Three individuals stand near a fleet of vehicles used by electrical contractors to visit their work sites. Dr. Amy Lewis is involved in a research project to optimize the management of these fleets by electrical contracting companies. — Dr. Amy Lewis, assistant professor in the School of Fire Protection and Emergency Management, is involved in a research project studying ways to optimize the management of the fleet of vehicles used by electrical contracting companies to send their workers to job sites.

FCEM research focuses on optimizing fleet management for electrical contractors

Thursday, August 7, 2025

Media Contact: Tanner Holubar | Communications Specialist | 405-744-2065 | tanner.holubar@okstate.edu

Electrical contractors play an important role in how our cities function daily. From working on large-scale industrial construction projects to residential or commercial jobs, these contractors ensure our infrastructure is sustainable.

These contractors are professionals licensed to install electrical infrastructure and spend a lot of time on the road, putting mileage on company vehicles.

But there are gaps in how these companies manage their fleet of vehicles, such as a lack of detailed benchmarks on which types of vehicles are used, how vehicles are assigned and how they are maintained.

The National Electrical Contractors Association supports the advocacy, education and industry standards that contribute to the electrical construction industry. Part of that support is through ELECTRI, a part of NECA that funds research initiatives.

ELECTRI considers several research proposals on an annual basis, selecting a handful to be funded. These projects are selected based on what can benefit electrical contractors the most.

A team of researchers led by Dr. Amy Lewis, assistant professor in the School of Fire, Construction and Emergency Management, is part of a project that was selected by ELECTRI members to be funded for one year.

The team is undertaking the endeavor of analyzing how electrical contractors manage their fleets. Their research will result in recommendations made to companies to make better decisions about their fleet management. These fleets are crucial, impacting the scheduling of projects, workforce deployment and client satisfaction.

Dr. Amy Lewis smiles for a portrait photo. — Dr. Amy Lewis.

Employees are normally assigned a vehicle that they use for the duration of time they are with that company. The vehicles are then used to make many trips to work sites, with some making long treks that pull lots of miles on the vehicle. It is then up to the individual company what happens with these vehicles, whether they are maintained or retired after a certain amount of use.

To contribute to improving fleet management during this comprehensive research, the team will:

Analyze typical fleet sizes, vehicle types and role-based vehicle assignment practices.
Benchmark total fleet costs relative to company revenue and provide detailed breakdowns of fleet-related expenditures.
Examine prevalent leasing versus ownership strategies, including typical lease terms and vehicle disposal policies.
Investigate maintenance management practices, specifically comparing in-house maintenance versus outsourced services.
Assess current fuel mix strategies, evaluate plans and barriers related to EV adoption and discuss sustainability challenges.
Explore trends in fleet size reduction and the shift toward employee vehicle allowances.
Identify the frequency and nature of fleet-related litigation and risk management practices.

This project will look to help fill the gaps identified through research. The focus is on producing usable data and information specific to the electrical contractor industry. This will then allow recommendations to be made for electrical contractors to make more informed decisions.

The experience of meeting and talking with electrical contractors has been enjoyable for Lewis and it has served as experiential learning for students involved in the project.

Two graduate assistants helped develop the survey, which provided them with experience working within specific research parameters, providing CEAT students with experience working in one of the most important areas of American infrastructure.

“Ultimately, I think it’s important that we keep the cost of construction as economical as possible,” Lewis said. “There is always a huge amount of construction that needs to be done. Infrastructure is part of our national security, and if we can figure out a way to build it faster, better, cheaper, then companies are going to be more competitive.”

As part of an effort to help improve an underdeveloped aspect of construction management, this is research that will go a long way toward benefiting Oklahoma and the nation.