Total Cost of Ownership: Steel is lowering the total cost of running a ride-hailing fleet

We are using High-Strength and Advanced High-Strength Steel technologies to ensure that the Steel E-Motive vehicle design has a low TCO from purchase through to end-of-life. This will allow ride hailing and ride sharing fleet owners to make informed purchasing decisions which will enable them to operate a profitable service with a quality, affordable end user experience.

What is total cost of ownership?

Total cost of ownership is a calculation of direct and indirect costs of owning a vehicle throughout its lifetime. TCO includes a number of costs to factor into the final calculation. The first is the cost of purchasing the vehicle. Purchase price will take into account how much the vehicle cost to design and manufacture, from the price of raw materials through to the cost of energy required to produce the final product.

Then there are the costs associated with keeping the vehicle operational throughout its useful life. These include the all the costs of keeping the vehicle operating on a day-to-day basis including fuel or energy prices, insurance, and taxes. They also include maintenance and repair costs, from addressing general wear and tear to more extensive work if the vehicle is involved in an accident. And finally, there are also costs incurred when the vehicle’s service life comes to an end such as the costs associated with the repurposing or recycling of the vehicle, and depreciation.

Understanding the Total Cost of Ownership is essential for fleet operators who want to run a successful ride-hailing business

Why is total cost of ownership important for taxi fleet management?

Total cost of ownership is particularly important for Mobility Service Providers because they need to deliver passengers or goods from point A to point B in a safe, comfortable and reliable manner, whilst generating a profit from their service.

There are many unique considerations when calculating the TCO of a ride hailing or ride sharing fleet. Over their serviceable life, these vehicles will do significantly more mileage than a personal automotive. The increased number of passengers using these vehicles mean that they are subject to more wear and tear. As such, ride-hailing fleets can expect higher maintenance and operational costs, all of which can eat into profits.

Steel is reducing the TCO for the Steel E-Motive vehicle

The Steel E-Motive program is developing a fully autonomous mobility-as-a-service solution. The use of steel in our design is helping us to keep the total cost of ownership as low as possible for Mobility Service Providers.

Steel is the lowest cost automotive structural material. This is partly because it has the lowest energy consumption in the manufacturing process. This means that it’s cheaper to manufacturer than alternative solutions. This brings down the initial cost of purchase.

Steel is the lowest cost material for automotive structures

The use of steel can also contribute to reducing the operating costs of the vehicle. The lighter the vehicle, the less energy is required to keep the vehicle moving. However, it’s important to ensure that lightweighting isn’t done at the expense of structural safety in the event of a crash. The innovative automotive steel portfolio provides the only materials solution which is both lightweight whilst enabling global crash and safety requirements to be met.

The use of steel in the body structure of the Steel E-Motive vehicle will also contribute to reducing maintenance costs, and extending the lifespan of the vehicle. Steel is durable and can withstand the constant pounding and cyclic stresses that a vehicle endures during its lifetime operation. Using steel will ensure that these vehicles will be able to withstand the demanding duty cycles and extended up-time required for mobility-as-service solutions. Steel is also easily repairable and so using it in the vehicle structure contributes to lowering the repair and maintenance costs of vehicles.

Finally, steel can also lower the costs associated with the end of service life of the vehicle. There is a large and established, global recycling infrastructure for steel products. Not only does this make steel cost-effective to reuse and recycle, but it also makes it more environmentally sustainable.

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