Volvo Trucks said its ongoing commitment to uptime was recently highlighted during Uptime 2015 – a three-day event focused on the latest developments in aftermarket issues, trends and operations. Every two years, Volvo’s aftermarket team, North American dealer principals, parts and service managers, key suppliers and vendors convene to focus efforts on keeping customers’ trucks moving.
“Nothing is more important to our customers’ bottom line than uptime, and Volvo Trucks and its dealers are intensely focused on continual improvement,” said Gӧran Nyberg, president. “Even a single day of downtime can affect a trucking company’s reputation and relationship with its customer, so we strive to continue to develop new products and services to keep customers’ trucks on the road.”
Technology is key to Volvo’s success with customer uptime. Volvo Remote Diagnostics, standard on all Volvo-powered vehicles, is a proactive diagnostic and repair planning system that monitors critical fault codes, the company said. Using Volvo’s ASIST web-based service management platform, Remote Diagnostics identifies the necessary parts and provides straightforward repair instructions to technicians, even before the truck arrives for service. ASIST also documents all estimates, repair approvals, purchase orders and communications among customers, dealers and Volvo to ensure everyone knows exactly where a case stands at any moment, Volvo said.
Volvo said it believes that even with market-leading technology, expert human intervention is essential to maximizing uptime for customers. Volvo said its Uptime Center consolidates under one roof the people and systems needed to monitor and respond to vehicle issues in real time, including 24/7 support through Volvo Action Service and ASIST experts.
Volvo Trucks dealers, which offer more than 360 Class 8 locations throughout North America, are critical to Volvo’s uptime services, the company said. According to Volvo, since 2010, its dealers have invested $435 million in facilities and personnel, resulting in a 37% increase in bay capacity and 89% more technicians.
The biennial Uptime event is another important tool in improving customer uptime, according to James Chenier, vice president, aftermarket sales and marketing.
“Our Uptime conference brings together North American Volvo dealers, personnel and suppliers to share best practices in aftermarket support,” Chenier said. “Everyone comes to the event with the attitude that by listening and learning we can always make our uptime services even better.”
