DALLAS - City of Dallas officials are working to overhaul management of the City's Fleet Services Division, which operates a 5,100-unit fleet. An Oct. 20 presentation to City Council stated that points identified for improvement in Fleet Services include reduction of vehicle downtime, better adherence to preventive maintenance schedule, and faster make ready processing of vehicles.

Part of the Equipment and Building Services Department, Fleet Services consists of 230 employees and operates at six automotive service centers, one heavy equipment service center, and one make-ready facility.

According to the presentation, a team consisting of representatives from various departments was established to examine fleet operations, Team recommendations that have or will be implemented include: becoming certified as a warranty shop, consolidating CIS and EBS vehicle make-ready processes into one unit, creating a purchasing review committee to standardize specifications, instituting a department-wide training curriculum to train on new products before they arrive, enhancing communication for increased productivity and consistency through planning and production meetings.

Prior to the process improvement team, the city manager assigned new executive staff to improve efficiency and enhance customer service. The executive team reorganized the division, began measuring each service center's performance as of Oct. 1 to monitor productivity and increase accountability, and consolidated some functions to gain efficiencies, according to the presentation.

In addition, the City Auditor is conducting an audit of fleet services in accordance with the FY 2010 audit plan.