The good and the bad of VMRS

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Updated Feb 20, 2015

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A Vehicle Maintenance Reporting Standards (VMRS) study breakout group session took a quick turn Tuesday at the TMC Annual Meeting when fleet audience members began to question the misuse of the codes during parts acquisitions.

Most of the audience questions focused on parts packaging — specifically that OEMs don’t include VMRS codes on their packages or as information available through a bar code scan.

Attendees stressed their frustration with receiving a new part and being unaware of the coding section it should be placed in. It only takes a second to scan a bar code and identify a component on arrival, multiple attendees said, but because the VMRS codes aren’t included in those bar codes the fleets are forced to manually search VMRS databases to find the correct number.

This can result in errors, which can lead to problems later when the part is pulled from the shelf for a repair and turns out to be the wrong component.

VMRS coding uses three, three-digit numbers to create a unique nine-digit code for vehicle components and service needs. Attendees says finding the initial sub-group is usually pretty easy, but drilling down from there can be a laborious task.

Representatives from OEMs and ATA/TMC acknowledged the packaging flaw, but noted the VMRS system was designed specifically to ease the search process once the part is on hand.

And after the components are properly coded into a fleet’s management system, both the panel and the audience raved about how VMRS can improve fleet maintenance management.

Panelist Jarit Cornelius at Sharp Transport says since his operation started using VMRS three years ago, it reduced its maintenance costs by 34 percent, reduced its CSA vehicle maintenance violations by 58 percent and reduced its need for outsourced maintenance by nearly 40 percent.

“It’s never been more important than now for fleets to have control of their maintenance costs,” he says. “Nearly 75 percent of us don’t have an understanding of our true cost of operation, and with VMRS codes you can gain some of that control.”