Utilisation is estimated from shifts or engine hours
Being switched on does not mean the vehicle is moving useful work.
MHE Productivity Assessment
See where everyvehicle hour actually goes.
Measure how forklifts and other material handling equipment move, wait and perform across the real operation. Identify utilisation gaps, empty travel, congestion, task delay and fleet imbalance — then turn the evidence into a prioritised improvement plan.
Separate activity from availability
Know which assets work, wait or remain unused.
Expose lost movement
Empty travel, queues, backtracking and congestion.
Test fleet need with evidence
Understand peak demand before adding or removing MHE.
Prioritise practical changes
Process, route, task, charging and allocation improvements.
The gap
A busy fleet is not
Always a productive fleet.
WMS and ERP records show transactions. Rental schedules show fleet cost. Neither automatically explains how vehicle time is consumed on the floor.
Idle time has no operational explanation
Waiting may come from tasks, paperwork, charging, dock queues, blocked aisles or missing inventory.
Fleet decisions rely on averages
Site-level totals hide vehicle imbalance, shift peaks and equipment-type constraints.
Routes evolved without measurement
Repeated backtracking and empty travel add time without adding throughput.
Productivity is discussed without physical context
Reports show output, but not the zone, route, queue or interaction that shaped it.
Assessment scope
Measure the operation
Around the vehicle.
The scope is agreed around site layout, shifts, MHE classes, operating rules and the decisions the customer needs to make.
Fleet utilisationActive, available, idle, charging, under maintenance and not-in-use time by asset and class.
Movement & travelLoaded and empty travel, distance, route repetition, backtracking and unnecessary movement.
Task performanceTask receipt, response, travel, pickup, drop, completion and inter-task delay where data allows.
Waiting & queuesDelay at docks, staging, aisles, production interfaces, charging points and approval steps.
Fleet balanceHigh-use, low-use and unused vehicles; class fit; peak concurrency and spare strategy.
Layout interactionCongestion, restricted turns, crossing points, route conflicts and difficult operating zones.
Shift & operator contextPattern comparison by shift, role, equipment type and authorised operator session where included.
Improvement potentialRanked operational changes, measurement basis, dependencies, owner and validation method.
How it works
Baseline the work. Explain the loss.
Validate the change.
A defined sequence prevents one unusual shift — or one attractive dashboard — from becoming the whole conclusion.
01
Define
Agree questions, assets, shifts, KPIs and observation window.
02
Map
Record routes, zones, tasks, interfaces and constraints.
03
Capture
Observe and collect vehicle, task and operational evidence.
04
Analyse
Separate productive time, travel, waiting and availability.
05
Diagnose
Connect patterns to process, layout, fleet and shift causes.
06
Improve
Prioritise actions and define how results will be verified.
Time categories
One percentage is
Never the whole story.
RAMS separates time categories and operating context so teams can understand what is productive, what is necessary and what may be removable.
Productive handling
Time directly associated with defined load movement or completed operational work.
Loaded movementPickup and dropTask-linked handling
Supporting travel
Movement needed to position the MHE, including empty travel and return paths.
Empty travelRepositioningRoute to next task
Operational waiting
Vehicle ready or active but held by a queue, process, interface or unavailable work.
Dock and staging queuePaperworkBlocked access
Planned support
Necessary non-productive time required to keep the fleet safe and available.
Charging or fuellingPre-use checksPlanned maintenance
Unplanned loss
Time removed from expected operation by breakdown, search, missing work or avoidable delay.
Unplanned downtimeTask gapAsset or load search
Not scheduled / not used
Available fleet capacity outside actual need for the observed period.
Unused vehiclesExcess overlapClass mismatch
Evidence method
Start with the floor. Add technology
Where it improves confidence.
The assessment can be completed as a bounded study or strengthened with supported connected data. The chosen method depends on the question, existing systems and required level of detail.
01
Observed operational baseline
RAMS maps the physical operation, samples representative shifts, reviews task and fleet records, and verifies patterns with site teams.
- Site walk and process mapping
- WMS / ERP / fleet records
- Verification with site teams
02
Sensor-supported measurement
Where included, non-invasive supported devices and existing systems can extend the observation window and improve vehicle-level detail.
- Movement and location
- Equipment status signals
- Extended observation window
Decisions it supports
Answer the fleet questions
That change decisions.
Right-size the fleet
Understand peak simultaneous demand, underused assets and required resilience before lease, purchase or transfer decisions.
Reduce empty travel
Identify repeated unloaded routes, backtracking and poor equipment placement that consume vehicle time.
Remove queue delay
Find waiting at docks, staging and process interfaces, then test a clearer release or sequencing rule.
Balance assets across shifts
Compare demand and equipment mix by shift, area and class instead of using a site-wide average.
Improve task allocation
Connect task gaps and response patterns to dispatch logic, availability and zone ownership.
Validate a proposed change
Define a before-and-after measurement for revised routes, charging, staging, slotting or work rules.
Deliverables
A decision pack —
Not raw tracking data.
Outputs make the measurement basis visible and connect each priority to evidence, operational cause and a practical validation method.
Scope & KPI definitions
Assets, shifts, window, formulas and exclusions.
Fleet utilisation baseline
Site, class, shift and asset-level views.
Time-category analysis
Productive, travel, waiting and support time.
Movement analysis
Distance, empty travel and repeated patterns.
Congestion & delay map
Zones, times, queues and operational context.
Fleet balance review
Peak need, underuse and class suitability.
Prioritised opportunity register
Impact, confidence, dependency and owner.
Validation plan
Before-and-after measures for agreed actions.
What it means
Spend, time and effort directed by evidence
The assessment helps leaders distinguish additional capacity needs from process, layout, task or fleet-allocation problems.
Afterwards
Use the baseline once —
Or keep the operation measurable.
The assessment can stand alone. Where continuous visibility is required, RAMS can carry the agreed measurement model into MEPS, the MHE Efficiency and Productivity System.
Establish the verified baseline
The assessment window, KPI rules and time categories become the reference the operation is measured against.
Monitor agreed productivity measures
Where the continuation is included, the same measures run on in MEPS rather than being redefined.
MEPS is an optional platform continuation, not a mandatory part of the assessment.
Questions
What teams ask
Before the assessment.
The right approach depends on the fleet decision, current systems, operating variability and required confidence.
No. RAMS can begin with a defined operational study using site observation, process mapping and available WMS, ERP, fleet or maintenance records. Sensors may be recommended where a longer window or higher vehicle-level detail is needed.
Know whether the gap isFleet, flow, task — or time.
Share your site, MHE fleet, shifts and the decision you need to make. RAMS will define a practical assessment scope, evidence method and decision-ready output.