After three years of anticipation, the North American Council for Fleet Efficiency released its 2022 Fleet Fuel Study in December. The study evaluates the efficiency practices of 24 notable North American fleets and assists carriers looking to benefit from fuel-efficient technologies for their tractors and trailers. The 2022 NACFE Fuel Study 5 key takeaways are below:
1. Tractor-trailers equipped with fuel-saving technologies can readily attain 10+ MPG
Over the course of the last three years, the study found that the average MPG of a fleet in the United States has risen from 5.98 MPG to 6.24. In addition, the council found that tractor-trailers equipped with the best fuel-saving technologies could reach levels above 10 miles per gallon.
“This is a significant improvement and has helped the operators of the 1.7 million tractors operating in the US reduce their fuel costs,” said NACFE Executive Director Mike Roeth.
2. Carriers are leaving trillions of dollars in savings on the table
NACFE’s data showed that overwhelmingly, the fleets participating in the study had adopted numerous fuel-saving technologies and enjoyed significant MPG improvements. In fact, 15 fleets operating 75,000 trucks saved $540 million in 2021, compared to average trucks on the road. If all carriers deployed these practices, $12.2+ trillion in fuel savings could be generated in North America alone.
“Given today’s high fuel prices, the study findings are particularly relevant and should help fleets make the right decisions on adopting technologies and practices that enhance freight efficiency.”
– Mike Roeth, NACFE Executive Director
3. Regulations are here to stay, but a goal of zero emissions is not a requirement to save
When considering the industry’s long-term goal of reaching zero carbon emissions, fleets can feel overwhelmed. However, NACFE’s data suggests that even the slightest operational changes can drastically reduce a vehicle’s carbon footprint.
Many technologies evaluated in the study, such as ATIS for tractors, can be leveraged on diesel trucks as well as eclectic vehicles. In fact, according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), if every vehicle in America were equipped with ATIS, carbon emissions would be reduced by 9 million tons per year.
4. NACFE urges fleets to commit budget to proven technologies to increase the fuel efficiency of their fleet
Since its inception, the NACFE Fleet Fuel study has acted as a key industry resource to guage the industry’s confidence in 86 fuel-efficient technologies. By tracking year-over-year technology adoption curves and associated fuel economy results, several technologies jump out as no-brainers for any fleet to implement.
All that said, every fleet is unique. This year, NACFE has released an interactive benchmark tool to enable fleets to determine which technologies could be a great fit for their application. The tool will give fleets the confidence to budget for investments in fuel-efficient technologies that will inevitably pay for themselves.
5. Only one technology solves the headache of tire underinflation
Of the 86 technologies evaluated in this year’s NACFE study, only the Halo Tire Management platform solves the headache of tire underinflation for both tractors and trailers. Active inflation from the Halo Tire Inflator coupled with the Halo Connect predictive analytics engine for tractors and trailers provide comprehensive tire health management to improve fleet fuel efficiency and tire life while maximizing uptime by eliminating tire underinflation.
Today, nearly 10 percent of all new trucks are specified with active tire inflation by Aperia. So while automatic tire inflation use on tractors increased by 23 percent, adoption of TPMS on tractors decreased by 15 percent. The data reflects the North American fleets’ drive toward robust, reliable automation solutions that save time and reduce maintenance burden.
Aperia’s Halo Tire Management platform is comprehensive, cost-effective, and customizable so carriers can invest in the tire management tools that are right for each unique operations.
Contact our team of experts to evaluate which tire management solution may work best for you, and join fleets such as Ryder, Bison, and UPS who trust the Halo Tire Management platform to increase fuel efficiency and the bottom line.
Sources:
NACFE, Yunsu Park et al, 2022 Annual Fleet Fuel Study, December 2022
Annual Fleet Fuel Study – North American Council for Freight Efficiency (nacfe.org)
Tires & Rolling Resistance – North American Council for Freight Efficiency (nacfe.org)
