Steering Fleet Electrification and Sustainability: Insights from Ted Chan

In this episode of the Mile Marker podcast, Ted Chan, Corporate Fleet and Travel Manager for Schindler Elevator discusses the challenges and rewards of managing Schindler's 3,800-vehicle fleet, particularly the company's commitment to achieving net-zero emissions by 2040. He highlights the complexities of fleet electrification, including infrastructure, maintenance, and communication with drivers. Ted shares valuable insights on balancing sustainability goals with operational efficiency and the importance of industry collaboration

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Transcript

Steering Fleet Electrification and Sustainability: Insights from Ted Chan 

In this episode of the Mile Marker podcast we chat with Ted Chan, Corporate Fleet and Travel Manager at Schindler Elevator. Ted discusses the challenges and rewards of managing Schindler’s 3,800-vehicle fleet, the largest in North America. A key focus is on reducing CO2 emissions to meet Schindler’s net-zero commitment by 2040. He shares insights on the complexities of fleet electrification, including EV infrastructure, cost management, and operational efficiency. Ted emphasizes the importance of industry collaboration, technology integration, and fostering a culture of sustainability to drive innovation in fleet management.

Angela Simoes: Welcome everyone to the Mile Marker podcast. I'm your host, Angela Simoes, and I am here today with Ted Chan, Corporate Fleet and Travel Manager for Schindler Elevator. Welcome, Ted.

Ted Chan: Thank you for having me.

Angela Simoes: So I hear that you are up for an award. We are here at AFLA, so congratulations for being nominated.

Ted Chan: Yep, thank you.

Angela Simoes: So you work for Schindler, and I'm wondering when people think of Schindler, they don't immediately think fleet, right?

Ted Chan: Nope.

Angela Simoes: So talk a little bit about what it is to be a fleet manager for Schindler Elevator.

Ted Chan: It's actually quite challenging, rewarding, and frustrating all at the same time. I think if you're in fleet, you know what I'm talking about. Challenging meaning there's always new, how would you say, problems to solve every day, right? No days is a repeat of the previous day. So that what keeps things exciting, I guess you can say. Right? So definitely something that really is constantly putting you on your toes to make sure that you learn and do and keep ears open, attend conferences like this, talk to other fleet managers, talk to other suppliers. Just really be cognizant of everything around you. The fleet itself is, I wouldn't say anything special that other people don't have on their inventory, I guess you could say. Right. So we have the usual pickup trucks, vans, things like that.

Angela Simoes: And these are mostly for maintenance service vehicles.

Ted Chan: We do installation, maintenance and service of course. So we're one of the big four and elevator companies. So there's a lot of things going on as far as running the fleet, sustainability being a big thing. Right now we have a commitment to be net zero by 2040, so that's a big target to hit, especially since we have the biggest fleet in North America, which is the biggest CO2 emitter of all my other counterparts and other fleet managers in their respective countries. So that's quite a challenge.

Angela Simoes: Biggest fleet. About how many vehicles is that?

Ted Chan: Tally? About 3,800 right now.

Angela Simoes: Okay. And so you said it's frustrating, rewarding, challenging, all at the same time. What are some of the biggest challenges you're currently facing?

Ted Chan: Yeah, I just alluded to it, the CO2 reduction. I think when we started this journey to reduce our emissions, we think, okay, naturally, let's look at electric vehicles. So there's all the pros and cons of it. Of course, electric vehicles are zero emitting CO2, let's put in air quotes for now. But there's also challenges as far as where are the vehicles charge? Do they charge at home? How do we reimburse employees? Those are the things that I think a lot of folks don't understand the TCO process of EVs so much. A lot of people think, oh, there's no oil to change, great. There's no cost with EVs supposedly, or lower maintenance. That's great. I think that's fine. But then there's all these other costs that are not being tallied per se. The cost of charging, the cost of reimbursement, and quite frankly, these are computers and wheels. So there's a lot of a learning curve, I guess you can say for folks if there is a maintenance issue, a lot of dealers are not equipped to really service electric vehicles, to tell you the truth. So we've encountered some issues with that. But overall, I think it's generally positive. But I think the flip side is that being a construction maintenance company, our load, our payload doesn't reduce over time. A lot of the vehicles that are available as far as electric concerned are more focused on last mile delivery.

So their loads get lower and lower throughout the day. We carry equipment all day. So it's a matter of having equipment that meets our needs without sacrificing service to our customers. So it's a delicate balance. I mean, we're learning and doing it at the same time. I'm not afraid to say that.

Angela Simoes: Right. So, yeah, I think everybody's learning. I mean, it sounds like Schindler was maybe an early adopter of EVs into the fleet. So maybe what are some of the biggest learnings? You've talked about a lot of these, yes, there's no oil change, but then there's the charging cost and there's so many other things. So what would you advise others to think about as they are embarking on the transition to electrification?

Ted Chan: Yeah, I think communication is definitely key. I mean, I know it's used a lot in general, but I think communicating with our drivers, our employees, that what to expect. Definitely some planning involved. Don't expect the same experience as you do with a gas vehicle. You just need to plan ahead if you have a trip coming up ahead. And I think the pros outweigh the cons. I mean, if you drive an electric vehicle, it's a lot more fun. I mean, lack of better word than a gas vehicle. It's like driving a toy almost, where when you're a kid you're like instant torque and things like that.

Angela Simoes: They're lot of fun to drive.

Ted Chan: So there's always a learning curve of every new technology. So I think oftentimes people overestimate how much they drive. People usually don't fill up their car every single day, maybe once a week or so. I think that concept can also go with electric vehicles. And I think a good parallel is like your cell phone, you use it all day and you charge it at night.

Angela Simoes: Charge it at night

Ted Chan: Every day. So you don't necessarily need to do that with the car. I mean, some days you might not have as much driving as the other days, and it's something that you have to adapt with, I guess.

Angela Simoes: But then charging too. I'm sure in your fleet you have vehicles that someone could charge at home, but maybe they can't charge at home because it's a bigger vehicle or something like that. And then even using public charging infrastructure, you take up three or four spots at a public charging depot. So now is there work truck depots that you're looking at? And I dunno if those are much even fewer than existing public charging.

Ted Chan: Yeah, I think for us, the majority of our fleet is take home. So we're not really looking at that, but we are looking at our offices to install chargers as well. It seems kind of a, how would you say, as we started deploying EVs and people are taking them home, they're like, well, what if I go to the office? I'm like, okay, that makes sense. You want to charge at home, you want to charge at office. It's kind of like that lifeline that you don't want to give up,

Angela Simoes: Right.

Ted Chan: So there's degrees of that, I guess you can say. I mean, ideally we want folks to charge at home and be fully capable of doing their work for that day and repeat the next day. But we are offering that as far as even not just for our drivers of company cars, but also employees that do drive electric cars as personal vehicles and go to the office and things like that. So we want to offer that as a, we want to be consistent. If you want our drivers and our work drivers to be clean, I think the message should be part of the culture of the company as well. And that's something that we want to embody in a sense here.

Angela Simoes: And that's a great point. So let's talk a little bit about the company culture and how you do, I guess, disperse that or encourage that mentality or that philosophy throughout drivers, fleet managers, all levels of company. Does it come from the top down? Does it come from, as a fleet manager, your team? How do you implement that company culture?

Ted Chan: I think it's consistent from top to bottom. We're based in Europe out of Ebikon, Switzerland. So the direction from the top of course is we obviously do not sacrifice safety. We do not sacrifice service to our customers, but we also need to be responsible and sustainable at the same time. So our net zero commitment for 2040 is just not vehicles. It's from A to Z. It's everything we make, everything we buy, everything we install, our suppliers, everything. It's not just fleet. I know fleet is the biggest, I hate to say the word polluter, but that's something that obviously gets the most attention right now, but not just tier one, tier two, tier three. Those are the things that we're going to look at further down the road. So I also manage travel. So looking at our employees when they travel on airlines, whether they use rideshare, all those metrics are going to be measured and we need to basically get down to zero at some point. Right? I know the aviation industry is looking at sustainable air fuels and things like that.

They're being tracked and metric wise, and our TMCs are doing their part in measuring our carbon footprint. So it's not just the fleet world, it's everything. Every aspect. And my counterparts and their respective categories are doing their part as well.

Angela Simoes: In talking about trying to achieve net zero. And there's lots of other, I guess, milestones that companies and governments are also looking to achieve. And so as you look at what you have done already, what do you think has been the biggest, helper is the only word I can think of, but I guess whether it's a tool or new technology or something that has helped you achieve or on that path to net zero so far, and what do you think will help you eventually achieve that? Is it a new technology or is it just continuing on the path that you are? I'm curious how you've gotten to where you are now and then how are you going to get to where you want to be?

Ted Chan: Yeah, as I said earlier, there's a lot of learning and doing at the same time. I think us alone as a company cannot accomplish this without the right partnerships, right technology, right regulations to help us get there. Simple examples. Like I mentioned earlier, a lot of vehicles that we would like to have today are not available. So by speaking to other OEMs, our partners, and giving them the feedback that, Hey, as much as we like the product, we need something that can do this. So I think collaboratively with my other fellow fleet managers, getting that message across to the OEMs for example, is something that we need to continually do. I know sometimes my priorities might not align with their priorities. They, I'm not their only customer.

Plenty of customers they need to keep happy, that have different goals in mind as well. So it's really a collective effort. Obviously we can't do this alone. You can't just be on a planet net zero and everybody else's, everywhere else. So partnering with our FMC, of course, making sure that they keep us in the know, tracking our metrics, tracking our good data and bad data as far as, for example, how bad we're idling, for example, that's a lot of waste there. What can we do to do better for that? Can we encourage our drivers to drive better and just be more cognizant? What's good for them is good for us, which is good for the planet, things like that. So I wouldn't say there's one technology out there that's really something we're relying on. I think still looking at many things, telematics is another thing that we've been leaning on a lot lately. So I think telematics came to light as more of a safety measure, my opinion. And then now it's kind of pivoting, oh, by the way, you can, you can also use it.

So that's something that it's good for them, good for us. So yeah, I wouldn't say there's any one technology or stuff that we're focusing on, but pretty much exploring every route.

Angela Simoes: Is there a technology or a tool or something that you wish existed, especially as a fleet manager? You said everything is different every day. And do you ever find yourself thinking, I wish I had something that did this.

Ted Chan: Right. Well, I know autonomous driving, for example, has been viewed negatively lately. I guess. I guess some of the negatives of it, it's not foolproof yet, let's put it that way. So I think that would solve a lot of my problems as far as accidents, for example, maintenance, having that repetition, having that set pattern. We don't have to rely on our drivers to be drivers, because they’re not drivers. They're mechanics, their maintenance folks. They're just happen to be mechanics that drive users.

Their core duty is not driving vehicles. So if you can take away somebody's responsibility, that's not what they're technically being paid for. We're not paying our mechanics to be drivers, paying them to be mechanics. So that sort of dynamic, if we can get to a point where we take that out of the equation and make it something that they do not have to focus on, that would be great. So obviously I know there's a lot of retail options out there as far as autonomy and things like that, but if there's commercial options that make it a little bit closer to that, that would be godsend, I guess.

Angela Simoes: So it's interesting that you started the comment with it's kind of autonomy is viewed negatively. I think that's the media's fault, frankly, because if you look at actually how many hours have been tested with autonomous driving, they actually perform quite well. Yes, maybe they're not a hundred percent road ready, but the advances that have been made in autonomous driving are pretty phenomenal, right? I agree. We aren't going to be a fully autonomous society anytime soon, right? It's going to be 50, maybe a hundred years even. But in a city format where Waymo is already existing in some of the bigger cities, I think it's probably feasible to say you'll have an autonomous work truck that could operate within a city limit in the next few years. Who knows? It just depends on, like you said, the car manufacturers and what they want to offer.

Ted Chan: It might take stages, it might be the rideshare, the work truck, probably less on the retail personal side. We in this country love driving. We like the fun and being in control. Even myself, I like being in control and I've been, how would you say, bad to turn on the safety features at the beginning. And then recently I was like, you know what? I know they're all there. Lemme turn it back on. I was like, this is actually pretty good. It really helps me, even though my steering wheel is tugging at me, it actually reminds me that I'm swerving out a lane.

Angela Simoes: Yeah. Well I appreciate that there's different levels of, do you want it to be really strict or just a little strict, so at least there's different levels. I agree on that.

Ted Chan: Yep.

Angela Simoes: So you mentioned autonomous vehicles would help in the field, but you as a fleet manager, what are some of the tools that you use to stay organized every day? And again, the question, is there something that you wish you had that would help you do your job

Ted Chan: Well? I mean there's obviously no, how would you say as far as resources is concerned? I think in the work world there's managing 3,000 vehicles. It's definitely a lot of chores there. So I think I've mentioned this in the other interviews before. AI is something that it can help me do these tasks faster right now. Definitely help. I know that's really the buzzword right now. And everything's like, have AI take care of that stuff.

Angela Simoes: So you're like, but what does that mean?

Ted Chan: I've dabbled with that because it's like, well, can I do mundane tasks faster? Things like that, because there's still the core fleet duties that need to be done. You need to buy the vehicles, you need to make sure they're maintained. You still need to make sure the drivers have the registrations, have your insurance cards. Those things are not going away anytime soon. I know a lot of the attention and coverage is all about technology, carbon reduction. But if you go back to what we still do, there's still a lot of mundane tasks that still needs to be done. And those are the kind of things that I wish had better technology. I don't know what that may be, but AI could be a good start to it that we can automate things and make it more self-service, I guess. So have those things being taken care of better. Nobody's hiring me 10 people to help me. That's not feasible.

We have a good team now and we all work hard, but having that technology really could help us down further down the road.

Angela Simoes: So we are here recording this at AFLA in San Antonio. What are you hoping to get out of the show this week?

Ted Chan: Honestly, I was just thinking about attending other shows. Most of the shows, the vendors, suppliers know who's attending. I think for this show in particular, and maybe other shows as well, not just AFLA by itself as a buyer, if who's also attending here, it'll be helpful. It kind like attendee list for the supplier slash vendors. Then I could start talking about, okay, this company I'm interested in learning about the product. So those are the kind of things to have in your back pocket before you come to AFLA, would be helpful. I know a lot of folks reach out, that's great, but occasionally maybe I want to do the reaching out and see if there's anything that would pique my interest. And definitely there's booths here, suppliers, and if you have more of that, that would be helpful as well.

Angela Simoes: And from, I guess you doing the work that you do, what's something, maybe some action items or takeaways that you're hoping others will take away from this show? I guess maybe in terms of helping fleet management in general move forward.

Ted Chan: Yeah, I think giving back is something that is very key. I would no way consider myself a super well-seasoned fleet manager, maybe at the midpoint, I guess you can say, right? So talking to folks that have been in the industry longer than me is definitely something that's helped me. And I think down the road, I've obviously have helped other folks as well. Especially for example, the EV journey. I've had other customers ask me, oh, what did you guys do? How did you start? Things like that. So I think that's something that giving back and paying forward in all aspects of life, honestly.

You can't go wrong. It's just the way that we need to support each other and share knowledge. And I'm pretty sure other companies have similar goals to us. And if we can share those experiences and just rely on each other to really move the fleet industry forward. And I think that's something that I would give advice to folks that are attending this conference and other future fleet conferences.

Angela Simoes: It's a great point, right? The philosophy that a rising tide lifts all boats, right? So if we're helping each other, then someone can learn from your EV transition journey, not make the same mistakes and vice versa. You could learn from someone else who's also done it or maybe started using autonomous vehicles for their fleet, right? How did you do that?

Ted Chan: Exactly.

Angela Simoes: No, this is great. Well, this has been a really great conversation. Thank you so much for joining us and I hope you have a great rest of the show.

Ted Chan: Alright, thank you. It was a pleasure.