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The company has also cottoned on to the increasing need for large businesses to report on the specifics of their eco credentials, which is another area where visibility counts for a lot.
"It's gone from a sort of 'greenwash' level of interest - people wanting to show something for the PR side - to a full requirement.
"A litre of diesel produces the same amount of carbon, regardless of whether it's burned on a bonfire or coming out of the exhaust of the latest clean Merc. We can refine it by depot, region etc., for no extra work. It's just how you choose to report it."
For most car fleets, the amount of money they're spending on day-to-day operation is where a software system is likely to give them the biggest benefits. Sowerby reckons that filling up with premium fuel - or over-grading - and mismanagement of parking tickets are some of the more overlooked areas that fleets are haemorrhaging cash on, and can be sorted out with software.
"Company cars are emotive to the drivers, so [over-grading] tends to be more of a car fleet thing. Again, it's a visibility thing - you can say 'hang on, the policy says use unleaded, you're using premium unleaded'. It's quite a significant cost, so if only a handful of drivers do it and then change, you've made quite a saving.
"With parking fines, as soon as the fine comes in it gets keyed into the system. That can then appear on the dashboard of a depot manager or a driver somewhere else. Historically, it would come into a central office, who would then put it in the mail box for that depot, which will perhaps go that day or the next day, then before you know it it's nearly too late [to make the two-week lower payment or appeal]. Also, a lot of the issuing authorities don't accept credit cards, so you've got make a cheque payment, which takes longer."
Chevin users can expect some more functionality from the firm too. There are plans to launch Fleetwave 2.1 in spring, which, according to Sowerby, will feature a number of minor upgrades: "It's a minor release and a lot more user-friendly. There's a big user filter and a much bigger, much stronger help system. You can get context-related help. We've also produced a number of video guides to explain processes to people. We've spent the past six months revisiting old work and building a knowledge directory. We've gone back and harvested it so we can allow other people to benefit from our experience."
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