When purchasing fleet management software, fleet operations often have two choices when selecting a solution -- Software as a Service (SaaS) or on-premise.
On-prem is when you purchase the software from a provider and install it locally onto your fleet operation’s devices. The software – and corresponding hardware -- is then largely maintained by your operation.
SaaS is a subscription-based model where the solution is hosted by the software provider and lives on the cloud. Fleet operations access it on internet-connected devices through log-in credentials. In this solution, the software provider maintains and updates the solution.
In addition to more flexibility, there are also cost benefits to subscribing to a SaaS model. Take a look at some of the ways Software as a Service can save your fleet operation money.
SaaS solutions can cost less to operate than on-prem solutions.
Whereas on-premise requires the software to be purchased and installed on each individual computer or device, SaaS models only require operations to purchase user licenses. Employees can then log into the software solution via an internet-connected device with their username and password. This model reduces the amount of labor needed to install and on-board the software.
Unlike on-prem solutions, which are purchased once and then owned by the operation, SaaS subscriptions are purchased for specific time intervals. This eliminates the financial risk associated with purchasing expensive software.
Using a SaaS model requires less hardware than on-premise solutions.
With on-prem, fleet operations need to purchase the software, workstation computers, servers, server licenses, backup storage, and potentially other elements to allow the software to run as it is designed.
With a SaaS model, the software is hosted by the software provider on the cloud. This eliminates the need for operations to purchase a hard copy of the software, new devices to install the program on, and servers.
When using on-prem software, fleet operations are responsible for regular maintenance and upgrades to the software. With a SaaS subscription, the software provider takes care of this work. This eliminates extra labor hours for the operation – and an IT team -- and can also eliminate potential down-time for staff members as updates are made on the software or devices.
In a SaaS model, the software provider handles the maintenance, upgrades and releases. This means fleet operations have less of a need for IT resources and a database administrator. This can allow the operation’s IT team to focus on other projects and not get bogged down by maintaining the fleet management software.