The number of unmanned petrol stations has grown significantly in Europe, in response to customer demands and market pressures. Unmanned petrol stations meet the demand for fuel to be available to purchase 24/7, without increasing staff and operating costs. They also address the need of the ‘fuel-and-go’ customer, whose mission is speed of service, with no requirement to enter a store or queue to pay.
Unmanned stations have been successful due to the convenience offering and often lower fuel prices. But without any human interaction, how can operators of unmanned stations build brand loyalty and trust?
Commitment to customer experience is crucial
Consumers value fast and efficient options to fuel, but a retailer commitment to customer satisfaction demonstrated through clean, safe, and well-maintained forecourts is essential to build brand loyalty. Spills, damaged assets, or an inadequately kept forecourt are more than just inconvenient, they pose a risk to public safety. Clear instructions are needed on unmanned sites for customers on how and who to contact in case of an accident or incident, out-of-action or broken equipment, or complaint.
Managing maintenance and repairs on unmanned sites presents a different set of challenges to traditional forecourts with staff on-site available to assist. Retailers with an estate of unmanned petrol stations typically run a central operations helpdesk to manage service requests.
What’s the best practice for managing maintenance and repairs on an unmanned site?
Fuel retailers should consider switching from manual operations to a maintenance management platform which will support and streamline operations. Retailers should consider a platform which automates as much of the maintenance process as possible to ensure assets are repaired quickly and available for customers when they arrive on the forecourt.
What features should retailers look for when selecting a maintenance management platform?
- Asset register
- Instant access to detailed asset records, including asset location, model and manufacturer, warranty status, manuals, condition surveys and related financial data.
- Visibility of work orders in progress and status
- Ensure no duplicated work orders are raised or unnecessary contractor dispatch costs are incurred.
- Contractor management
- See who is doing what and when in real time, monitor contractors’ performance against agreed service levels.
- Compliance management
- Schedule regulatory compliance inspections, store digital records of asset inspections and grant fast access to reporting and documentation.
- Mobile app
- Manage work orders on-the-go, update repair status, exchange information, and upload asset images or documents.
- Event reporting
- Record accidents or incidents such as drive-offs, complaints, security problems, or vandalism in a single database.
By using a maintenance management platform such as Urgent to manage maintenance and assets on unmanned sites, operators can benefit from:
- Greater control and visibility of the maintenance process and performance of their sites, assets and contractors.
- Improved asset uptime to ensure the best customer experience.
- Confidence that compliance inspections are scheduled and completed on time.
- Maintenance insights to support future budgeting and asset purchasing decisions.
The fuel retail industry has seen significant change in recent years. The growth of electric vehicle ownership, along with increased customer expectations in terms of choice, convenience and experience, continues to challenge fuel retailers to rethink, adapt, or reinvent their operating models.
The unmanned service station addresses the need for driver convenience, but as a format that depends exclusively on fuel sales, what’s around the corner? Unmanned convenience stores or food kiosks? Whatever’s next, effective maintenance management will be critical for smooth operations, excellent customer experience, and revenue growth.
