For Culligan, fleet vehicles are central to serving customers every day. Its teams install water conditioning and filtration systems, and they run specialized beverage trucks daily. AJ Peterson, Fleet Manager at Culligan, put it simply: “Our fleet delivers everything to the customer every day.”
With multiple business units and two fleet management providers, Culligan saw an opportunity. Bringing maintenance, data and vehicle planning under one partner could give its team a complete, enterprise-wide view of the fleet.
Vehicle uptime matters most here. Culligan’s beverage trucks are purpose-built, so renting a temporary replacement isn’t always an option. Keeping those vehicles maintained and on the road keeps employees serving customers.
The Solution: One Fleet Management Partner, Greater Visibility
Over the past two years, Culligan and Merchants Fleet have built a more standardized, centralized approach to fleet management. The work centers on two things: consolidating maintenance data and moving more vehicles into Merchants Fleet’s national and preferred maintenance network.
That network gives Culligan trusted service providers across its operating footprint. Where coverage was thin, the team added new providers to the program. As more vehicles move in-network, Culligan gains a clearer view of repair history, maintenance activity and utilization.
“The more maintenance data we have, the better decisions we can make going forward,” said Jim Murray, Strategic Client Development Manager at Merchants Fleet.
Standardization has been just as important. Culligan aligned vehicle specifications, upfit packages, and graphics across its business units. That makes it easier to move vehicles between locations and helps take cost out of upfits and graphics.
“If I know something needs to be replaced sooner, I already have two other business units with the same exact standardization,” AJ said. “There’s no guessing. I already know what’s going to be in it.”
The Results: Smarter Decisions, Greater Flexibility
- Data-driven replacement planning: Consistent maintenance records and Merchants Fleet’s replacement analysis help Culligan see when a vehicle should be replaced or reassigned, rather than continuing to put money into repairs.
- Flexibility across business units: Standard specs and upfits let Culligan move vehicles where they’re needed without restarting procurement for every location.
- Responsive, hands-on support: A dedicated Merchants Fleet account team helps Culligan move quickly on registrations, urgent vehicle needs and day-to-day questions, so issues get resolved before they slow the business down.
Fleet Management as a Business Continuity Strategy
For organizations that rely on specialized vehicles, fleet performance is business performance. Culligan’s experience shows how one connected fleet program can turn fleet management into a strategic driver of uptime, efficiency and service.
AJ’s advice to other fleet leaders is simple: “Have one fleet management company doing it all. That’s where you get full visibility.”
Every fleet is different. Talk with our team about building a maintenance and replacement strategy that fits your business needs.