How Slick Combines AI and Skilled People to Improve Fleet Uptime
Fleet uptime depends on more than identifying a maintenance problem. When fault codes, service records, parts orders, and repairs live in disconnected systems, even routine work can leave vehicles waiting. Connecting that information with the people who can act on it helps fleets keep trucks ready for their next shift.
In Episode 225 of the Commercial Vehicle Pro Podcast, host Candy McCollum talks with Paul Gilmore, President and Co-Founder of Slick, and Brady Gilmore, Senior Vice President of Business Operations and Technology at Slick, about bringing those pieces together.
Their approach combines mobile maintenance, service coordination, and connected technology around one priority: fleet uptime.
Technology Identifies the Problem. People Solve It.
A dashboard can flag a maintenance issue, but it takes a skilled technician to make the repair.
Paul explains how Slick pairs its proprietary software, TrueView, with dedicated service coordinators and mobile service vans. Technicians inspect and repair fleet assets on-site during off-hours, helping operators address issues before vehicles are needed for their next shift.
Driver web applications and technician tablets bring inspection information into the process, giving the service team the data it needs to coordinate the work.
The value of connecting that information extends beyond visibility. As explored in how Geotab turns fleet intelligence into action, vehicle data becomes more useful when it reaches the tools and workflows teams use to make maintenance and operating decisions.
Slick also uses service-level commitments to define expectations. Paul discusses targets that include:
- 98% vehicle availability
- 95% preventive maintenance compliance
- Issue acknowledgment within 180 minutes
Transparent monthly budget reviews add another layer of accountability, helping fleet operators understand maintenance spending alongside service performance.
Putting AI to Work in Fleet Maintenance
Brady describes AI as a tool for helping employees work across disconnected systems and spend less time gathering information manually.
The conversation explores Model Context Protocol (MCP) and how AI agents can interact with connected business tools and data sources. For fleet teams, potential applications include querying operational information, preparing reports, and identifying maintenance trends.
Instead of repeatedly exporting spreadsheets and assembling reports by hand, employees can use these tools to support their analysis and follow-up.
This approach reflects a broader shift toward bringing fleet information into everyday business tools. CVBNetwork’s coverage of Geotab’s AI Connector for fleets offers another example of how MCP can connect vehicle data with AI-supported workflows.
For Slick, the emphasis is on expanding the capacity of experienced people. Company knowledge and operational context help make AI useful, while human oversight remains part of the process.
Keeping Vehicles Ready for the Next Shift
Preventive maintenance works best when teams can identify a problem, coordinate service, and complete the work before it disrupts the schedule.
Slick’s off-hours service model is designed around that sequence. Rather than separating inspection data from the repair process, its software, coordinators, and technicians work together to help prepare vehicles for their next shift.
That proactive approach matters across maintenance categories. In Cold Weather, Low PSI: How Winter Silently Eats Commercial Uptime, SimpleTire’s Kristin Nyce discusses how routine tire checks and advance planning can help fleets avoid preventable roadside disruptions.
More Options for Regional Fleets
Dedicated maintenance infrastructure and custom technology have often required resources beyond the reach of smaller operators.
Paul and Brady discuss how mobile service and more accessible technology can give regional and mid-sized fleets additional ways to coordinate maintenance, connect information, and support vehicle availability.
The takeaway is practical: improving uptime requires both better information and the people who can act on it. Technology supports the work; skilled service teams keep the vehicles moving.
For more conversations with industry leaders, explore CVBNetwork’s Commercial Vehicle Pro Podcast episodes and videos.
About Slick
Slick combines mobile fleet maintenance, dedicated service coordination, and proprietary technology to help commercial operators keep vehicles ready for work.
Its managed maintenance offering, UpTime, brings together driver reports, OEM maintenance schedules, fleet manager input, inspections, and optional telematics data. Slick’s TruView platform supports service visibility, scheduling, documentation, and reporting, while technicians perform maintenance and repairs on-site during off-hours.
Learn more about Slick’s fleet maintenance services.
Episode 225 Show Notes
Host: Candy McCollum
Guests: Paul Gilmore, President and Co-Founder of Slick; Brady Gilmore, Senior Vice President of Business Operations and Technology of Slick
In this episode:
- Why disconnected maintenance systems contribute to downtime
- How Slick combines TrueView software with service coordinators and mobile technicians
- The role of off-hours, on-site maintenance in vehicle readiness
- How service-level commitments help establish accountability
- Practical uses for AI agents and MCP in fleet operations
- Why skilled employees remain central to fleet uptime
- What mobile service and connected technology can mean for regional fleets
