11 Oct How to Improve the Upfit Planning Process
Upfitting your work vehicle is a great way to get more bang for your buck. Upfitting takes place when you add accessories or augmentations to your vehicle that allows it to meet your needs in a way it previously couldn’t. While this seems like a great idea, upfitting your work truck is one of the more difficult and complicated procedures you can do, and there are many mistakes you can make. Here’s how to improve the upfit planning process.
Include End Users
As a business owner, you may think that you always know best. However, you can learn a lot from your team. You can improve the upfit planning process by including team members who actually utilize the equipment and understand what is needed. When discussing upfitting improvements, include the end-users, branch managers, or field technicians in the conversation as they’ll likely have keen insight that will improve the upfit process.
Review Operational Requirements
Avoid missing details when upfitting a vehicle by considering its operational requirements. Consider factors such as terrain, weather, mileage, payload, maintenance, cargo, cargo loading, etc. These factors are directly related to the purpose of each vehicle and your upfit should complement the vehicle’s original purpose.
Set Clear Expectations
To improve the upfit planning process, be open and clear with your team about their expectations. You should clearly explain what they should expect, what the upfit will accomplish, and what the timeline looks like. This will help mitigate frustration with current equipment and delays in the upfitting process as it may take some time.
Acquire The Necessary Documents
Before beginning the upfit process, make sure you have all the necessary documents and approvals to begin. Especially make sure that you document the approval process that identifies spec development providers and end-users to prove any agreement. This helps you stay on track with your planned upfit project as well as whether or not your spec group received field input.
Standardize
If possible, standardize your upfit package as much as you can. Many managers are okay with too many different specs and options. This complicates things as each truck is different and has different capabilities. Keeping track of that is almost impossible. Keeping your trucks similar simplifies the process and allows you to set benchmarks to reach with each new truck without having to go back to the drawing board to find out what you need.
If you’re looking to upfit a work truck, consider calling an upfitting expert like those at Monroe Truck. Not only can they guide you through the process, but they can also ensure that nothing slips between the cracks that will come back to haunt you later. Reaching out to a qualified expert is one of the best ways to improve your upfit planning process. Reach out today!
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