The Paderborn district is one of the most populous districts in East Westphalia, with approximately 316,000 residents. Department 10, Central Services, is responsible for managing the district’s vehicle fleet. The fleet comprises a total of 66 vehicles: 59 passenger cars, including 18 electric vehicles, as well as bicycles and e-scooters. The vehicles are distributed among the main location in Paderborn and various administrative units and branch offices. About 500 active users currently have access to the fleet, and this number is expected to rise to 700 in the future.

Digital Fleet Management for Public Administration

How the Paderborn District Re-Tendered and Digitized Its Vehicle Management System

A Changing Fleet: The Paderborn District Is Focusing on a New Direction

The Paderborn district was already using a telematics-based fleet management system. With growing demands for transparency, automation, and electric mobility, the digital fleet management system needed to be built on a future-proof foundation.
Clear Requirements, Broad Framework

As part of the request for proposals, the Paderborn district set out clear requirements for a new system. They were looking for a solution that would centrally manage the entire fleet, all drivers, and all processes.
Transparency, Self-Service, and Digital Control

The focus was on transparency regarding costs and processes, self-service bookings by employees, automated vehicle pickup and return, and data-protection-compliant tracking of vehicle usage via telematics. These requirements were complemented by digital driver’s license verification and comprehensive analytics capabilities for active fleet management.

As a local government agency, our goal in putting out a request for proposals for a fleet management system was to strike a balance between efficient management of our entire fleet and smooth day-to-day operations. Today, the new system provides us with the necessary data-driven transparency, giving us a reliable, comprehensive overview of our fleet and enabling us to use our available resources optimally and responsibly. At the same time, the system remains intuitive and straightforward for our approximately 500 colleagues to use in their day-to-day work.

Adrian Damm
Paderborn District Logistics and Central Administrative Services

AZOWO in Action: From Booking to Key Pickup

Site Management and Role & Permissions Framework

As a district with multiple locations and administrative units, the Paderborn District needed a solution that accurately reflected this structure. In the AZOWO Mobility Cloud, the individual offices are represented as organizational structures. Within these structures, employees can reserve vehicles, with the option to customize settings. The permissions model thus reflects the district’s actual organizational structure.
Pool Vehicle Management and Vehicle Reservations

Most of the vehicles are available as shared fleet vehicles. A vehicle-class-based booking algorithm assigns the appropriate vehicle for each request and ensures optimal fleet utilization. Bookings can be made both via a web browser and through the AZOWO driver app. After a booking is confirmed, employees receive a confirmation email with a PIN code, which is assigned shortly before the trip begins and unlocks access to the key cabinet.
Telematics and Hardware

OBD dongles are used to ensure complete recording of vehicle data; they transmit mileage and ignition status in real time. Keys are dispensed via Masunt key cabinets: The stored PIN is emailed to the driver and unlocks the compartment at the time of booking. This combination of telematics and hardware enables fully automated vehicle pickup and return without the need for a face-to-face handoff.
Compliance: Driver's License Verification and Logbook

Driver's licenses are verified using a stationary scanner at the main location. Employees can scan their driver's licenses themselves; the verification process runs automatically and the results are stored directly in the system. For vehicles assigned to specific employees, a digital logbook is maintained, ensuring transparent and data-protection-compliant documentation of vehicle usage.

Here's a step-by-step guide

Put Fleet Management Out to Public Bid

The Paderborn District has demonstrated how a well-thought-out request for proposals can serve as the foundation for a successful system implementation. AZOWO has compiled a free guide for public institutions that need to structure similar requirements and incorporate them into a procurement process. It provides guidance from the needs analysis through the requirements specification to vendor selection and the go-live.

Download the guide for free now