Remote work sounds convenient to most people. Until you have to visit somewhere remote, of course. This is especially the case for businesses who operate on a siteworks model, where they have to attend many different areas of the country and at short notice. For example, a utilities or construction firm might have to go deep into rural areas for development, to help clients with investments in untouched land.

It costs money to get there, and in some cases, can feel like you’re putting together a military operation thanks to the sheer number of logistics involved. It’s not an easy task, but it is one that matters and requires a careful focus to get right.

So far, so good. But is there a way to make this more convenient? Or at the very least, could save money at scale without depriving your trusted staff of the resources they need to attend to such environments? It’s not always clear. In this post, we’ll discuss our thoughts on it, and how to gain dollars from sense when planning your next remote sortie:

Consider The Transportation Of Personnel & Equipment

Saving money will generally demand that you carefully plan how both the team and the gear get to the site. Too many vehicles making separate trips is a waste of fuel and employee time, after all, and so consideration should be given to streamlining trips as much as possible, perhaps using larger vans or trucks that can carry multiple people and their necessary tools in one go. 

The routes taken should also be planned, because traffic or roads you can’t drive on because of the category of vehicle you’re taking will only add to the cost, which simply burns through the budget. This neatly leads into our next point:

Pre-Plan On-Site Fuel Supplies

Fuel is a large expense for construction and utility firms working in any area, let alone a remote place where thousands of pounds worth of equipment and staff need to be hauled each day, so only using public stations for refueling can be very expensive.

You’ll find that a better option is to begin bringing the fuel directly to the site. For example, using FHG Fueling – portable fuel tank rentals will definitely ensure that machinery and vehicles can be topped up right where they are working. That keeps equipment running and also prevents wasted time on refuelling runs or worse, being stranded and waiting for backup to help out. If you’re focused on managing this supply effectively, perhaps using capable inventory tracking, it should limit any chance of shortages and guarantee that there’s always enough power to keep the project on schedule. It’s a preventative cost, but used at scale can be an operational one too.

Really Hone In On Your Communication

If you’re not careful, logistics can be harmed by communication that hasn’t been correctly managed. Imagine if someone is onsite, dealing with spotty internet connection, and can’t quickly access a blueprint, a safety regulation, or communicate with a manager back at the office. It’s going to limit what they can do and how fast work can go on.

Satellite internet is a good investment here, as are tools that work well in low signal areas, as this can mean no matter what, your staff can keep going. There’s a reason radios are still so popular.

With this advice, we hope you can avoid operational issues working on remote sites.