It seems that with every day that passes, another startup appears and claims that it can solve a problem or offer a life-altering service — like Booster Fuels. Founded in 2014 by Frank Mycroft, Diego Netto, and Tyler Raugh, Booster Fuels has successfully managed to make an everyday task magically disappear from your to-do list. Booster Fuels brings the gas station to your vehicles for the same price as a gas station. Its team members will fill up vehicles overnight or at a requested time and bill weekly.               

When I was a public fleet manager, the main focus was always keeping the fleet running, but a second “major” focus always was fuel. In my previous roles at two public agencies, the agencies owned fuel sites, both of which were old. In both roles, I had problems with aged infrastructure, and a simple $800 job in one location turned into a project that ended up costing just over $12,000. Another significant event I once came across was replacing the fuel management system — that one came in several thousand dollars over budget because of underground cabling issues. I could go on and on about horror stories of aged fueling infrastructure, but I think you get the picture.       

In addition to the state of your infrastructure, there are other fueling related issues that fleet managers need to consider. Here are just a few:

• Loss of employee efficiency

• Fuel theft

• Damage to fuel pumps and equipment

• DEQ testing

• Soil contamination

• Fuel contamination

• Accurate fuel records

Sure, having fuel delivered to you may not work in every application, but there are some that you may consider. If your organization has a motor pool, you can offer a nearly hassle-free service to the user — they simply reserve the vehicle, drive it, and return it. In this case the vehicles could be fueled after hours, and you would receive an electronic bill. Oftentimes police departments hot-seat their vehicles and visit gas stations at least once every couple of days, Booster could be waiting at the police station and during a shift change — fill’er up. This would allow the police to worry about public safety and not refueling. Another possible use case for Booster Fuels are segments of your fleet that are not parked near organization-owned fuel sites, such as remote fire stations or parks vehicles.

For now, Booster Fuels is working with large companies such as Facebook, Yahoo, Oracle, and eBay and currently service the San Francisco and Dallas/Fort Worth area. The company is looking to expand into other major metro areas and soon plan to start working with government fleets.

Currently, Booster is only delivering unleaded gasoline but may start looking into delivering diesel and potentially some alternative fuels such as renewable diesel and E-85. Before it can tap into the government fleet market, Booster is working on some key integration technologies that will help it communicate with fleet information systems.

Keep an eye on Booster Fuels — its technology paired with its ultra-convenient service is a market disruptor.