For a transport company, a construction firm or a plant with its own tank, fuel is a large, barely visible cost: it leaves a tank, enters a vehicle and, if nobody records it properly, gets lost on the way. Controlling it means answering three questions at every refuelling: who, how much and does it make sense.
The four elements of control
- Identify the vehicle. By plate, card or key (for example RFID), not by what the driver says.
- Identify the driver. By ID number or a personal key, so every refuelling has someone responsible.
- Set quotas. A limit per fleet, driver or vehicle, in litres or value.
- Compare against actual use. If the vehicle logged 300 km, how much fuel should it have used? Theoretical consumption from the odometer flags refuellings that do not add up.
Signals worth watching
- Refuellings larger than the vehicle's tank capacity.
- Consumption far above what the mileage suggests.
- Refuellings outside working hours or in close succession.
- Odometers that do not advance or go backwards.
- The same driver with several vehicles in a short time.
A signal is not proof: it is a reason to look.
If you are the station serving fleets
Fleet customers are an opportunity: recurring, more predictable sales. In return they demand order: contracts or agreements, quotas, invoicing and receivables. Credit sales must also be invoiced at the time of sale (see e-invoicing at the station).
If you are the fleet or the plant
With your own tank, control has two halves: what goes into the tank (confirmed by level measurement) and what goes out to each vehicle. Measuring the tank with a probe lets you see deliveries and actual consumption against what was recorded at refuellings (see inventory control).
How Orbion solves it
The platform has a Fleets module that registers vehicles by company, identifies vehicle and driver, manages quotas per fleet, driver or vehicle, calculates theoretical consumption from the odometer and delivers a report with unusual-behaviour indicators. It integrates with the dispensing point of sale and with tank measurement, for both public-sale stations and industrial operations with their own consumption. The platform supports a licence-plate camera as an identification reader; its use depends on a technical assessment of the site. The fleets module is enabled per company and sized by the equipment included.
Frequently asked questions
How do I stop a driver from fuelling more than allowed?
With a quota per driver or vehicle, applied at the time of dispensing rather than reviewed afterwards.
What is theoretical consumption from the odometer?
The fuel a vehicle should have used given the kilometres driven; comparing it with what was actually fuelled reveals differences.
Does it work for a plant with its own tank?
Yes: the same vehicle, driver and quota control applies to own-consumption supply, together with tank measurement.
Do I need to install anything in each vehicle?
It depends on the identification method (plate, card, key). Review it in the demo with your fleet type.
Does it replace GPS?
No. GPS sees the route; this control sees the fuel. They complement each other.
Take the next step
Request a demo and tell us how many vehicles and tanks you have.