Mobile service was among the top two revenue sources in Fullbay's latest State of Heavy-Duty Repair report. Regarding services offered, it was second, trailing in-shop repair by just 2%.
None of that surprises Dany Grant, workshop coordinator at Excellence Peterbilt. “Mobile service is definitely growing,” he said. “Time is money and increasingly, many of our customers would prefer on-site service because there’s less downtime than dropping off and picking up vehicles or waiting at a shop. With this service, we can take the shop to them.
“Customers also need equipment serviced quickly, so it impacts their business or operation as little as possible,” Grant added. “With a fleet of mobile service trucks, we can be everywhere they are and meet their service needs very efficiently. That’s especially the case for large fleets with hundreds of trucks as well as a growing number of smaller operations.”
Headquartered in Sainte-Julie, Quebec, Camions Excellence Peterbilt operates from six locations throughout the province. Its mobile service fleet of more than 10 units includes medium-duty Peterbilt Model 220 cabovers and Class 8 Model 548 trucks. The fleet projects the vehicles to be in service for at least 10 years.
For Grant, the technicians who take to the road every day are the most essential part of the mobile service fleet at Excellence Peterbilt. “We offer full service with our mobile units, so highly trained technicians who can work on their own are essential,” he said.
“Whether it’s routine maintenance, a component replacement, or a more extensive problem like an engine issue from diagnostics to repair, our technicians can take care of it in as little time as possible,” Grant added.
The mobile service trucks at Excellence Peterbilt are outfitted with bodies that serve as mobile workshops, a full complement of tools, generators, air compressors, welders, and jacks, and they carry an extensive parts inventory. In addition, the vehicles have onboard communications systems that keep technicians connected to dedicated dispatchers at the dealership’s service facilities.
A significant consideration for Excellence Peterbilt is technician comfort, especially during Quebec’s cold winter months. Grant explained that the dealership’s mobile service truck bodies are fitted with Webasto diesel-fired auxiliary heaters to maintain year-round service. Included are Air Top Evo 40 units in Peterbilt Model 548 trucks and Air Top 2000 STC heaters in the fleet’s Model 220s.
“Along with providing mobile technicians with a comfortable on-site workshop, auxiliary heaters can be left running at night so none of the tools, fluids, or other items in the body freeze,” Grant explained. “There’s also a cost savings with the auxiliary heaters because the alternative would be to idle the engine, which burns more fuel. For example, the Air Top 2000 STC uses as little as one gallon of fuel in 22 hours.”
“And there are aftertreatment and other time issues to consider with idling engines as well,” he added. “If we had to pay mobile technicians to spend up to an hour waiting for a forced regen to finish, it could cost us thousands of dollars every day in wages and lost revenue.”
Grant also reported that the auxiliary heaters are essentially maintenance-free, and they have been very reliable. “One of our Webasto Air Top Evo 40 heaters has been operating faithfully for eight years,” he related. "That’s six years longer than its warranty, and it has run nearly 20,000 working hours.”
“The mobile technician using that auxiliary heater starts it as soon as it gets cold and never shuts it off until the weather gets warmer,” Grant continued. “When we looked at those numbers, we realized that the auxiliary heater has lasted almost 10 times longer than our original expectation.”
Founded in 1997, Camions Excellence Peterbilt is a family-owned company that employs more than 435 people across its sales, leasing, parts, and service operations. Throughout its history, the dealership has consistently invested in expanding its services.
“Providing mobile service is just one of the ways we are focused on better meeting our customers’ needs,” Grant said. “The growing service truck operation is also how we can help foster growth for our company.”
