KNOXVILLE -- Government Fleet magazine has named the Knox County Fleet Service Center one of the ‘100 Best Fleets’ in the nation for 2011.
The ‘100 Best Fleets’ award program recognizes and rewards peak performing public sector fleet operations in America. The program also identifies and encourages ever-increasing levels of performance improvement within the fleet industry.
“The Knox County Fleet Service Department staff does a great job of keeping county vehicles running well,” Knox County Mayor Tim Burchett said. “By maintaining county vehicles efficiently, we’re able to save taxpayer money. The Fleet Service Department works hard to keep maintenance costs low, while also ensuring that our vehicles continue to provide great service to our citizens.”
Interim Senior Director of Engineering and Public Works Dwight Van de Vate believes the Knox County Fleet Service Department deserves the recognition and prestige of this award.
“Fleet Service employees work hard under tough conditions to ensure Knox County has an efficient, well-maintained fleet,” Van de Vate said. “Being recognized as one of the ‘100 Best Fleets’ in the nation tells everyone just how much these people care about what they do.”
The Knox County Fleet Service Center maintains a fleet of 1,113 on-road units and 217 off-road units, ranging from lawn mowers and dump trucks to sheriff patrol cars, and is able to keep 97 percent of the entire Knox County fleet operating and ready for use at all times. In most cases, the Fleet Service Center is able to have work completed within 24 hours of a vehicle or piece of equipment arriving for maintenance or repair.
On average, the Fleet Service Center has 530 open work orders with 1,200 jobs per month. The shop has reduced parts inventory by 24% through better inventory management and establishing a battery consignment program with a local vendor. Over the last year, total expenditures have been reduced 4% in the department but productivity has increased by 6%, a testament to the hard work of Knox County Fleet Service employees.
In addition to the ‘100 Best Fleet’ recognition, the shop recently received its 2nd Automotive Service Excellence Blue Seal award from the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence.
