-Sign equipment inspection software feature, you can easily replace your paper forms and processes.

You can capture digital signatures easily and on the fly, minimizing the waiting times involved in the traditional methods of securing signatures.

Record360 also allows you to set up auto-emails to send out inspection records efficiently to your customers, then store them in the app’s secure dashboard for easy document tracking and access.

Importance of electronic signatures during equipment inspections

Manually getting people’s signatures on your inspection records can be a long and painful process. This can lead to equipment inspection delays, can keep your operations from running smoothly, and in turn, you lose money.

Electronic signatures can address these issues while providing the following benefits.

1. Efficient inspections

The paperwork that comes with securing signatures for your inspection records can be time and labor-intensive.

It takes away precious time you could spend on core tasks that help you achieve your business goals.

Electronic signatures can help optimize your equipment inspection process, eliminating the manual and repetitive aspects through seamless digital methods.

With e-signatures, you and your staff won’t waste time on:

Waiting for senior managers to return to the office to get their signature
Signing (or obtaining signatures), printing, scanning, and manually posting inspection records and other related documents
Manually archiving authorized records
Manually verifying if the documents were signed by the right or authorized people

You can accelerate your rental processes, equipment inventory management, asset inspections, and entire business operations because e-signatures allow you to:

Save time on creating inspections and getting them signed
Secure signatures from everyone (customers and managers) anytime and anywhere through any device
Make the whole approval process less prone to error and streamline it
Get the same level of trust and security with documents signed with wet ink
Move your workflows along more efficiently, leading to seamless operations and increased revenue

2. Improved customer experience

Electronic signatures improve your customer’s experience with the company because it provides a convenient way for them to sign your equipment inspection reports.

This also means holding parties responsible for any equipment damages is more streamlined, and you’ll have clear, irrefutable proof to back up your claim.

Your staff can take high-resolution equipment videos and photos using the Record 360 app to capture equipment damages, attach them to the inspection, and send them to customers to sign and acknowledge.

Auto-emailing your inspection reports and obtaining signatures digitally efficiently improves the process and reduces potential damage disputes and frictions with customers. This can enhance your interactions and relationships with customers, encouraging repeat business and client loyalty.

3. Obtain signatures securely

Electronic signatures include encryption to ensure the document can’t be changed after affixing a signature, preventing tampering risks.

Digital signatures can also reduce errors on your equipment inspection reports because now you can do everything electronically and correct or update information easily without starting over.

A reliable equipment inspection software helps ensure you have accurate and secure records and an efficient asset inspection, inventory management, and rental process.

Start using electronic signatures for equipment inspections

Electronic signatures eliminate cumbersome, tedious paperwork and methods, streamlining your equipment inspection process.

With electronic signatures, your staff can do their jobs more effectively and efficiently, allowing them to focus their time and energy on critical and revenue-generating tasks.

Are you ready to leverage the power of equipment inspection software with robust e-Sign features?

Schedule a demonstration today to learn how Record360 can optimize your equipment rental processes.

5 benefits of using a digital equipment inspection form

June 2, 2021 by record360

Managing your equipment inspection forms can be a total nightmare if you’re running a massive fleet.

Plus, if you’re still using the archaic pen and paper to conduct your equipment inspections to your entire equipment rental process, your process is bound to grow inefficient. (If it isn’t already.)

That’s why choosing the paperless route is crucial.

With dependable equipment inspection software, you can achieve streamlined and efficient asset rental management and inspections, saving you a huge chunk of your time and resources.

This guide covers five reasons why you should use a digital equipment inspection form and how a reliable app with robust features can help with seamless asset inspections and management.

1. A digital equipment inspection form provides complete flexibility

Electronic asset inspection solutions provide an easily customizable equipment checkout form template.

This gives your team the flexibility needed to inspect various pieces of machinery efficiently. Your staff can use a standard, modifiable equipment sign out sheet directly from a mobile device.

This can significantly cut down on the time and energy it takes to conduct your equipment inspections before releasing them to customers and after getting the machinery back.

The Record360 rental equipment inspection software has digital forms that equipment rental companies can use to streamline their inspection processes.

With this feature, your team can conduct inspections quickly, set it to auto-email your customers and fleet managers, and save it on the cloud for easy documentation and access.

Inspectors can sign off on the report and get customer e-signatures on the fly, streamlining the equipment check out sheet and the entire inspection process.

Shane Johnson, Premier Platforms Branch Coordinator, uses Record360 to digitize their processes to maximize the productivity of their 675+ asset fleet.

He stated:

Going to a digital platform such as Record360 has been huge for us.

He added that they use Record360 at the point of delivery and throughout the rental, to document the updates and then as a final check when the asset returns.

Eliminating clunky and time-consuming paper-based inspections helps your team get everything done faster.

Also, the ease and efficiency that a digital equipment inspection form encourages a proactive environment for performing regular and comprehensive inspections.

2. A paperless equipment checkout form allows absolute mobility

Data shows that regular updating and equipment inspections can mitigate some of the risks of construction and save the lives of 582 workers in the U.S. each year.

However, sticking to manual and paper-based equipment inspections can make it easy to miss critical equipment defects and damages. This can lead to malfunctions and accidents in the field, which means potential costly liabilities for your company.

A digital equipment checkout form helps your team cover all the bases, more ground, and project sites since it takes less time to accomplish electronic inspection forms.

Along with using an equipment checkout form template, you can capture visual verification of your asset’s condition and damages with an inspection software that lets you take high-resolution photos and videos via your mobile device and attach it to your reports.

This makes it easier to share, access, and send out your equipment check out sheet, equipment return form, and other inspection data anytime and anywhere.

You can also save and reuse your digital equipment check out form. Your staff won’t need to create a new checklist every time and instead refer to previous data and use an equipment checkout form template.

You can also combine your equipment checkout form or checklist with other data to uncover deeper insights such as your workflow trends. This can give your management team a big-picture view of your operations and make necessary adjustments for process improvement.

3. A digital equipment check out form improves communication and collaboration

Whether from your equipment return form or equipment sheet, all your asset inspection data should be subject to analysis constantly.

Doing so helps you assess what you’re doing right, where you’re losing money, and the areas in your process that are open to high liability risks.

Electronic equipment inspection forms and digital methods make this process more efficient. These eliminate the need for moving mountains of paperwork across people and floors.

A digitized equipment checkout form template and inspection system streamline your asset management. This includes recording data on your equipment return form, filing your equipment sheet, and reviewing and analyzing all your inspection and asset management info.

4. Electronic equipment inspection forms facilitate real-time reporting

Paperless equipment inspections allow real-time reporting. You can do everything digitally, including your equipment check out form, equipment sheet, and other related documents.

This allows for live data capturing and transmitting, expediting your inspection and rental process.

Your team won’t need to wait to receive the paperwork to kick off the asset rental process since your team can send assessments via the equipment inspection software to your managers while the inspection is happening.

This can significantly reduce time spent on gathering and compiling your equipment sheet, encoding, sorting equipment return form data, analyzing, and reporting through multiple channels.

Record360 makes this a seamless and efficient process through the app’s dashboard. It gives you a quick view of your fleet’s condition in real-time.

You’ll get instant insights, learn your assets’ total damages, and access all the information easily for damage disputes.

According to Vicky Cummings, Cummings Leasing Rental Manager:

Record360 gives you the crystal-clear pictures you need to prevent disputes.

A digital equipment inspection form reduces the hoops your team needs to go through to record and relay damages and reports.

It opens up a communication route through equipment inspection software that allows concerned management and staff access to real-time information.

5. A digitized equipment check out sheet boosts asset inspection and management efficiency

A lack of regular and thorough equipment inspection can lead to unexpected malfunctions or, worse, accidents and injuries.

Not only can this open up your company to expensive liabilities, but if the accident happens within your team, you lose significant manpower and precious work hours.

Data shows that more than 235,000 workers were forced to miss work hours due to injuries from contact with equipment and objects.

A streamlined asset inspection process through a digital equipment check out sheet and other electronically acquired data can help mitigate this kind of risk.

Digital equipment inspection checklists can help instill discipline in conducting thorough assessments.

Plus, with everything done electronically, your team can complete inspections in minutes and send the report immediately to a centralized database in your equipment inspection software.

This saves your management staff valuable time spent searching for information, creating reports, and scheduling and planning inspections.

It’s also easier for managers to access previous equipment inspection and management reports and data for corrective actions, comparative purposes, and further data verification.

Frequently asked questions about equipment inventory management

Below are a few of the commonly asked questions about equipment inventory management.

What is an equipment management system?

An equipment management system is essentially a process that includes managing, monitoring, and maintaining your assets.

It helps ensure proper equipment utilization, deployment, and reallocation of assets quickly when and where they are needed.

How do you manage equipment inventory?

Most leading companies opt for user-friendly, modern equipment inventory systems that match the business’s needs.

Reliable software automates many equipment management background work and streamlines processes.

What is an equipment inventory list?

An equipment inventory list includes all the information related to every asset you have, such as the model, serial number, dimensions, purchase date, etc. It helps ensure proper equipment tracking, management, maintenance, and deployment.

Wrapping up the digital equipment inspection form benefits

Using a digital equipment inspection form expedites your workflows, streamlines your rental process, protects your business from damage disputes, and makes your asset management more efficient.

It helps your team do their jobs more effectively.

You also get standardized and easy-to-access equipment inspection data and gain better visibility into your assets and processes.

If you want to get all these and more from one equipment inspection software, schedule a demonstration of Record360 today.

Top 11 equipment inspection software features

June 2, 2021 by record360

Are you looking for equipment inspection software to replace your tedious, unreliable, and time-consuming manual pen-and-paper process?

We don’t blame you.

Many equipment rental companies suffer from thousands of dollars worth of unfavorable damage disputes, needless staffing costs, and ruined customer relationships because of their inefficient, pen-and-paper documentation processes.

To help you overcome this hurdle and find the best equipment inspection software for your company, we put together this list of top equipment inspection software features you need to consider before making a purchase:

Video & photo capture of equipment utilization
Digital equipment inspection forms and check-out sheets
Quick internal company handoff and response
A real-time dashboard
Secure, digital e-signatures
A cloud-secure system
Seamless customer verification
Inspections and inventory management
Inspections and equipment tracking
An equipment maintenance log
Task assignment capabilities

What is equipment inspection software?

Equipment inspection software is a practical tool for any rental company to streamline manual inspection workflows and accurately document a unit’s condition before and after renting it out. It gives rental companies the capability to conduct equipment inspections, audits, and maintenance plans, without relying on mistake-prone manual processes.

Top 11 equipment inspection software features

To optimize your asset inspection processes, your equipment inspection software should possess the following functionalities:

1. Video & photo capture of equipment utilization

Video and photo captures are among the most critical equipment inspection software features.

They allow you to visually document your equipment’s pre- and post-usage conditions, which are — unfortunately — insufficiently described in traditional handwritten inspection reports.

Clayton Conrad, Coast Counties Peterbilt rental manager, explains his frustrations on the repercussions.

The biggest issue with the paper logs was customers disputing damages… [We] didn’t have clear evidence as to whether or not the customer caused the damage… [and damage losses] were in the thousands, if not tens of thousands per year.

However, with photo and video documentation, you have accurate records of how your equipment appeared before and after utilization and can correctly attribute them to your clients.

Record360 has high-resolution video and photo capturing capabilities. The app also lets you tap on damaged equipment parts shown on your media file and apply damage tags and notes

Record360 then lets you upload these videos and photos to the cloud, send them to your clients to notify them, and attach them to your inspection forms.

With this feature, you upgrade the quality of your inspections and resolve customer disputes fast (or avoid them altogether). You also preserve your company’s integrity, client relationships, and business savings.

Relieved with this Record360 feature, Conrad says, “We can keep our trucks in better shape and sell them for more because we have someone to bill for the damage.”

2. Digital equipment inspection forms and check out sheets

Another practical capability your equipment inspection software should have is creating digital forms, checklists, and check in and check out sheets.

Why?

Because an equipment check out sheet (and check in sheet) can do wonders for your equipment rental company. It hastens your workflow implementation and service delivery and cuts your administrative costs and resources — boosting your day-to-day productivity.

Pioneer Equipment Rental business owner Michel Allan shares,

If you have a good format and it’s simple to navigate, then it gets done accurately and quickly… With one report… we can process equipment in and out [fast].

Digital inspection forms are also generally more secure than paper files, which can easily get misplaced and damaged, resulting in data loss and low service quality.

Using the Record360 app, you can create digital inspection checklists and forms, load them straight into your mobile devices, and painlessly capture your needed data in standard formats.

Users (whether staff or clients) can simply type in applicable answers, go back to previous pages when needed, and press selected options or tick boxes.

With digital inspection forms, rental companies can complete workflows quickly compared to them taking several minutes when writing and filling up paper forms.

3. Quick internal company handoff and response

If you’re handling an enormous fleet of equipment assets, delegating several urgent inspections to your staff via traditional communication channels can be burdensome.

That’s why you need to select a reliable and feature-packed equipment inspection software. Having one increases the efficiency of your asset inspection activities, making them seamless and automated.

For example, with the digital inspection forms you create on our Record360 app, your staff can conduct inspections offsite and send their results electronically.

You can also perform inspections on any of your company branches. Just send your drivers or contractors a direct link to corresponding Record360 app functions, so they can remotely and promptly fill out and return the digital inspection report.

The Record360 app can also automate and schedule real-time email delivery to responsible departments whenever an inspection fails, needs to kick off on which date, and more.

That way, you and your staff can respond instantly, apply the best corrective action, finish inspections faster, and continue serving your customers with quality equipment.

When Premier Leasing streamlined its vehicle condition review processes through a standard coordinated workflow, rental manager Kevin Etlicher shares:

Having a standardized process means we can get our trucks ready hours before a customer comes in… We receive notice that a rental is going to happen, and we can do the documentation well in advance. That way, when the customer comes in, we can hand over the keys and have them sign the check out form. They’re on their way in no time.

4. A real-time dashboard

A reliable equipment inspection software provides you with a clean, easy-on-the-eyes dashboard showing your overall asset inspection operational performance in real-time.

Record360’s dashboard homepage meets you with inspection-related data graphs and charts, including recent condition reviews, total damages, and more. Get a bird’s-eye view of your equipment inspection operations by reviewing the data on your dashboard.

From the graphs, you can see a summary of ongoing and closed inspections and damages inflicted on the units for a specified period.

The Recent Activity and Recent Inspections panels on the right side update themselves and display those happenings in real-time.

With a comprehensive, informational dashboard like this, you can closely keep tabs on your equipment’s conditions and inspection activities and access rich data to support your claims during disputes.

5. Secure, digital e-signatures

With an electronic signature function in your equipment inspection software, your clients can digitally sign your inspection forms on the fly. They no longer need to drop by your office just to sign a document — they can do this remotely. This saves time, effort, and resources for your client and yourself.

Record360’s eSign feature enables you to send inspection-related and other documents to your clients (even repeatedly) for their digital signature. You can view your eSign request status right from the Record360 dashboard and click in to see more details.

You can also request signatures for multiple documents using a straightforward, customizable email template. Your customers receive a branded email with clear instructions on what to do next.

If your clients have not yet signed the delivered documents in 48 hours (extending to 96 hours), Record360 automatically sends reminders. Once they’ve signed digitally, you and your clients receive a confirmation email with a link to the signed document.

With productivity-boosting features like e-signatures on your equipment inspection software, you can get more done, reduce costs, and improve client satisfaction.

6. A cloud-secure system

Your equipment inspection software should also have a cloud-secure system.

This enables quick file uploads and downloads in a safe repository that’s accessible to you and your authorized employees.

Cloud-secure systems make file sharing much easier because you can immediately save them on a categorized folder online.

You and your staff don’t need to copy and paste inspection-related photos, documents, and videos onto a USB drive, hand it to each other, and risk acquiring computer viruses or accidental file deletions.

7. Seamless customer verification

Equipment rental companies traditionally verify identities by requiring customers to submit copies of authorized IDs and other identification documents in person, via mail, or email.

The rental company personnel then photocopies physical copies or prints electronically sent files and attach them to the rental application and inspection forms.

This makes your rental and inspection workflows tedious, time-consuming, and expensive.

To improve your administrative examination processes, choose equipment inspection software tools with customer verification features.

The Record360 app shows us an example. It has license scanning functionalities that make it safe and quick for your customers to present their identification documents for your verification.

They don’t need to go to your office to submit their files, and you wouldn’t need to buy and use up shedloads of paper and ink to print those documents.

The result: Cost reduction and saved time for both you and your customers.

8. Inspections and inventory management

A handy database of your assets and their respective inspections is vital when getting equipment inspection software.

You should be able to access a ton of information anytime you need it, e.g., when monitoring and assessing your assets, handling repairs, or resolving client debates about damages.

Record360 has the Units panel on its dashboard that lists your rental equipment assets and their details, such as their locations, users, identification numbers, damages, and others.

On every equipment unit’s detail page, you’ll find its photos and videos, essential inspection information, geographic location, inspection history, and activity log (more on this in the next segment).

Record360’s dashboard also has the Inspections panel where it lists the inspected equipment units, plus information similar to those in the Units section.

The Inspections page also has tabs that let you organize and view only the submitted inspection reports and drafts and by other filters. You can also delete listed assets and edit their details (e.g., ID numbers) accordingly.

To download reports on damaged equipment or uncover the business branches that implemented the most inspections for the week, export filtered lists of units and asset condition reviews from the Record360 dashboard.

As you can see, equipment inspection software with an efficient unit and inspection inventory feature streamlines the management of your units, condition checks, and disputes — resulting in better asset protection, brand image, and client relationship protection.

9. Inspections and equipment tracking

Especially if you have multiple office locations, you want to stay on top of things and remain updated with your other branches’ inspections and equipment conditions.

If that applies to you, look for equipment inspection software with asset and inspection tracking capabilities.

As mentioned earlier, the Record360 dashboard homepage shows periodic graphs and real-time updates on your inspections by location.

You can also quickly track your equipment and inspections made on them through the details on the Inventory panel: location, user, ID number, and others. Record360’s activity log and inspection history also let you monitor your equipment and the activities conducted with it.

These are the details summarized by the Inspections History graph on the Record360 dashboard homepage we discussed previously.

With these features, you can closely keep an eye on your assets and equipment inspections and ensure the units are where they should be and regularly examined.

10. An equipment maintenance log

When your inspection reports reveal that your assets need repairs or maintenance visits, you want to supervise these activities smoothly — particularly if you have a large fleet.

That’s why your chosen equipment inspection software must have a systematic equipment maintenance log. For example, Record360 allows you to schedule equipment inspections from the Units section view or an individual asset’s detail page view. Your drivers and other authorized staff can also leave comments about your equipment’s utilization and maintenance status and condition.

Equipment maintenance logs like this let you check that your assets are always in tip-top shape, preventing damages that can harm your customers and ensuring operational continuity.

11. Task assignment capabilities

Equipment inspections involve several recurring tasks.

If you’re still using pen and paper and other manual methods to delegate tasks to your team (such as leaving notes on their desks), your staff can quickly forget or miss your instructions.

In contrast, using equipment inspection software can automate, centralize, and secure your assignments to your personnel.

This translates to efficient task monitoring over time, more systematic staff-manager coordination, and better communication lines in your equipment rental company.

Record360’s new Tasks feature is an example of this software functionality. It allows you to assign specific to-do’s and inspections to the personnel in real-time and notifies them instantly.

As a result, they can complete the equipment inspections, address any arising issues, and serve your customers promptly.

Use the best equipment inspection software for your business

Investing in comprehensive equipment inspection software is among the smartest business decisions you can make as an equipment rental company owner.

It protects your assets, grows your bottom line, and establishes your reputation while strengthening your client relationships.

Don’t miss out on the critical cost-saving benefits of a robust, feature-packed equipment inspection software like Record360.

Interested in learning more about Record360? Schedule a demonstration today.

5 tips to increase fleet utilization

December 3, 2020 by record360

Getting machines out of your yard as much as possible is the name of the game in equipment rental, but hoping and wishing for higher utilization isn’t enough; it requires specific actions. Here are five tips for renting your machines.

1. Get the word out!

You can’t rent equipment if no one knows you have it. Let existing and potential customers know what you have to offer through an effective promotional campaign. Traditional advertising methods, such as billboards, radio spots, and print ads, remain valuable, but optimizing your Google presence is crucial to reaching your target market today.

To do so, a Google My Business account can help your company appear in search results when customers look for you online. It’s free, making it an affordable marketing tool for small and big businesses. Remember that even though you run a brick-and-mortar business, your customers and prospects are online, and that’s where they’ll start their search for your company and the equipment you carry.

Likewise, don’t discount the importance of social media. An informative and frequently updated Facebook page, for example, is an excellent tool to not only inform customers of your offerings but also to create a cohesive community of supporters that will spread the message about your business through “word of mouth,” which these days translates to commenting on and sharing your news and content. To learn more about digital marketing, please check out our recent webinar with equipment rental digital marketing expert David McBee.

2. Right-size it.

If your utilization rate is lower than you’d like – and experts say it should hover around the sweet spot of 65% – consider adjusting the size of your fleet. It’s good practice to consider each machine its own business. Start with its initial acquisition cost, then factor in the fuel and maintenance it requires to run, fixed costs such as insurance and storage, as well as depreciation and disposal. Crunch the numbers and compare your result to the income the unit generates. If the numbers are in red, offloading that machine might be necessary to return it to a profitable position.

Fortunately, today’s telematics systems can provide all the information you need to make the right decision. And don’t let the fear of a data deluge intimidate you. The reward for rolling up your sleeves and digging into the figures can be significant, and help is often available from your suppliers.

3. Reconsider your rates.

Adjusting what you’re charging customers for using your equipment is sometimes necessary. If utilization is low, the natural inclination might be to lower your rates to attract more business. It’s the law of supply and demand.

But guard against making a knee-jerk decision when it comes to rates. Once they go down, it’s challenging to bring them back up. Carefully consider what you’ll need to make up in volume to reach your desired profit margin at a lower rate.

4. Take good care.

There’s no secret equipment stuck in the shop that can’t be out earning you money. Do what you can to avoid downtime by purchasing reliable products from suppliers you trust with a reputation for responsive customer service and fast turnaround for parts.

Once it’s in your fleet, include an equipment inspection with every rental. Doing a walk-around inspection with customers before a machine leaves the yard not only assures them the machine is in solid working order it can also inspire renters to take better care of your equipment while they use it.

Moreover, regular inspections result in earlier detection of problems, often preventing catastrophic failures that can lead to costly downtime.

5. Keep it up to date.

Every rental fleet includes those tried-and-true items that have been around since the beginning of time and keep on earning despite the appearance of wear and tear. But let’s face it, customers are generally attracted to equipment that looks new and has the latest technology. To ensure your machines pass muster, rotate the fleet to encourage even wear, and be sure to phase out units when they begin to cost more than they’re worth to keep around. Meanwhile, keep your machines looking new by keeping them clean, touching up the paint periodically, and maybe even spraying on some tires black. These simple things can go a long way toward making your fleet shine bright, which is its inexpensive form of advertising.

Equipment utilization earns the income that keeps your business running. Fortunately, many variables affect how often your machines are rented. Just don’t leave them up to chance. With these five tips, you can begin to take a strategic approach to ensuring renters consistently choose your equipment over the competition’s.

Interested in learning more about Record360? Schedule a demonstration today.

How to design the perfect inspection process for equipment rental operators

October 27, 2020 by record360

A step-by-step guide for equipment rental operators to implement inspection management software into their check-in / check-out process

One of the biggest fears equipment rental operators have when implementing inspection software is figuring out how it will impact their existing processes. They understand that damage is an issue. They know the software will increase damage collections. But they worry about how to implement the change. Who should do the inspections? The technicians or the drivers? Where should we do inspections? In the yard or at the job site? Should we inspect only at check-out, check-in, or both?

At Record360, we’ve helped thousands of rental locations transform their inspection process. From this work, we’ve developed a strong perspective on what works and what doesn’t. This guide contains those learnings. It will help heavy equipment rental operators develop the perfect inspection process that will get adopted quickly and drive immediate results.

Operators should follow two principles when upgrading their inspection process

Equipment rental operators should follow two principles when implementing inspection software:

Simplicity drives consistency, and consistency is key. To benefit from inspection software, you need to follow the same process for every rental, every time. To get consistency in the process, the process needs to be simple so it’s easy to understand and easy to adopt.
You want to upgrade your process, not overhaul it. It’s easier for your team to adjust their process and behavior than to do something completely new. This means mirroring your existing inspection process closely so the new process is intuitive and fits into your existing workflow easily.

When is it better to have drivers do inspections?

Equipment rental operators have two options for doing inspections:

Option 1: Drivers can do inspections when they drop off at the job site
Option 2: The service team can do inspections before the equipment leaves the yard

Having drivers do inspections has some advantages. If you have your own drivers for the majority of rentals, your drivers will pick up inspection software quickly because they’re used to getting signatures at the job site. They love the ease of using a simple mobile app to take photos and videos after they’ve unloaded the equipment. It helps protect the driver from arguing the equipment arrived at the job site damaged, was dropped at the wrong location, or was damaged in transit

However, if you use third-party drivers, or customers frequently pick up equipment, Option 1 is harder to implement:

It’s harder to get third-party drivers to follow the process. They’re more interested in dropping the equipment off, attempting to get a signature, and getting out of there quickly.
When the delivery of equipment varies from your own drivers to third-party haulers or customer pickups, it’s harder to enforce a consistent process.

For most equipment rental operators, having your service team do inspections is best

For most equipment rental operators, it’s better to have your service team do inspections as they prepare the equipment for rent. It’s much easier to drive consistency in your process, which is critical for protecting your assets and increasing damage collections.

Service technicians already follow a rental-ready process, so it’s easy to incorporate inspection software into that workflow
Every asset goes through the same process, so you make sure nothing gets missed
Service technicians naturally want to use a simple mobile app because it helps them do away with clunky paper forms or digital cameras and shared drives

Must Read: The Power of a Checklist: A Deep Dive into the Impact of Heavy Equipment Inspection Sheets

What is the perfect inspection process?

The inspection process outlined below incorporates the best practices and learnings from helping thousands of rental shops upgrade their processes. This process is consistent, simple and mirrors existing workflows for most operators closely. If you follow this process on every rental, operators can expect dramatic increases in their damage collections within months.

Equipment Check-Out

Customer makes a reservation
Rental coordinator instructs yard team to prepare the asset for rental
Yard team / shop team uses Record360 to follow a consistent inspection checklist and take photos and videos
Rental coordinator adds the specific equipment to the contract
Drivers picks up and drops the equipment at the customer

Equipment Check-In

Driver drops the equipment back in a specific area of the yard
Yard team unloads the equipment and immediately performs an inspection with Record360
If no damage is present, equipment is washed and prepared for next rental
If damage is present, an email trigger from the mobile app sends an alert & inspection summary to the rental coordinator
Rental coordinator immediately sends inspection summary to the customer to notify them of damage
Service department prepares repair estimate for damage
Rental coordinator closes contract and invoices the customer for damage
Service department repairs the equipment

Rental operators that follow this process operate with confidence because they know they have good documentation to rely on in the event damage occurs.

Interested in learning more about Record360? Schedule a demonstration today.