CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Fleet management is an administrative approach that allows companies to organize and
coordinate work vehicles with the aim to improve efficiency, reduced cost and provide
compliance with government regulations. Fleet management which is almost an invisible part
of the transport and logistics sector has a key role to play in the logistics chain and the overall
performance of an organization. Transportation and distribution are services under the logistics
chain which involves the movement of goods from one place to another. This flow cannot be
possible without the interaction of fleet management techniques. Any organization that needs
commercial vehicles to function engages in some form of fleet operations and fleet
management. The purpose of fleet management is to oversee all fleet performance and fleet
maintenance in order to increase productivity and help a business run as smoothly as possible.
Fleet managers are in charge of fleet operations and might be tasked with responsibilities that
include vehicle maintenance, overseeing fuel consumption and fuel costs, driver management,
asset utilization, route planning, and the implementation of any programs that increase
company productivity. Fleet management companies often use vehicle telematics or fleet
management software, like Samsara, to increase fleet efficiency and help reduce operational
costs. In many developed countries, there are several logistics projects taking place, with firms
implementing new, advanced technologies such as Global Positioning System (GPS), fleet
management system and other wireless technologies. On the other hand, in the developing
countries, and especially in the West African community, the use of fleet management system
a. Yet in our country Cameroon, the issue of fleet management system is in an infant stage.
1.1 BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY
The background of the study will be divided into: historical, theoretical, conceptual and
contextual background.

1.1.1 BACKGROUND OF VEHICLE MANAGEMENT
A quick look back at some fleet management history may prove very enlightening. A good
fleet management system requires strong vehicle tracking systems, this is why the history of
fleet management can be traced right back to the 19th and 20th centuries when there was a mass
production and usage of automobile engines and the creation of GPS (Global positioning
system) including fleet telematics. Fleet telematics is a form of technology that transmits data
from commercial trucks to another party. Examples of fleet telematics currently in use include
satellite freight tracking and vehicle tracking. The idea of telematics was introduced in the
1960s before personal computers and the Internet. A closer look at the history of GPS tracking
devices and fleet telematics can show how beneficial they are to fleet management. Even before
GPS was developed, fleet telematics was invented in 1974. The U.S automobile industry had
begun a form of fleet telematics; as new cars rolled out of assembly plants via the Ford,
Chrysler and General Motors manufacturers, they were cataloged using an electronic process.
When orders were placed, a mainframe-to-mainframe method of communicating was used to
process orders electronically, and vehicle status reports were generated using computer
technology. This was the beginning of fleet tracking.

1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
Fleet management is the use of a set of vehicles in order to provide a service to a third-party,
or to perform an activity internally in an organization, in the most efficient and productive
manner, with a determined level of service and cost. Also, it is a key aspect to develop the
general strategy of the organization, and for this reason it has to be designed and implemented
based on its guidelines, characteristics and goals of an organization (Besiou, Martinez, and van
Wassenhove, 2012).
Fleet management can comprise of functions, such as vehicle financing, vehicle maintenance,
vehicle telemetric, driver management, speed management, fuel management and health and
safety management. Fleet Management is a function which allows companies which rely on
transportation in business to remove or minimize the risks associated with vehicle investment,
improving efficiency, productivity and reducing their overall transportation and staff
costs.2017)
As observed by the researcher, in Nacho vehicle testing station, the key components of fleet
management are fuel, vehicle maintenance and driver management. There are no updated
data/monthly reports for these three major components. Vital reports that are needed in making
administrative and financial decisions are not being generated. The researcher noticed that
many vehicles in Bamenda town do not do constant check of their vehicle and does this affects
the performance of the vehicles. drivers use company vehicles for personal benefits, absence of
fleet reports, there is no appointed person in the fleet manager, transport officer and transport
Assistant positions. Thus, this study intends to investigate Vehicle maintenance management
and its performance on transport agencies.