BPA Italia and Lactalis choose Geotab to optimise fleet and cut maintenance costs

BPA Italia is the vehicle rental company that is part of the Lactalis Group, the largest dairy group in the world with operations in 51 countries, which manages one of the most extensive logistics networks in Italy. With around 2,700 vehicles, including refrigerated vans for the delivery of fresh products, Lactalis Group's subsidiaries, including Galbani, Parmalat and Leerdammer, rely on BPA for the management and maintenance of their fleet. 

To optimise operations and address challenges related to maintenance costs, driver safety and asset protection, Lactalis and BPA have chosen to implement Geotab's telematics solutions through one of its authorised partners.

The challenges of a large fleet: safety, efficiency and sustainability

BPA Italia is committed to ensuring the mobility of the Lactalis Group in an efficient, safe and sustainable way. Managing such a vast and complex fleet of thousands of vehicles is a constant challenge that drives the company to constantly seek cutting-edge solutions.

The company decided to adopt telematics not only for geolocation, but above all to optimise the management and planning of fleet activities, with a particular focus on preventive maintenance.

“The main objective was related to preventive maintenance; everything that could make our fleet's activities more efficient and safer, and allow us to plan them better, resulting in savings on maintenance costs,” explains Matteo Viani, Managing Director of BPA Italia. “We focused on Geotab’s solution because it allowed us to substantially achieve all these objectives.”

In addition to reducing maintenance costs, the company's priorities include driver safety, theft prevention and optimising the efficiency of the entire logistics network.

From preventive maintenance to safety: Geotab's fleet solutions

To meet these challenges, BPA Italia chose Geotab’s technology for its level of completeness, flexibility and advanced analysis, and its partner for its consulting skills and support in implementing the project. 

Thanks to the installation of GO9 devices on the vehicles in the fleet, the company can now use telematic data such as the position, consumption, mileage and state of health of each vehicle for maintenance management, guaranteeing greater care of the vehicles as well as preventing theft.

The data collected by the vehicle control unit is displayed and analysed in the MyGeotab management platform which provides the company with the tools to make comparisons, generate customised reports (including those relating to consumption, CO₂ emissions and mileage) and manage all operational aspects efficiently.

Among these, preventive maintenance is a fundamental indicator for BPA Italia. Thanks to the data collected on the health status of the vehicles, MyGeotab is able to measure and report potential problems or anomalies before they turn into costly breakdowns. This allows the company to make timely decisions and plan targeted maintenance interventions, optimising downtime and reducing repair costs, thus extending the useful life of the vehicles.

Finally, the ease of installation played a fundamental role in the operational activities. The adoption of Geotab devices has in fact allowed BPA Italia to complete the installation quickly and easily, reducing time and costs and managing the process internally, without the need to hire external installers.

Tangible results for Lactalis: the advantages of data-driven management

The adoption of Geotab has led to concrete and measurable results for both Lactalis Italia and BPA Italia.

Cost reduction

Thanks to preventive maintenance and constant vehicle monitoring, in the first nine months of 2024, the company recorded a 7% saving on maintenance costs compared to the previous year when it wasn't using any telematics solution.

Greater security and asset protection

Geotab has also helped improve driver safety and protect company vehicles. Using geolocation, two vehicles stolen in Milan and Naples were recovered, worth over €70,000 (nearly £60,000), to be added to the value of the transported goods.

Investment Return

The experience of Lactalis and BPA Italia confirms that investing in a telematics solution such as Geotab can generate a significant return. 

“I would definitely recommend adopting telematics, because for a reasonable cost, the return on investment is widely guaranteed,” says Matteo Viani, Managing Director of BPA Italia. Encouraged by the results obtained thanks to Geotab, his company intends to continue investing in telematics and increasing the use of data to make decisions regarding fleet management. 

“As far as we are concerned, it would be difficult to do without telematics today. I can certainly confirm that we will continue along the path taken so far and that we will continue to invest in this direction,” he concludes.