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Cost & fuel

Tonne-Kilometre

One tonne carried one kilometre — the unit that lets loads of different weight and distance be compared.

Also calledTonne-kmTKMFreight tonne km

A tonne-kilometre is one tonne of cargo moved one kilometre. Multiply the payload by the distance and you get a measure of transport work actually performed, which is what makes it possible to compare a 5-tonne load over 400 km with a 20-tonne load over 100 km.

Cost per tonne-kilometre is a fairer efficiency measure than cost per kilometre because it accounts for how much was actually carried. A vehicle running full has a far better cost per tonne-km than the same vehicle running half empty, even though their cost per kilometre is nearly identical.

It is also the standard unit for carbon reporting in freight. Emissions factors are published per tonne-kilometre, so any customer asking for the carbon footprint of their freight is implicitly asking you to compute tonne-kilometres per consignment.

Same category

Cost & fuel

The unit economics every fleet is ultimately judged on.

AdBlue (DEF)

The urea solution injected into the exhaust of BS-VI diesel engines to convert NOx into nitrogen and water.

Cost Per Kilometre (CPK)

Total cost of running a vehicle divided by distance covered — the number every freight rate should be tested against.

DPF (Diesel Particulate Filter)

The exhaust filter that traps soot from a diesel engine and periodically burns it off in a regeneration cycle.

Freight Rate Per Km

What a customer pays per kilometre — the price side of the equation that cost per km has to clear.

Fuel Card

A payment card restricted to fuel purchases, giving fleets controlled spend and itemised transaction data.

Fuel Theft

Diesel removed from a vehicle or never delivered into it — typically the largest single controllable loss in a fleet.

Idling

Running the engine while stationary — burning fuel, accruing engine hours and producing no distance at all.

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