Can’t I trust the company I bought my forklifts from to service the equipment honestly?

We’re not suggesting that any forklift industry service provider is being deliberately dishonest. But from their many years of collective experience, our service repair analysts know that it’s easy to make mistakes. And that manufacturer service and parts issues arise. And those mistakes and issues can seriously boost forklift operating expense.

What’s the process for getting started with CJK Services?

It’s simple to get started, and you don’t even need a contract. We provide you with a Word doc that you simply print out on your letterhead. You then send the letter to all your current service providers. The letter instructs service providers to send original invoices with a copy of the signed repair order directly to CJK Services. Ask your service provider to gather a list of all your material handling equipment (MHE). Finally, provide CJK with a list of all appropriate contacts at your company to ensure they’re receiving the reports and information required to manage the MHE fleet. That’s it!

Do I need to change my current service provider, in order to work with CJK?

We would never suggest you stop working with your current service provider if they’re providing good value for the maintenance dollar spent. Should we identify a pattern of overcharging—charges that frequently exceed what is considered “reasonable and customary”— or if the service provider has turned your goodwill into an entitlement (i.e., a service van is parked at your back door every day of the week), only then would we make alternative service recommendations.

I’m concerned that having CJK between me and my service provider could damage our good relationship. Should I be worried?

Definitely not! Just to be clear, CJK Services is not a buffer! You always maintain direct access to your service provider. We provide two services—one for you, the other for your service provider. Our experienced analysts ensure you only pay for “reasonable and customary” charges. And, our analysts provide “checks and balances” for the service manager—becoming his second set of eyes.

A reputable service provider wants to get it right, which is why the good ones embrace CJK Services’ fair and honest approach. Since CJK Services does not participate in any savings, our intentions are never questioned when discussing disputed invoice charges.

How do you price your services?

Your costs with CJK are based on a flat fee, per forklift, per month. Given the expert advice and insightful trend analysis we provide, and the fact that our clients’ savings virtually always exceeds our fees, CJK provides excellent value at a reasonable price.

My manufacturer offers analysis and management. Why shouldn’t I work with them?

For several reasons. Forklift manufacturers do just that…manufacture forklifts. Their network of branches and dealers sell and service forklifts, parts and rentals. Years of experience has taught us that all forklifts are not created equal, nor is service consistent.

As such, when we’re asked whose forklift a client should buy, CJK, in turn, always asks where the equipment will be located.* Based on that answer, CJK Services will make the best recommendation. By contrast, a given forklift dealer typically sells a particular brand or brands of forklifts. And realistically, those dealers are neither obligated nor can they be expected to recommend a superior service provider or better performing forklift!

CJK has no financial incentive to recommend one brand over another, but rather, the ideal brand and service provider, given your particular circumstances.

*Because we know, from experience, that the quality of service providers for a particular brand of equipment can vary widely from one area of the country to another, we may recommend different brands in different areas.

Other than cost savings, what’s the most important thing your service can deliver to me?

Predictability. By putting our extensive industry expertise to work in reviewing your repair bills, and conducting an in-depth economic analysis, we can tell you what you’re currently spending on your fleet, what you should be spending on it, and—if you follow our recommendations—what your forklift operating expense will be in the future. That predictability allows for accurate planning and budgeting.

I am a “report” kind of manager. I love to have a good handle on the different aspects of my operation, and a variety of operational reports helps me do that. Am I limited in the number of reports you’ll generate for me?

At CJK, the word “relationship” isn’t a buzzword; it’s how we operate. And building a strong relationship starts with being responsive to clients’ needs. So simply put, no, we don’t put limits on the number of reports you can have. At the outset, and as a foundation, we’ll provide a standard set of reports (historically, the most requested ones).

This business seems pretty straightforward to me. Why do I need someone like CJK?

Forklift fleet management is actually quite a bit more complicated than it appears on the surface. Effective forklift fleet management has to take into account and incorporate many diverse factors—from simple to highly complex—into our software program code in order to provide the data necessary to help you maximize your forklift fleet at the lowest possible cost. Comprehensive forklift and repair databases are required to ensure accurate benchmarking capabilities. A team of three experts is required: one to program, one who’s mastered all aspects of forklifts and a third who specializes in finance. The forklift expert needs to continually update the maintenance database using two sources—your company’s information and the industry data captured by CJK.

In addition, one team member is responsible for developing replacement parameters, many which will require modification as economic and financial climates change.

For comparison sake, if you were to attempt to create and maintain your own forklift fleet management information program, you could easily spend $300,000 to $400,000 or more annually to do so. And even after developing such a program, the lack of sufficiently robust forklift and repairs databases—the kind that CJK provides—would make accurate benchmarking and informed decision-making next to impossible.

I hear CJK talking about how they bridge the gap between the operations department and finance. What do you mean by that?

Operations is responsible for all fleet-related-operations costs. They get the bills, and this question: “Why are you spending all this money on fork trucks?” They have to justify those expenditures, but they don’t talk in language that a finance person can understand (i.e., discounted cash-flow, net present value, tax implications, etc.).

So, we act to, yes, bridge the gap between the two. Thanks to our ongoing oversight of invoices, coupled with our in-depth economic analysis of usage and repair trends, we can intervene on the operations department’s behalf, and explain to a finance person—by drawing on our forklift and repair databases—why it makes sense to approve this repair bill or that request for forklift replacement. And we do it in language the finance guy understands—language out of the realm of expertise of an operations or warehouse person.

$240,000: One Year’s Savings in Costly Short-Term Rental

Without tracking and oversight, short-term MHE rentals—typically, to fill in for units being repaired—can quickly go from six-week “stopgaps” to six-month money pits. Repairs frequently take far longer than promised, and what’s worse, those rentals often are either not returned on a timely basis, or the supplier conveniently forgets to pick them up—padding bills even further. In these scenarios, tracking provides the visibility to significantly reduce costs. In 2014, CJK’s tracking services on over $328,000 in short-term rentals yielded savings for our client of over $240,000 from the prior year.