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Company cars with ADAS require new repair strategies, Epyx says
Date: 17 April 2019 | Author: Sean Keywood
A rapid increase in the fitting of advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) to company cars means fleets need to adopt new repair strategies.
That's according to software provider Epyx, the company behind the 1link Service Network platform, which says there is a real risk of fleets losing control over costs and vehicle downtime due to complications caused by the system.
Commercial director Tim Meadows said: "We have moved very quickly to a situation where even quite mainstream fleet cars are now fitted with a wide range of ADAS devices.
"However, because these systems are often affected by common repairs such as windscreen or wing mirror replacement, they are very much something that fleets need to know how to manage."
Meadows explained that many ADAS devices need expert calibration, generally using specialist equipment at franchise dealers.
He said: "Because the technology is safety critical, there is no cutting corners.
"Clearly, this potentially adds new difficulties to the day-to-day running of fleets and requires proactive management. You don't want a relatively simple windscreen replacement to become a job that takes weeks rather than hours."
Meadows said that fleets need to be aware of which ADAS devices are likely to need recalibration and the best way to make sure certain repair times and costs are minimised.
"It is all about ensuring that the repair process is as smooth as possible, that the technical knowledge is available to understand what each vehicle and device requires, and which suppliers are best able to carry out the recalibration process efficiently.
"This is something about which we are increasingly working with fleets as ADAS devices become more common and the repair pitfalls more apparent."
